Big Mama

Y’all.

Err’body be so tired around here.

I forget every year that the first couple of weeks of the school year are exhausting. It’s hard to get back into the merciless routine of homework and carpool and cooking real meals and just all around being a grown up.

I left for Clovis, New Mexico last Thursday afternoon. I flew to Dallas and then Amarillo and then drove the hour and a half to Clovis in some sort of little Kia that was actually very sporty. I did get to sleep in a little bit on Friday morning which was glorious and then made a run to The Coffee Bistro for a latte because Clovis has a Starbucks but it’s inside the Albertsons and The Coffee Bistro came highly recommended and I have to say it didn’t disappoint.

As I walked back into my hotel, I happened to see the Clovis Daily Journal sitting on the checkout desk. And look who made the front page.

Yes. Baldy Holly. And also me. It’s not every day that you find yourself sharing a front page with Baldy Holly.

I spoke at Central Baptist Church on Friday night and it was such a sweet group. And then I woke up at 6:30 on Saturday morning so I’d have time to drive through The Coffee Bistro one more time before making my way back to Amarillo. And then Dallas. And, finally, San Antonio. I also need to say here that when I walked outside in Clovis that morning that a cold front had blown through and it was about 55 degrees outside. I had forgotten what it feels like to actually walk outside and feel cool. I’ll tell you what it feels like, HEAVENLY BLISS.

By the time I landed in San Antonio it was almost 5:00 Saturday evening and so I headed straight to a shower and pjs and we picked up Mexican food for dinner and watched college football until I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer.

On Sunday morning, P went to church while Caroline and I drove to Austin for a soccer game. She has to be at the field 45 minutes before game time so he met us there later with Mimi and Bops. After the game we made our way back to San Antonio and it was 4:30 p.m. In short, it was one of those weekends where I kept thinking I couldn’t wait until Monday morning so I could get some rest.

But then Monday morning dawned bright and early and it was time to make breakfast, pack a lunch, and get Caroline to school. Then I remembered that my family likes to eat food and so perhaps I should go to the store. So I went to Smart Barre to work out, ran a few errands, went grocery shopping and then came back to the house to grab something to eat for a late lunch. Meanwhile, Piper and Mabel stared at me like this.

I used to think there might come a day when I wouldn’t have someone staring at me, waiting to be entertained.

Mabel wrote a haiku about it:

Boredom in my soul
I need the wind in my hair
Must maintain sad eyes

Piper also wrote about her feelings:

I AM SO BORED I WANT TO DIE.

So what choice did I have but to take them to the park for a little while? They were able to run and then I picked up Caroline from school, attempted to take her to buy a new pair of cleats but had no success. Then we came home so she could hopefully finish most of her homework before we left for soccer practice.

We left for soccer and I am devastated to report it is 10:15 as of this writing and my child just finished her second dinner about fifteen minutes ago and is finally in bed. Or maybe she’s still in the bathroom flossing her teeth. I don’t even care anymore as long as I can go ahead and go to bed.

Dear Moms of littles, I know the days are exhausting right now. But rejoice and celebrate in the fact that you can put those children to bed at an hour when you’re still coherent enough to watch T.V. or carry on a conversation. At the rate I’m going, I may never be able to watch T.V. in prime time again.

And, let’s be honest, that’s the real tragedy here. I’d have Mabel write a haiku about it but she has no appreciation for prime time T.V. because she and Piper only watch The Outdoor Channel.

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So I’m currently sitting in a hotel room in Clovis, New Mexico. I flew into Amarillo late Thursday afternoon and then drove to Clovis, going through small Texas towns like Hereford, Bovina, and Friona. There is nothing like driving through the Texas panhandle that will make you realize there are still some serious wide open spaces in the state. At times it was just a bunch of cattle, the smell of cattle, and Willie Nelson singing “Blue Skies” on the radio to keep me company.

I’m speaking at Central Baptist Church in Clovis tonight at 6:30 and I think they still have a few seats available if you find yourself anywhere nearby. You can find out more information here.

Anyway, I didn’t mean to not write anything here all week but it just ended up being one of those weeks where I’d look up every night and it was suddenly 11:00 p.m. and I had to choose between being in bed before midnight or writing. And bed won every time.

But here are some cute things I found this week:

1. nike free fit training shoe

Nordstrom has a ton of new stuff that’s 40% off right now. Lots of shoes and boots and tops. But I was drawn to these Nikes on sale for $59.98 because I’m on a workout kick and spend most of the day in tennis shoes right now.

2. free people mystery magic tunic top

This comes in several color options, but this is my favorite. It’s very fall to me. And would look great with leggings and boots.

3. gap mix stripe poncho

First of all, this poncho has a ton of great reviews which is always noteworthy for Gap. Second, look how great it looks worn with all denim. I love stuff like this when the weather gets cold because it’s so versatile.

4. sansi pleated tunic

This tunic is on sale for $39.95 at Anthropologie. I like that it’s lightweight cotton, but a good fall color. It’s a perfect transition piece into fall. I personally am loving olive green with white jeans and boots right now.

5. tied hem tee

I have a gray tee like this that I bought from Piperlime (God rest its soul) when they were going out of business and I love it. That tie at the waist is a game changer because it’s a great top to pair with skirts or flare jeans without having to tuck something in.

It’s on sale for $49.95 and also comes in dark orange.

6. papillon flutter top

Is this top pricey? YES. But is it adorable and fabulous? YES. I tried this on in Anthropologie a few weeks ago and haven’t quit thinking about it since. It’s a fall look but perfect for a Texas fall which tends to be a little on the warm side.

7. dv faux leather tote with braid detail

I saw this bag at Target and it stopped me in my tracks. It is so pretty in person and this picture honestly doesn’t do it justice. It’s just $39.99 which is a great price for a fall bag.

8. runaround french terry tunic

I now own two of these tunics and am looking to expand into even more color options. It is the softest, best tunic top ever. Long enough to wear with leggings, lightweight enough that you can wear it now, and available in all these great color options. It’s $33.50 and free shipping. If you see me this fall, there’s a 84% chance I will be wearing this.

And Aggie sisters, it comes in maroon.

9. brilliant boho embroidered dress

How gorgeous is this? And it’s less than $60 plus free shipping. In all fairness, it’s probably more of a tunic than a dress for most of us. But if you have the legs for it, I will not judge. In fact, I will applaud you and say WELL DONE.

10. j.crew schoolboy blazer

Nobody really does a blazer better than J.Crew and this one are on sale for $94.50. It also comes in navy, bright blue, red and camel. I love a blazer because it’s great for work, but also perfect with jeans and a t-shirt.

11. printed quilted puffer vest

Stop it. A checked puffer vest? Love. It’s on sale for $64.50 and also comes in solid colors but why would you want a solid color when you can have navy and white checks?

12. j.crew flannel

This flannel shirt is on sale for $39.50 and comes in several color options, but this blue and orange just looks so fall to me. It makes me want to get a pumpkin spice latte at Starbucks except I don’t like pumpkin spice and I need the pumpkin spice public relations team to take it down a notch. Quit pushing your agenda on me and, furthermore, please quit adding yourself to my M&Ms and Oreos because NO SIR.

That’s it for today.

Have a good Friday.

Well. This weekend was one for the books.

The start of college football season is always one of my favorite times of the entire year. All last week I’d been looking forward to sitting in front of the T.V. on Saturday morning with a cup of coffee as I flipped back and forth between ESPN Gameday and SEC Nation. Then we had plans to go over to Gulley’s house and watch the Aggies play UCLA. We were going to get a tray of nuggets from Chick-Fil-A and Gulley was even going to make Captain Rodney’s cheese bake dip.

(I always know college football season is on the horizon when Gulley tells me she’s ordered “The Captain”. It’s hard to find in our local grocery stores but totally worth the trouble of ordering online.)

But then something happened. Late Wednesday afternoon I was in the process of cutting up a rotisserie chicken for dinner (I cannot deal with raw chicken, thus I buy it pre-cooked.) when Sophie texted me and said, “Hey, I just forwarded you an email from someone at ESPN”.

So, you know, that piqued my interest.

I washed the chicken off my hands because SALMONELLA and then checked my phone to see the email. As it turns out, it was a PR person at ESPN that Sophie met this summer at SEC Media days and she was wondering if I might be going to the Texas A&M game on Saturday because she’d love for me to be her behind-the-scenes guest at SEC Nation.

Um. YES PLEASE.

P was sitting at the kitchen island and I said, “So here’s something that just happened.” And because he knows me so well, he immediately said, “You have to go.” And so I began to figure out a new agenda for the weekend and Gulley talked to Honey and Big to let them know they might be having some unexpected house guests for the weekend and a plan totally came together. It’s like we were the A Team.

And here’s the part of it that I really haven’t spoken out loud to many people because it’s almost too much and still so fresh. I’d been thinking a lot about the first Aggie game and knew that it would be one of the moments when I would really miss Jen. Grief is a tricky business and sneaks up on you at unexpected times when all of a sudden you remember all over again that person you loved is gone. No matter what we all had going on in our lives over the years after we graduated from A&M, Jen always tried to meet up with us to either watch or attend the first game of the year. Even last September when she was so sick, she made the trip to San Antonio with Linc so we could all watch an Aggie game together. And the funny thing is Jen wasn’t nearly as intense about the Aggies as Gulley and I are, but she knew it was our love language and it was something we could all get excited about. So to have this fun opportunity pop up at the last minute, right before the first A&M game of the year, felt a little bit like Jen was smiling down on us and worked it out with God to give us a fun surprise. Maybe that sounds weird, but it makes me smile.

Gulley and the boys picked Caroline and me up on Friday afternoon after school and we made our way to College Station. We got there about 8:30 and Honey had brownies and chicken salad waiting on us. After we ate and visited for a while (and tried to figure out our best parking strategy for the next morning), we headed to bed because we were all exhausted after the second week of school and had to be on campus by 9:00 Saturday morning.

As it turns out, it’s much easier to get kids up and excited about a fun day of football than it is for a day of school. All of us were ready to head out the door by 8:30 to SEC Nation at Spence Park. Once we arrived, it was almost too much to take in. We got a tour of the SEC bus, the kids shook hands with Coach Sumlin as he made his way to the set, and then we watched them open the show.

This is Caroline and me in front of the bus.

Coach Sumlin being interviewed.

Matt the Bus Driver doing a yell with the yell leaders.

When the Aggie yell leaders finished their on-air segment with Matt the Bus Driver, they came and found us because we had asked earlier if the kids could get their picture with them. And the whole group of them couldn’t have been nicer as they talked to the kids about Aggie football and gameday.

After the show was over, we were able to walk on the set and meet Marcus Spears, Laura Rutledge, Tim Tebow and Maria Taylor. They were all so friendly and gracious, especially considering they’d just finished a two hour show in the blazing heat and been up since 4:00 a.m.

Please notice in that picture that I’m kind of stooping over in front of Maria Taylor. I actually asked her if we would be able to see her in the picture if I stood in front of her and she assured me it would be fine. P always accuses me of thinking I’m so much taller than I am and we have been so tickled because this photo is proof of that. Maria Taylor is 6 feet 2 inches tall and was wearing heels. (She’s also stunningly gorgeous. If only I had thought to ask her about her skincare regimen.) I am 5 foot 6 inches on a good day and, truthfully, probably closer to 5 foot 5 inches. So, yes, she is clearly seen in this photograph. Bless my heart.

We had three hours to kill before the game actually began so Jackson suggested we go see the horses and Parsons Mounted Calvary.

And we stopped by a booth and got pancake selfies made. Because who wouldn’t want a pancake selfie?

Then we watched the band and the corps march in.

Gulley managed to get herself a beer from some UCLA fans by telling them it’s a Texas tradition to share with the home team fans.

Eventually we made our way into Kyle Field because the kids wanted to watch the team warm up. Our seats were perfect, mainly because we were on a smaller first row that we had all to ourselves which meant we could all get up to get snow cones and water and lemonade and popcorn and go to the bathroom as many times as we wanted without being in anyone’s way.

It has always been my hope to fully indoctrinate Caroline into Aggie culture and the fact that she lost her voice by the end of the game is proof that I have succeeded.

The Aggie band was awesome as always.

In case you are unaware, the game went into overtime and was so tense that I even forgot how hot I was and quit thinking about my plans to burn the dress I was wearing as soon as I got home since there was no way it was ever going to be the same. At one point before halftime I went to the bathroom and when I looked in the mirror, I realized I actually had mascara running down my face because it had melted off my eyelashes. It wasn’t my best look.

The Aggie football team has been taking years off my life for more years than I can even count at this point and I don’t know why I’m even surprised anymore that I need blood pressure medication and a brown paper bag at the end of almost every game. But they pulled out a huge win over a ranked UCLA team in overtime, thanks to Trevor Knight and a stellar defensive stand. And Gulley and the kids and I all agreed that being there live and in person to witness it was so much better than sitting in her living room eating Chick-Fil-A and Captain Rodney dip.

We drove back to Honey and Big’s house to spend the night. The kids played football in the front yard after we got home, but Gulley and I each only wanted a shower and to remember what it felt like to not have a core body temperature that rivaled the surface of the sun. Nena’s best friend, Dorothy Kay, had made us spaghetti for dinner and soon enough we found ourselves in our pjs, eating a delicious dinner with a glass of wine in our hand, toasting what had been a tremendous day and watching more football.

And it confirmed what I have always known, college football season really is the most wonderful time of the year.

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