Author: Big Mama

So I’ve been so busy whining about my cold that I haven’t even told y’all what happened last Thursday.

My dear friend and interior designer Holly Mathis came to visit to help me make a few final tweaks to my living room. Which means she was also subjected to spending ten hours with me while I was all jacked up on 120 mg of Sudafed. She’s too sweet to say it, but I’m pretty sure she feared for her life when we pulled into the parking lot of Goodwill and I jumped a curb.

Anyway, Holly started helping me with my house so long ago that it’s hard for me to remember. But then I got completely sidetracked and ended up with a book deadline and that tends to mess with the amount of time you have to spend at Target.

And when I was finally ready to start painting and changing things up, you may remember that P decided that was a good time to get our walls insulated in his ongoing quest to make our home a large Igloo cooler. Which resulted in much drilling of holes and mental anguish.

So it was early December before the walls ever got patched and painted and the built-ins were finally built (hence the name built-ins) and the furniture came back from the upholsterers and things in general began to finally all come together.

And so Holly drove into town to help me figure out what to put on my bookshelves because I’ve never had a place for tchotchkes before and I was suddenly in need of tchotchkes. There’s a good likelihood that I also just enjoy saying the word tchotchkes.

Tchotchkes.

We still need to add a rug in the living room but it’s more than $15 and I need to wait a while. And then there are a few more things I need to do in the dining room and kitchen, but I thought I’d show you the living room because chances are good you don’t want to hear anymore about how I sound like a three pack a day smoker named Hazel and yelled at some kids to GET OFF MY LAWN today.

First, this is a before picture.

I realize it’s small and doesn’t really show the whole thing but you get the gist. It was very maroon-y and serious. And there was an enormous picture of an urn above the mantle.

And here are some after pictures. Please keep in mind that I am a terrible photographer and I have no idea how to really style any of this. I just put the pillows on the couch and considered it a win that I remembered to take the remote control off the coffee table. Which reminds me that Holly told me I need to find a shallow basket for the top of the coffee table.

Also, the walls are painted Revere Pewter by Benjamin Moore which may be my new favorite color. It’s very soothing.

If you’re wondering what those are pictures of then I will ease your curiosity and tell you they are the people who pose for pictures for frames that come from Target. I have real pictures ordered to put in the frames but they’re not in yet.

And this is the mantle. You may remember that P painted those lanterns red for me almost a year ago. The wooden sign with the grace quote was made by Andrew and Tara Lowry at Between You and Me. I love it so much and they can make a sign with any quote you want.

I guess this is the neighbor’s weird kid that photobombed my photoshoot.

And here are the built-ins with the newly upholstered chairs in front of them. It’s my favorite part of the whole thing. Holly said built-ins would change the whole look of the room and she was totally right. Before, this room was always so hard to arrange, but now it makes sense because it has a focal point besides the fireplace.

(I have no idea if that’s why. But it sounds good and I like the way they look.)

You may notice that the antelope of the Lord is MIA. He has been relocated to the playroom because Caroline loves having him in there and WHY WOULD I DEPRIVE MY CHILD OF AN ANTELOPE?

I know. I’m a giver.

And here are a few little things on the bookshelves that I especially love.

This pear print by Jones Design.

This old picture of P’s grandfather and dad with friends and a limit of fish.

This bird print that Holly randomly found in some book at Barnes and Noble because she just knows how to find good stuff. I promise I could have looked at that same book and just thought “Oh look. Some birds.”

The antique birdcage I already had, some red books we found at Goodwill for $1.00, a framed photo of my great-great grandparents and some fun Orla Kiely paper in a pattern I’ve always loved.

(I don’t think the red candle is supposed to be there, but I set it there and took the picture and hopefully it’s not all ruined.)

This Janet Hill print that I knew I had to have as soon as I saw it because HILARIOUS.

And another picture of my great-great grandparents from Sicily hanging on the wall under the deer. I’m sure it’s just how they imagined their great-great granddaughter would commemorate them.

When we (Holly) finished with the shelves, she stepped back and said, “We just need a piece of coral or something to put on top of these books”. And I was thinking the same thing.

(No I wasn’t. You could have given me a million years and I wouldn’t have thought about a piece of coral.)

P happened to overhear, remembered that his mom used to have some coral and called her. Ten minutes later, my mother-in-law was at my house and gave me her coral. It was like an early birthday present.

And I think it adds the perfect, quirky touch.

Holly had also mentioned we were going to hang plates on the dining room wall. And so we’d bought a few plates during her last visit. Then after the painters finished I texted her and said, “Do you think I can try to hang those plates?” She said, “Yes. Just lay them out on the floor and text me a picture.”

So I did.

And then she texted me and said, “Yeah. Wait until I get there.”

I was a woman in search of a vision.

But I was glad I waited because Holly came and hung the plates and even found a fun pillow to add to the mix.

I can’t wait for the whole dining room to come together.

Anyway, I’m so happy with it. The thing about house stuff is I know what I like when I see it and I can pin things on Pinterest all day long, but I want to pull my arm out of the socket when I think about trying to figure out how to do it myself. I can put outfits together all day long, but house stuff ends up with me lying on the couch eating chocolate staring at the holes in my wall. That is to say, I get overwhelmed.

That’s why Holly is so amazing. She knew exactly what I wanted and helped me come up with the right mix of quirky and fun and bright but with pieces of our life and family everywhere. It’s comfortable and casual and totally us.

And now I can sit back and enjoy the feeling of not having to think about decorating my living room for another ten years. While I continue to cough and sound like Hazel and wonder why kids today are so opposed to pulling up their pants.

Oh, and I needed to discuss Downton Abbey so bad yesterday that I wrote a post about it over on Ree’s blog. Please feel free to click over there and leave a comment if you are like me and need therapy over the whole thing.

Also, tchotchkes.

(Edited to add that Holly Mathis does online consultations since so many of you have emailed to ask. You can find her at Holly Mathis Interiors for more information.)

Here’s what I learned this weekend.

Puffs Plus tissues with lotion and Vicks are a head cold game changer.

I mean, I still spent most of the weekend feeling pretty miserable, but they were a bright spot in the midst of it all.

Thursday night ended up being a bad night. Caroline had a slight fever and my head started to feel a little bit like it had one of those blood pressure cuffs around it like they use at the doctor’s office. And so we didn’t even go through the motions of getting up for school on Friday.

When we finally woke up around 9:30, I made the decision that we both needed to see the doctor. And so we went to the med clinic down the street for efficiency’s sake. I paid two co-pays and we sat and waited to see the doctor while Caroline seemed to feel increasingly better and I began to feel increasingly worse.

As it turns out, we both have bronchitis. Even though I was running a fever so I got the added bonus of having a cotton swab stuck up my nose to test me for the flu. I believe this is also how they get criminals to confess to crimes.

Fortunately, I tested negative for the flu and we left the doctor’s office with prescriptions for antibiotics, steroids and cough medicine. We dropped them off at HEB pharmacy to get filled and then I made the decision to go home and pick them up later that afternoon because I didn’t want to die in those hard plastic chairs at the pharmacy. I preferred the comfort of my own couch.

Later that afternoon Caroline and I ventured back out because I decided the only two things in life that would make it worth living is guitars that tune good and firm feelin’ women.

(I don’t need my name in the marquee lights
I got my song and I got you with me tonight
Maybe it’s time we got back to the basics of love)

I’m sorry. What was I saying?

Oh, two things in life I needed. A mixed berry parfait from Red Mango and my cough medicine. So we made a quick stop at Red Mango (Caroline likes her mixed berry parfait sans berries. I don’t pretend to understand.) and then ran in HEB to get our meds.

Which is where I made the sad discovery that we haven’t met our prescription deductible since it’s only January and prescription cough medicine costs A LOT OF DOLLARS. Like maybe they put in shards of gold and essence of unicorn oil in it kind of money.

And so I found myself in a quandary. Spending money on an antibiotic is necessary. But spending money on prescription cough medicine when I could probably make due with Robitussin or Mucinex or cutting up dollar bills and flushing them down the toilet seems like a waste.

But then I remembered a friend of mine had told me she had somewhere in the neighborhood of a gallon of prescription cough medicine that her grandmother had left her when she passed away. Because, clearly, her grandmother knew that stuff was CASH MONEY. So I texted her to see if I could borrow about three doses of cough medicine to get me through the next few days. She immediately brought it over and I realize you shouldn’t take other people’s prescription medication and blah, blah, blah I don’t care because I quit coughing and slept like a baby.

Of course after all that, I explained my frugal cough medicine ways to P and he said, “It would be worth any amount of money to not have to listen to you hack away all night. Go get the cough medicine.”

He’s a romantic.

On Saturday, I got myself dressed long enough to go watch Caroline’s basketball game. They won and she made a basket so that was fun. And then I sat on the front porch enjoying the warm weather while she raked every leaf in our yard so she could do this.

A little bit later, Mimi and Bops picked her up to take her to dinner and I took a hot bath and then stumbled into Caroline’s playroom to lay on the bed curled up next to my Puffs Plus with Vicks and watched a show called Sherlock that a friend told me about.

It’s another BBC show. Apparently I’m into British T.V. right now.

Which reminds me that I need to go watch Downton Abbey.

And grab another box of Puffs Plus.

Here’s a free lesson.

When you inadvertently share a toothbrush with someone and they have a cold? There’s a good chance you’re going to catch it.

I felt it settle into my head around 9:30 last night when I crawled into bed. And, sure enough, when I walked into the kitchen yesterday morning P told me I looked like I’d given up on life. I couldn’t even argue with him because I totally did.

I was a train wreck.

But then I took a 12 hour Sudafed and spent the rest of the day feeling like Jessie Spano on that episode of Saved By The Bell where she takes drugs to stay awake and ends up yelling “I’M SO EXCITED, I’M SO EXCITED!” until she collapses.

Which is about where I am right now.

Before I go, here are some cute things I found this week. Also, I need to confess that I’ve seen every episode of Saved By The Bell and I particularly loved Saved By The Bell: The College Years.

Judge me if you must.

1. pleasant chevron top

Every week I think I’m not going to post anymore chevron stuff and every week I am lying. I can’t help it. I’m a fan.

2. honey mustard criss cross sweater

This is really cute and I love the color. It would look great with a bunch of different colors and is perfect to transition outfits to the spring.

3. mermaid in love top

I love a little sparkle. This would be good with some white jeans and a denim jacket over it. Or under a black blazer.

4. forever zigzag dress in laguna

See? BIG FAT LIAR.

(I have no idea why this picture is so small. I blame Jessie Spano.)

5. turquoise chunky necklace

You know I love a turquoise necklace.

6. sunset sail dress

This is just really pretty. I love the colors and the way they fade into each other. If I were going on a tropical vacation to anywhere besides Port Aransas this summer, I would totally buy this dress.

7. old navy boyfriend cardis

Another great piece to transition into spring. I love all the bright colors.

8. golden apple printed blouse

This kind of reminds me of something Jane Fonda wore in Nine to Five. Which may make me love it that much more.

9. silk button down blouse

I love cobalt blue.

10. suddenly skinny leggings

Last week I forgot to tell you about these leggings at Target. I haven’t tried them yet, but I hear they are really good.

That’s it for today.

Y’all have a great Friday.

I’m so excited.

The good news is I don’t have a cold as of this point.

The bad news is I slept one hour last night.

And I don’t mean that in a “ha ha I’ll exaggerate and say I only slept one hour” kind of way. I mean it in a “I really only slept one hour” kind of way.

I could list all the reasons why but then you’d die from boredom and I’d feel bad.

Earlier today I walked into CVS and just wandered around the store aimlessly. The manager started eyeing me because I think he was worried I was casing the place.

(Casing the place? What is this? An episode of CSI?)

But the truth was I was so tired I kept forgetting why I was there.

In case you’re curious, I’ll tell you I was there for Burt’s Bees body wash, an Amazon gift card, and Cetaphil.

My life is very exciting.

And now I’m off to bed.

At 9:15.

Try not to be jealous.

See you tomorrow for Fashion Friday.

Well we made it home from Bryan yesterday afternoon after a delightful birthday lunch with Nena and a road trip that almost involved one child being dropped off somewhere around San Marcos.

Names will be withheld to protect the not so innocent. But let’s just say that there are times you should think before you declare something your mother does to be THE WORST THING EVER.

And now I’m fast and furiously playing catch up on a million emails and other deadlines that I neglected while I was on semi-vacation. I also feel like I’m racing against time because I have a feeling I may be about to come down with a cold.

I know this because Caroline woke up with a cold yesterday morning. Her throat was scratchy and she has that heavy congestion that you can hear every time she breathes. And my first thought was “Poor baby, I hope she isn’t getting the flu” which was shortly followed by my second thought of “I really hope I don’t catch it because I don’t have time to be sick right now”.

Then, later that morning, I was packing her suitcase as we got ready to load the car and noticed her toothbrush was totally dry and still tucked in the little toiletry bag I’d placed in the inner pocket. So I walked out of the bedroom and said, “I just found your toothbrush in your suitcase. Have you not even brushed your teeth one time since we’ve been here?”

And she replied, “No. I’ve been brushing my teeth. I’ve been using your toothbrush.”

Kids are gross.

And also spread more germs than a pack of monkeys.

If you need me I’ll be stocking up on the good Kleenex with the lotion built in. And buying a new toothbrush.

Well.

I didn’t blog yesterday because it was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Which means we didn’t have school. It also means we didn’t get mail and the banks were closed.

Just in case you didn’t know that already.

So Gulley and I decided to take advantage of the long weekend to make a trip to Bryan with the kids because today is Nena’s birthday and there was a big family birthday party for her on Sunday.

We loaded up the kids on Saturday night at 6:00 after a day of basketball games and birthday parties with the thought that making the trip at night in the dark would be totally worth it when we woke up at Honey and Big’s house on Sunday morning. And we were right.

Although our theory that the kids would be quiet in the car because it was nighttime and they’d had a full day of activities was totally wrong. They still had plenty of energy and volume especially on any topic involving any type of bathroom humor.

And, true to form, before the three hour drive was over we had to warn Will not to drink anymore water because we were not making anymore bathroom stops. And I had to tell Caroline I was going to make her walk the rest of the way if she didn’t quit hollering. And Gulley and I rolled our eyes as Jackson filled us in on some facts about something because almost eleven year olds are experts on A LOT of things in case you didn’t know that already.

But we made it to Honey and Big’s around 9:00 p.m. and it made the trip worth it when we were greeted with homemade chicken salad and brownies. Honey and Big had eaten a few of the brownies but they had cut them in a strategic geometric formation to ensure they saved me all the edges because they know the edges are my favorite.

I think this is my new definition of love language.

On Sunday we woke up and stayed in our pajamas until it was time to go to Gulley’s cousin Ashley’s house for a combination baby reveal party and a birthday party for Nena. Ashley is pregnant with her first baby and we all found out she’s having a girl. And then the family surprised Nena with a birthday cake for her 89th birthday.

Nena had just gotten all our attention a few minutes before the cake came out by declaring, “Well, y’all won’t believe who I got a birthday card from today. SHELLY AND DWAYNE!”

We all looked at her, expectantly waiting for the rest of the story, when Nena leaned in and asked, “Does anyone know who that is?”

And not one person seemed to know Shelly or Dwayne.

It’s too bad they wasted $3.99 on a Hallmark card.

But the party was fun and Nena was thrilled to be surrounded by a sea of gift bags. She exclaimed, “Oh, this is SO MUCH! I LOVE IT!” Frankly, I appreciate her honesty.

I brought her a bracelet and one of the first copies of my book. She even asked me to sign it for her.

This is where I need to explain that Gulley’s cousin Ashley and her husband live in the house that belonged to Nena and Grandaddy. They’ve renovated it and made it their own, but it still feels so much like the house I remember visiting for almost twenty years. And there was something so sweet and kind of full circle feeling about signing a book for Nena in the the dining room where we gathered for so many meals and where she used to store all her garage sale finds and would occasionally bring you in to see if there was a crockpot or a prairie skirt you might be interested in owning.

Anyway, we ate way too much barbecue and the kids ran around the backyard and then we eventually made our way back to Honey and Big’s house where we basically crashed in front of the T.V. for the rest of the night.

On a side note, I have to tell you that last Thursday I brought Mimi and Bops a copy of my book and Bops called me the next morning to ask if they could have another one that they could actually read because Mimi had declared the one I brought them a “display copy” and it had a place of honor on their bookshelves but he’s not allowed to actually read that one because he might bend it. Which may be the sweetest thing ever.

(I also need to say I promise I’m not going to talk about the book incessantly. In fact, I won’t mention it again until release day.)

Then Monday was full of excitement. It seems the kids have all contracted some sort of cold. But we still made a quick trip to Academy, bought lunch at Chick-Fil-A, and then laid around and did nothing. Which is just fine with me. I appreciate a day that doesn’t involve much more than eating breakfast and then eating lunch and dinner. Sometimes it’s just needed.

We also watched The Bachelor last night and there appears to be an epidemic involving girls wearing shirts as if they’re dresses. Poor Kacie B. even had on a dress so tight and short that it was reminiscent of a Body Glove swimsuit I owned back in 1989.

And here is where I confess we’re letting the kids skip school today since it’s Nena’s actual birthday and we’re going to take her to an early lunch before we leave town. That’s the nice thing about having kids in 5th, 4th and 2nd grade. It doesn’t seem like anything that crucial is going to be missed if they are out of school for a day here and there.

Unless you count a new joke that relies heavily on bathroom humor.

And there’s a good chance they’ll learn that on the car ride home later today.