Mar 14 2014

Throw me somethin’ Mista!

Posted on March 14, 2014 by traylee

We decided it was time to get Buggie (4 years old) & Bitty (2 years old) back home for their first real Mardi Gras this year. We had planned to do so long before my unexpected surgery and almost thought we would have to wait until next year since I wasn’t fully healed. But seeing how excited my lil Buggie was, there was no way I could let her down. So we went, knowing I would have to take it a little easy. It was a fun filled vacation with my love and our four lil monsters to say the least, regardless of my aches and pains. We were able to see lots of family & even a few friends. We made it to almost every place we had on our things to do list. Ate at all of our favorite local spots and even tried out a new to us old local place in the Quarter one night, The Old Coffee Pot on St. Peter’s. We enjoyed several nightly parades with family all around the city. My dad even got to enjoy a parade with all six of his grand kiddos together one night. I think my favorite part was hearing Buggie scream “throw me somethin’ Mista!” over and over again, even when a float was no where near us. A memory I am sure I will never forget. We loved watching our lil monsters’ excitement as they collected a wide variety of fun throws from each parade.

One night paw-paw watched our three little ladies so that along with my cousin and her husband we could take Budah to the French Quarter for a few hours. While most people enjoyed their night on Bourbon Street, after a nice dinner on St. Peter’s, we opted to take a stroll down our favorite street instead, Decatur St, and did a little shopping and sight seeing. Of course my dad knowing me all too well texted me pictures and video clips of all of the fun he and our little ones were having! And I’m pretty sure none of us will forget the hysterical taxi ride to and from the Quarter that night!

Then as if our vacay wasn’t rad enough, we got to meet two of our fave Texans in my hometown and bring them to a down da road fave, Charlie’s. Scott & Ryan loved it, and our lil monsters were thrilled to get to see their Guncles too!

My love & I got to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary in NOLA, which was coincidentally Lundi Gras Day, surrounded by our four lil monsters and a few of our fave people. Though our big celebration is still to come in late May and I can hardly contain my excitement! I simply adore this man of mine and am being spoiled far too much this year for our anniversary!

As always, New Orleans’ crazy weather dished out a very cold and rainy day for Mardi Gras. Oddly enough we weren’t overly let down to not get to spend that day in Metairie on the parade route. By then I had pushed myself far more than I should have and it was time to slow down anyway. So after watching some of the Metairie parades and Uptown parades on tv at my cousin’s house we all headed out to Deanie’s Seafood for a special Mardi Gras Day lunch. All of that freezing cold rain washing out our day didn’t dampen our spirits at all, we were so happy to be back home. We finally slowed down a bit after a full week of non stop fun and enjoyed a leisurely last full day there.

On our way home we stopped along the way for a quick visit with one of my favorite cousin’s, Joe. Buggie loves every chance she gets to visit with her Paran!

When we got home Buggie & Bunny were thrilled to bring lots of Mardi Gras beads and trinkets to share with their classmates. I love the generous little souls we are raising!

Just some of the hundreds of pictures from our fun filled week! We can’t wait until next Mardi Gras!

Feb 17 2014

“20 things a mother should tell her son” blog

Posted on February 17, 2014 by traylee

I love stumbling upon these types of blogs through Facebook or Pinterest and being able to share them with my children, this one is for our only son. I think we’ve covered all of twenty of these facts, but as he is about to turn 18, a good reminder never hurts, right?

“20 Things a Mother Should Tell Her Son”

1. Play a sport. It will teach you how to win honorably, lose gracefully, respect authority, work with others, manage your time and stay out of trouble. And maybe even throw or catch.

2. You will set the tone for the sexual relationship, so don’t take something away from her that you can’t give back.

3. Use careful aim when you pee. Somebody’s got to clean that up, you know.

4. Save money when you’re young because you’re going to need it some day.

5. Allow me to introduce you to the dishwasher, oven, washing machine, iron, vacuum, mop and broom. Now please go use them.

6. Pray and be a spiritual leader.

7. Don’t ever be a bully and don’t ever start a fight, but if some idiot clocks you, please defend yourself.

8. Your knowledge and education is something that nobody can take away from you.

9. Treat women kindly. Forever is a long time to live alone and it’s even longer to live with somebody who hates your guts.

10. Take pride in your appearance.

11. Be strong and tender at the same time.

12. A woman can do everything that you can do. This includes her having a successful career and you changing diapers at 3 A.M. Mutual respect is the key to a good relationship.

13. “Yes ma’am” and “yes sir” still go a long way.

14. The reason that they’re called “private parts” is because they’re “private”. Please do not scratch them in public.

15. Peer pressure is a scary thing. Be a good leader and others will follow.

16. Bringing her flowers for no reason is always a good idea.

17. Be patriotic.

18. Potty humor isn’t the only thing that’s humorous.

19. Please choose your spouse wisely. My daughter-in-law will be the gatekeeper for me spending time with you and my grandchildren.

20. Remember to call your mother because I might be missing you.

Feb 14 2014

Positive conversation hearts

Posted on February 14, 2014 by traylee

I had decided I wanted to do something special for our lil monsters this month. Starting on February 1st through Valentine’s day I decided I was going to hang a heart with a special message for each of them. Sort of like the little conversation heart candies. It turned out to mean more to Bunny than I could have imagined, as I ended up having to have a major surgery that has landed me in bed for basically this entire month. Since I knew I would be stuck in bed, I decided to hang them all the night before my surgery. I gave each of our monsters their own color heart and wrote their nicknames and dates on them and mixed them all up. I hung them on three doors in our home. Each day they were able to look for their heart for the day and see what message I had left for them. Each unique for each child. Life gets so busy and it saddens me to think we as parents can so easily caught up in parenting that I never want to risk the chance of only pointing out bad behavior. In doing this they had fourteen days in a row of positive notes full of love and some of the things about them and things they do that make us proud to be their parents. Granted it would take me a lot more than fourteen days to tell them everything about them that makes me proud to be their mama. But this is a nifty start as well as a cute Valentine’s decoration for our home to celebrate the month of love!

Some of their messages….

“You are my sunshine!”
“You are my favorite blue eyed girl!”
“I love your big brown eyes!”
“You have a big heart”
“You are always helpful”
“You are my favorite 2 year old”
“You are my favorite 4 year old”
“You are my favorite 8 year old”
“You are my favorite son” (he’s our only son)
“I love watching you skateboard!”
“I love watching you dance!”
“You are loved!”
“You are beautiful”
“You are handsome”
“I am proud to be your mama!”

And for the first night that I knew I would be in the hospital…

“I miss you!”

We all enjoyed it so much that I think this will likely become a new tradition for our little family. I adore our little monsters and love finding new ways to express it to them!

Feb 2 2014

Denny’s & Spider-Man nails

Posted on February 2, 2014 by traylee

Woke up early for a date with my son. Budah took me out for breakfast at Denny’s and while we had planned on going to Bussey’s, we opted to not allow the surprise cold wet weather ruin our morning and went for some indoor shopping instead. As I sat across that table from him enjoying our conversation and him cracking me up as usual, I couldn’t get over how much of a young man my little boy is becoming. So proud of this fella!

After our mama/son date we came home and released a balloon for what would have been my maw-maw’s 87th birthday. Since we are over 600 miles away from her grave this has been our tradition since we moved to Texas many years ago.

Then tackled some housework and got this house clean from top to bottom. Almost all of the laundry completely caught up. Ballet & tap things ready for the girls this week. Just need to make some groceries, make some freezer meals, and the girls’ class valentine’s, and I think I am as ready as I possibly can be for my surgery. Though I don’t think it’s possible to prepare myself for the disappointment of not being able to pick up my babies for the next month. Already anxious to be back on my feet for our vacation we have planned soon!

Tonight Buggie somehow managed to stay up an hour past when she normally crashes. When I asked her what was wrong she informed me she was waiting for me to paint her finger nails red, yellow, and blue like Spider-Man. She did the same thing last night waiting for me to paint her tootsies when we got home from Bunny’s banquet, but didn’t want her fingers painted then. So I quickly gave her her Spider-Man finger nails and got my little super hero off to bed. We are both looking forward to our special little mama & Buggie date when she gets home from school tomorrow!

Jan 29 2014

Broken Hello Kitty coffee cup

Posted on January 29, 2014 by traylee

Today has been a really strange day for me. I mean I have shed more tears than an emotional teenage girl would in a whole week. For anything really and at the drop of a dime. I realize it’s because I have a lot of things on my mind and to be stressed about. But frustrating none the less because I have so much more to be thankful for and far too many blessings to count.

So this evening while our son was doing a chore and putting a few dishes away he accidentally dropped a coffee mug and it shattered. Thankfully he didn’t get cut and it obviously isn’t the end of the world. Only it’s kind of been my favorite mug for about the last ten months. Not my hello kitty mug that I found back home in The Quarter that is not only pink, and super cute, but holds the perfect amount of coffee! Insert more tears. I know, really more tears than a teenage girl. So I dry my eyes and post on Facebook a “that moment when your favorite hello kitty coffee mug that you found in the quarter accidentally got broken by my chore doing teen” post. Then in less than a hours time my old best friend that I lived three doors down from growing up replied telling me to post a picture of the mug that he will be in the quarter this weekend and he will pick me a new one up! Then moments later another friend that I’ve known since middle school says the same thing! So I look through my Instagram pictures, because clearly I have a picture of my favorite coffee cup there. No, I have two pictures of it, actually one was even of my son handing me the coffee he made me in it on his own one morning. Shocked & thankful to say the least. Who knows, after this weekend I just may have a replacement mug and all will be right in the world, right? And obviously I have some pretty rad friends if I don’t say so myself. Four whole minutes later my friend Heather replied to the post again. She had found and ordered an identical hello kitty mug and it will arrive next week! Insert tears again. Yes, partly because I really loved that coffee cup. But really because once again I am reminded of the amazing people I have in my life! I adore this lady! When I asked her what I owe her she said nothing and said “you do so much for everyone”. Okay, really someone get me a box of Kleenex the tears are flowing!

I am a firm believer in paying it forward. It is something we always strive to teach our lil monsters. I’ve experienced this one other time when the car in front of me payed for my coffee at Starbucks. I kind of love doing the same for others. If I see someone is having a bad day I love being given the opportunity to brighten their day. Heather was certainly that source of brightness that I so needed today. Thanks kitten, I love you to pieces!

Jan 29 2014

Protected: A letter to my 4 lil monsters…

Posted on January 29, 2014 by traylee

Jan 4 2014

Tons of hugs

Posted on January 4, 2014 by traylee

All of our monsters are tucked in their beds tonight. I just don’t feel complete if they aren’t all home. It was absolutely priceless to see Budah getting tons of hugs from his three little sisters as soon as we got home. These monsters have the ability to bicker like no other, but at the end of the day there is no doubting the bond and love these four share. I can’t help but to feel blessed beyond measure.

Jan 4 2014

Waiting for Budah…

Posted on January 4, 2014 by traylee

As I wait in the airport for our son to come home from visiting his dad I can’t help but to think about him and how much he’s changed and grown over the years.

Yes, he is quite the smart mouth at home that knows how to push his mama’s buttons like no other. He will likely be driving me bat shit crazy by days end. But not having his now towering over me hugs as he teases me relentlessly about how short I am is something I really miss while he is away. I may vent about his sarcastic teenage mouth, but make no mistake he is also the amazing hard working young man that I am proud to call my son. This trip he spent almost every waking hour in the woods waiting for that deer, two of which he proudly took down (poor Bambi). It was the longest time in his entire life that I went without hearing his voice or seeing his face. I know as he gets older this will be something I will likely have to grow used to. But oh my word and I’m so excited to see our lil man shortly.

Waiting in this airport is an instant flash back to me from when I was flying home from visiting my mom. Everyone would be so anxious to see me, as would I. But there was always that tinge of pain leaving her behind. It breaks my heart to know my son is surely feeling that same pain now as he gets off of his plane to come home.

Our house just isn’t the same without this fella! And I sure hope he is ready to be tackled by his three little sisters who are anxiously waiting for him!

Now for an embarrassing in the middle of the airport picture by a way excited mama!

Jan 1 2014

2013 summed up, Happy New Years!

Posted on January 1, 2014 by traylee

I’ve been reading everyone’s New Years resolutions and reflections of the last year on different social medias and blogs. I can’t say I have ever really made resolutions. I’ve honestly never really been one to follow through with them. But I did enjoy going through one of my apps and looking at pictures of our last year and I can’t believe all that we squeezed in to it! It’s been a year full of blessings, family visitors, traveling, bonding, gatherings, parties, ending of toxic relationships, gaining of new friends, and so much more. I have to say it’s been one of our better years and I look forward to what the future holds for our family. Here are just some of our moments in 2013…
1. Bitty’s first trip on a plane. Thankfully nursing kept her content nearly the entire time.
2. Bitty’s first time in snow. A massive amount of snow at that. I’ve never really seen a tremendous amount of snow until Ohio myself and I’m sure this southern gal stuck out like a sore thumb!
3. I spent my birthday traveling all day with Bitty and couldn’t wait to get home to my little family.
4. Much to my surprise, my dad was waiting for me at the airport! He had flown out to be here for my birthday & Bitty’s.
5. After a very long day of traveling I came home to a little birthday celebration with my family. It couldn’t have turned out to be a more perfect day.
6.Bitty’s 1st birthday! She had an owl themed party. And loved her smash cake!
7. Naps, a rare thing for this daddy & mama, but certainly a welcomed treat especially if it’s with one of our monsters.
8. There are so many things for our family to give thank for. No matter how busy life gets, I adore the fact that our monsters know to stop and pray daily.
9. Buggie decided she was a boy and wanted to chop off her long beautiful curls, and so it is.
10. Bitty may have far too many toys, yet nothing is more entertaining than our kitchen cabinets.
11. Mardi Gras Day is just another day in Texas. But I got my monsters a king cake and made them a traditional Cajun meal too.
12. My sweet sweet Valentine.
13. Our first annual Valentine’s for maw-maw’s and paw-paw’s. With the help of family and friends our monsters delivered 209 handmade Valentine’s to a local nursing home. I’m not sure who enjoyed the visit more.
14. Matt’s cousin Rachel came to town and spent the night with us. We won’t talk about how she threw out her back that night:/ But I will mention how much I adore this kind hearted fun lady!
15. Lots of music is played in this home.
16. Oh the confusion of teaching Buggie this is NOT the finger to point with. Nothing sweeter than the innocence of a child.
17. We avidly support EBF (extended breast feeding).
18. We did our first annual 4 lil monsters Easter for Children’s Hospital. Along with the help of my monsters, some of my friends & family, Bunny’s class, & half price books we were able to make and donate over 100 pillows, hats, blankets, handmade cards, and three large boxes of books to every single child at our local Methodist hospital. Even more rewarding was being able to deliver said gifts to those precious children with my son and my husband. I will never forget some of those sweet faces and the happiness something so little brought them during such a scary time in their lives.
19. Buggie decided to pretend to take a nap, while she was really trying to give their barbies a bath in their garbage can. Sometimes it’s not easy to keep a straight face while correcting our monsters.
20. We got rid of all the toxic chemicals and cleaning supplies in our home and went all natural and started making our own.
21. My B-Boo and Nannie Boo to some of our monsters came out for a surprise visit. I simply adore my time with her.
22. We enjoyed a year of baby wearing our little bambino.
23. And our toddler too.
24. I discovered I needed glasses. The very next day Budah was prescribed some too. He wears his every day. I haven’t exactly been a good example in that department.
25. Lots of selfies happened.
26. We took our lil ladies to see Yo Gabba Gabba and Daddy & I may have been just as stoked about “Biz’s beat of the day”.
27. We spent spring break on the coast . This was also Bitty’s first time in the sand. She wasn’t sure about it.
28. Bitty & I neared a end as she started weening herself after 18 months of EBF (extended breast feeding). I will forever cherish those special moments.
29. Not all were a fan of the Easter Bunny.
30. A whole lot of skateboarding took place and then some.
31. We spent Easter morning in a hotel in New Orleans.
32. We made some memories in our fave city. You can take the gal outta NOLA, but you can take NOLA outta the gal.
33. We went to the annual Easter Freeman family reunion.
34. Najah had many baths.
35. Disney on Ice with our three lil ladies.
36. I spent lots of one on one time with my little Bitty while her siblings were at school or work.
37. My hard working son bought amazing tickets for us and after dinner in ATX he took Bitty and I to see The Lumineers and The Tumbleweeds (who happen to be from NOLA and quickly became another fave folky band of ours).
38. Our monsters became a huge help in the kitchen.
39. Lots of silly moments were had between our monsters.
40. I enjoyed Mother’s Day with these four little monsters I made.
41. There was a very special guest at Buggie’s 4th (pirate themed) birthday party.
42. First steps were taken.
43. Bunny celebrated her 8th birthday with a fun luau themed party surrounded by a bunch of her little friends.
44. A whole slew of sleep overs were had with either squealing little girls or a group of teenage fellas.
45. Many toxic folks were removed from our monster’s lives. Best decision we could have possibly made. Life is suddenly peaceful and only spent with folks that genuinely care about us.
46. Many weekends were spent with my Godchildren. Such sweet blessings.
47. My Aunt Glo spent a few weeks with us!
48. These two precious little cousins enjoyed a full spa day on Bunny’s birthday. Hair, make up, manis, pedis, & princess dresses!
49. Budah celebrated his 17th birthday Fiesta style surrounded by a ton of friends & fam before a day of skate parks with this huge group of fellas.
50. After much thought and prayer I have finally discovered forgiveness. And gained the knowledge from a very dear friend that forgiveness was necessary for my faith and self healing and didn’t mean I needed to be around said people that I forgave. Such an amazing feeling to be able to let go of years worth of hurt as well as the people that caused unnecessary pain.
51. The Guncles never let us down…literally. Our monsters are so lucky to have these four amazing fellas in their lives. Both as family and a good example that love has no boundaries. Teaching our monsters that no one has to be the same to be accepted is one of the greatest lessons we could possibly teach them.
52. These four little beauties had a blast at their week long VBS (vacation Bible school).
53. My mom & her sister celebrated their 55th & 60th birthdays together with lots of red & purple deco and were surprised by the flock of huge flamingos in the front yard.
54. We celebrated my dad’s 60th birthday early with a full nautical themed party before a trip to Big Lou’s.
55. 4th of July with these cuties!
56. Lots of swimming & fun took place.
57. We love our weekends with Aryie.
58. Knot-Geek flourished!
59. We celebrated Matt’s God daughter’s birthday too!
60. Enjoyed many visits with rad friends.
61. We spent a week in a condo on Mustang Island on the beach and exploring near by places.
62. Braces were removed!
63. Have I mentioned how much these monsters love their Guncles?
64. JuJuBee with Matt & Alex!
65. Much to my surprise I happily joined the mini van club.
66. Bunny donated ten inches of her hair to locks of love.
67. Just when I think it’s not possible I love these lil monsters a little bit more.
68. First day of school! Pre-K, 3rd, & our home schooled 11th grader.
69. Labor Day! Maw-Maw, Jamie, Dustin, Brylee, Britton, Phil, Angie, Billy, Syd, & Tanner. Painting, a little covered up Slayer,BBQ, & swimming fun.
70. Budah discovered he could cross his eyes…all the time.
71. Buggie decided she could shave like her brother and in the process shaved off her eyebrows & scraped her chin and lip. Budah also decided to face plant the very same night skateboarding and broke his glasses. Thanks for those near heart attacks monsters. Please no injuries in 2014.
72. We celebrated my MIL’s 60th birthday with her at her new beautiful ranch house.
73. I got my Van Gogh on with Em.
74. These lil doll faces started ballet & tap dance classes.
75. Pumpkin patch fun!
76. Duckies were fed for the first time by this little gal, and she easily ate as much bread as she shared.
77. I had two very unexpected surgeries in a matter of three weeks time. Thankfully I have amazing family that nursed me back to health.
78. We spent our first year in our new home. Still can’t believe it’s ours.
79. We did our first annual Halloween book drive for the local Methodist Children’s Hospital and collected 350 books!
80. Odessa! We loaded these 6 monsters in the car and drove to west Texas to spend the weekend with my love’s old Army friends.
81. Bunny’s school book parade.
82. Bunny was a homecoming princess.
83. Many days were spent at cheerleading practice & football games.
84. Superhero’s for Halloween! Budah- The Hulk, Bunny- Cat Woman, Buggie- Spider-Man, & Bitty- Wonder Woman.
85. Bunny did fantastic at her first cheer competition.
86. Many mornings waiting for the bus!
87. We didn’t let nosey folks change our routines.
88. We have constantly been surrounded by rad folks, that while they may not share the same bloodline, have been the most amazing family we could ask for.
89. Turns out Buggie likes to write on our house just like Budah did when he was little.
90. We didn’t have to leave our neighborhood to take this year’s Christmas pictures of our monsters.
91. Daddy, Budah, & I nearly froze waiting to watch Bunny & Buggie’s dance class in our local Christmas parade.
92. Our monsters have loved having Maw-Maw live with us.
93. I loved experiencing Buggie’s first class Christmas party with her!
94. Bunny was very proud to have Bitty join her for her 3rd grade Christmas party.
95. Bunny & Diamond danced beautifully at their first Christmas Dance Recital.
96. Bunny finally welcomed her first American Girl Doll, Audrey, into her little world!
97. While Buggie loves her dance classes, she wasn’t feeling her first dance recital.
98. Our little ladies sang away at their school Christmas programs.
99. Santa visited our little ladies at our house!
100. We celebrated our 2nd Christmas in our home with our four lil monsters, maw-maw, paw-paw, & maw-maw Susie.
101. Budah shot his first doe on a hunting trip with his dad.
What an amazing year we’ve shared together. While yes there were some disappointing moments this year, clearly there was far more happy moments to out weigh the bumps in the road. We truly are blessed beyond measure. I celebrated my 6th wedding anniversary with my husband this year. What a pillar of strength he is. He never ceases to amaze me. I know with him by my side we can take on anything that comes our way.

While we had such a fantastic year I watched many of my favorite people experience their worst year ever. I only pray that we have been some form of a comfort to them during their heartache.

So while I won’t be making “New Years resolutions” per say. I will continue to set goals for myself and our little family. I will continue to strive to be the best person I can be regardless of what some may think of me. I will hold on to my faith. I will be the faithful & supportive wife this loving man I married deserves. I will forever strive to be the best mama, daughter, DIL, sister, SIL, niece, cousin, aunt, Godmother, & friend I can possibly be. I will continue to work on forgiveness. I will continue to protect our monsters from hateful people. I will continue to be the best role model I can be to my monsters. After all they do learn by example.

Now off to cook our traditional New Years Day meal: pork (for health), cabbage (for wealth), & black eyed peas (for good luck). And spend this day surrounded by loved ones. Can’t wait until our Budah Booskie is home!

Dec 9 2013

Christmas party with Budah

Posted on December 9, 2013 by traylee

My son asked me to be his date at his work’s Christmas party tonight. Last year he wasn’t interested in going since he had only worked there for two months at the time. So I was excited that he was open to checking it out this year. We both had a great time. I don’t claim to be the best mom ever or to have this parenting thing completely figured out. But having my seventeen year old son want me to go with him to a party, well that just made this mama’s day! We even made it home in time for me to be able to snuggle with my lil Bitty until she fell asleep. I’m such a blessed mama.

4 lil monsters

Just another day in chaos

Category Archives: Budah