Friend Request

Oh my goodness! What a huge honor!! JESUS requested to follow me on Instagram!! Guess I’ll DEFINITELY confirm that one!! 😂😂😂

Hangout

(2014) Summertime is in full swing at the Taylor house ... Bran has three friends over after baseball practice to "hang out" and eat pizza and Lily Claire has two little friends from the neighborhood up in her room playing princesses and eating sandwiches.  In another hour or so, we'll head out to watch Dylan's baseball game this evening.  Good times!

Outrage

(2014) I am cracking up at Brandon because he is OUTRAGED that ESPN is showing some international spelling bee instead of baseball.  A cruel twist of fate for a 15 year old boy stuck at home this evening!  Hahahahaha!!!

Happiness

Happiness is .... my favorite flowers, gardenias, blooming in my yard! I love summer.

Hoarders

WHY did I just watch the most disgusting, horrible episode of Hoarders while I was doing laundry?  What was I thinking?! Why would a person "hoard" cats?!  I am scarred FOREVER.  I will stick with Love Boat from now on!!!!

Teddy Bears

(2011) I went into Lily Claire's room tonight and saw that she had set up a little party for her teddy bears, complete with a table cloth, plates, tea cups and "ice cream cones" ... so sweet!

Southern Girl

(2013) I am definitely raising a Southern girl!  I just asked Lily Claire what she wanted for a snack and she answered, "Yo-Grits", which is what she thought was the name for "yogurt."  Love it!

Bloated

(2013) Dylan and Lily are going to watch a Lego Batman movie and they want me to get out the air mattress for them to lay on while they watch.  Lil just came running into my room and said, "Mom!  We need to get the air mattress all bloated up!"

Sweating

(2014) Had a lunch date with the kids after the puppet show this morning!  They wanted to go to McDonalds so they could also play on the playground.  When we first got there, I told them to go play, but within a few seconds Lily had come back to the table. In an APPALLED voice she told me, "I do NOT want to play in there right now because there is a kid in there who is SWEATING!"  Well, heaven forbid.  Once the offensive "sweat-er" left, she decided she'd go on in and play!  Good grief!!  After that, she and Dyl had a good time in the playground pretending to be a magic princess and a mean bear on the prowl ... all I know is there was a lot of squealing and running and growling going on in there!  Sure hope there was no SWEATING going on!

Big Brother

(2015) Dyl is such a good big brother.  He's been having to pretend to be Lily's pet dolphin, Flipper, for the past hour in the pool and then play Uno with her at adult swim!  Hahaaaa!

Ducks

This quite large family was in the grocery store parking lot this morning when we were! Wonder if they needed pool snacks like we did!! 😃

Love Boat

I am cracking myself up at how happy I am being in my PJs watching Love Boat reruns after a fun day at the pool with Lily and Deb!  Doesn't take much for my contentment ... now if Isaac could just bring me a smoothie from the Alcapulco lounge, life would be perfect!  Hahahaaa!

Woman Code

Ok, really?!  We went out for lunch after church and a lady stopped to admire some jewelry I was wearing.  As I am about to say "thank you" for her nice compliment, Robert Skeet Taylor shouts out, "It's not real."  Seriously???   Woman code 101 has just been seriously breeched. Why don't you go ahead and tell the whole place that I have fake highlights in my hair from a drugstore box and my glowing complexion comes from a tube and that it's not my real figure because I have on a tummy control shaper under my dress?!  Any man in his right mind should know you DO NOT spill the time honored "woman" secrets!  Honestly.  Men are from another planet.

Princess

(2010) When Lily got out of the bath and put on her pink Disney princess nighgrown this evening, she informed me, "I a princess too, Mama"  Gosh ... wonder where she got that idea??!!  :)

Used Up

(2013) Life with two brothers means that everything gets eaten or used up before Lily Claire can get to it, most of the time!  Whenever we buy chocolate milk or doughnuts or ANYTHING, it is usually all gone by the next day when Lily is looking for it, because the boys have gotten to it first.  It makes her really mad!  Anyway, she went into the pantry this week and the light bulb had burned out.  She came out with her hands on her hips, scowling, and said, "Great!  Now the brothers have used up all the electricity, too!"

Job

(2011) Another Dylan moment ... I was laying in his bed with him before he fell asleep and he asked, "Mom, when you grow up do you have to have a job?"  Of course, I said, "Yes, if you want to have a house and food!"  Dylan thought a moment then said, "Yea, and if you don't have a job you'd be drunk all the time and have a fat stomach."  WHERE does he get this stuff?!  He cracks me up!

Termites

So the termite exterminators come at the crack of dawn this morning (the yearly check, we don't actually have termites) ... I thought they would just spray some stuff and leave us our letter.  Of course not!  The man gives me a long speech about the option to have them drill into the basement floor and into all the outside bricks and the front porch with their jack hammer and how "it might look bad at first but it'll settle down after a while."  Oh yeah and also the holes could cause some "flooding problems. Do I want him to do that?"  Um ... NO!!!  What on earth? Just squirt some spray, mister!!!!

Grumpy Princess

(2011) One of my favorite memories!! Lily Claire had to dress up as a fairy tale character for preschool today, which sounded super fun last night, but this morning, Lily wasn't quite as thrilled.  Here is a 7 AM picture of the grumpiest princess you'll ever see!

Touch & Die

This is what you must resort to when you live with boys who eat and drink everything in the house ...even the brand new flavor Gatorade I bought for MYSELF that is ALL gone but this ONE last bottle!!!

Heaven

Wow ... Perfect "almost summer" evening in Georgia. Taking a walk alone ... 63 degrees, breeze blowing, the sun almost ready to dip down for the night...  honeysuckle in the air and Rascal Flatts humming in my ear ... pure heaven for this Southern girl.

Favorite

Dylan informed me today that our puppy, Buddy, likes him the best. 

“Why do you think I so?” I asked him. 

“Because he follows me everywhere,” Dylan replied. 

I didn’t have the heart to tell him it is because he’s the only one who always has food in his hand!! 😂😂😂

Raisin Bran

How many nights in a row is it possible to have Raisin Bran for supper?  I'll be sure and let you know.  Such is my life during baseball season!!

Lipstick

(2012)  So I delievered some news to Lily Claire last night that was followed by ten minutes of uproarious squealing, jumping, twirling, and clapping with delight.  Did I tell her we had won the lottery?!  No.  Did I tell her we were going to Disney World?!  No.  Did I tell her she could wear pink lipstick to her ballet recital tonight?  Yes!  It was a major lipstick celebration at our house.

Concert

I signed up for this site called "Bandsintown" that tracks when music groups that you like are going to be in town doing concerts.  It automatically gets information from your Itunes playlists and puts those artists in a tracking system for you.  It then gave me some suggestions for some other groups I might want to see in concert based on my current favorites.  I had to crack up when it suggested that I be notified when GENE KELLY was coming in concert!  That concert would be quite a marvel since he DIED in 1996!!  I DEFINITELY want to know about THAT concert so I can be the first to get tickets!

Nightgown

Lily Claire comes downstairs after her bath this evening and Skeet says in all seriousness, "Hey Lil, you forgot your pajamas on the bottom."
Lil and me:  "It's called a nightgown, Daddy."
Skeet, "Oh."
Yes, Lily and I live as foreign creatures in a Man Cave.

Awkward

Weird story for the day ... I went into McDonalds to get the kids a biscuit for breakfast before church, and while I was waiting a lady walked up to me and said, "My husband wants you to know that you have the most beautiful toes he's ever seen."  Ummmmm  ... thanks?  Awkward on so many levels!!!! Hahaaaaaa!!!

Mother’s Day

(2015) One of my favorite Mother's Day gifts ... a poem from Lily that she wrote for me:
My mom is as nice as a baby deer.
My mom is as smart as a scientist.
My mom is as fun as stuffed animals.
My mom is as fun as playing outside.
My mom is as funny as somebody pulling a pig's tail.
My mom is as amazing as going to look at the earth.
My mom is as cheerful as a cheerleader.

I also love the very cute flower earrings she put on the portrait she made of me!  I love you, Lily Claire!

Except Mom

One of my favorite memories of the boys is perfect for Mother's Day: one day they were arguing and Dylan kept telling Brandon what to do.  They came stomping up the stairs with Bran shouting, "DYLAN, STOP telling me how to live my life!!  NO ONE can tell you how to live your life!!!"  Then there was a pause and Brandon added, "Except Mom, she tells everyone how to live their life!"  Glad he learned that early!!!  :)

Tinder

WOW!  This super good-looking man came driving up to my school this evening in a red Jeep ... I'd LOVE to get his name and number! Just might have to find him on Tinder ... hahahahaaaaa!!!! (I actually better NOT find him on Tinder or he's in BIG trouble!) :)

Bait

(2014) THANKS A LOT, Brandon Taylor!  He went fishing today after school and when he came home to change to go out to dinner with his pals, he left behind a HUGE half of a dead worm on the kitchen floor!  It must have been on his clothes or something and dropped off.  Lily and I are FREAKING OUT!  It is currently covered with an empty Ramen Noodle box until Bran gets home to pick it up so we don't have to look at it.  I am NOT touching it with a ten foot pole ... it's really grossing me out!  I called Skeet at the ball field to drive home and pick it up, and can you believe he just laughed?!  :)  The JOYS of living with males ...

Love, Dad

(2016) How do you summarize 14 years of baseball?  You attach a picture of BT heading off to his first T-ball game, you blink, then you attach a picture after his last high school game. 14 years of sweat, dirt, snacks, concession duty, rides to and from, practice, games, cages, shagging flies, conditioning, wins, losses, ties, scrapes, bruises, cleats, gloves, bats, joy and tears. Not one single thing would I change. Our goal was to use baseball to help teach him how to be a team player, to be gracious in victory and defeat, to play by the rules, and to never give up. He ended up teaching me every bit as much and more. What an incredible journey it has been. Thanks for letting me tag along buddy.

Dairy Queen

(2012) You gotta love 3rd grade baseball ... it was super hot at the field, one kid overheated, one kid broke his thumb, the team lost .... but the coaches took them to Dairy Queen after the game so all was right with the world!  Apparently, a chocolate dipped ice cream cone is the best cure for just about anything when you're 8 years old!

Coughing

(2012) Lily kept coughing tonight so I told her I needed to give her some cough medicine.  She thought a minute and said, "No Mom, I need some NOT cough medicine."  Good point, actually!!!