Well, I’ve had this note on my “to blog about” list for a few months now, but after dinner on Friday night with these peeps…
…I thought geez Louise, now is the time because…
…am I the only one?! Bahahaha!
Here’s the deal, I mean zero disrespect when I say this because I fully stand by my little list below…but I just think it’s COMICAL sometimes what comes out of my mouth as it sounds just like my mom and dad.
Andrew and I made a little list of things we say/do that is exactly like our parents. We’re sharing below, and then I hope you share some of yours in the comment section too 🙂 .
Okay, here are a few of the things I say/do that are just like my parents:
#1: “Don’t tell me where it isn’t unless you can tell me where it is.”
Anytime we couldn’t find something growing up (a shoe, our homework, car keys, a book, etc), my dad would always help us look, BUT if he said “Go check the bathroom” and I said “It’s not in the bathroom”, he would ALWAYS say “Don’t tell me where it isn’t unless you can tell me where it is.”. I say this all the time. ALL THE TIME AS A MOM.
#2: I’m always cold.
Smith told me the other day that I had to stop “being cold” because it made me sound like Lovie. Um, Smith, I’m cold. Lovie is cold. We are clearly old women who are always cold. I asked him if I could still be cold and just not discuss it, and he legit said “No, you and Lovie just need to stop being cold”. Bahahaha! I can’t wait until he has a post menopausal wife.
#3: I won’t sit by the bathroom in a restaurant.
I used to think my mom was being so difficult as a teenager if we went to a restaurant and they tried to sit us right next to the bathroom. She would ALWAYS politely ask if we could wait for another table. My mom’s appetite wanes if she’s staring into the men’s room while she eats and you know what? Almost 43 year old Shay feels the exact same way. The collective groans of “Mooooooom” are heard anytime I ask if by chance there’s another table or if we can wait because excuse me, I don’t want to see the side of a urinal while I enjoy my fajitas.
#4: “Don’t cut through the dining room.”
Growing up, my mom must have said this phrase 4 billion times. There was a “shortcut” to the kitchen that saved you all of two feet that one could take to enter if you went through the dining room…and it left a path through the dining rug as Sean and I were lazy and took that tiny itty bitty shortcut all the time. I’m telling you, I can hear her clear as day today saying “Don’t cut through the dining room” over and over and over again. There is a similar shortcut in my house now and dang it, those lazy kids of mine are wearing a path on my rug as they too take it instead of just walking around on the wood floors. Now, I sound just like my mom because hello? Who wants a line of foot traffic in one little corner of the rug?!
#5: “I’m going to put my housecleaning music on.”
My dad is a musician. He plays multiple instruments, he had his own band for 10+ years, he is a songwriter, he is constantly humming/writing/singing music. My dad is a natural performer who to this day is asked to play at everything from banquets to funerals but you know what…my appreciation for music did not come from him. Nope. I appreciate music because of my mom’s influence of always putting music on to set the mood of that particular day. She’s not musical AT ALL, but it’s in the background of her life EXACTLY like it is mine. Before school, she would often say “I’m going to put my housecleaning music on after I drop you off” which was a specific type of music she enjoyed cleaning to (if memory serves, it was a lot of Beegie Adair on housecleaning day). I do the EXACT same thing now. I’ll tell my kids that I’m going to put on my “work music” or my “fall music” or my “decorating the house for a season music” or my “baking music”. I sound just like her.
#6: I watch movies while I work.
Growing up, my mom was an interior designer who had her office in our home. She had a big drafting table in there, and l don’t know that I have one memory of walking into her office while she was drawing something or working behind her desk where a movie (her favorites were Beauty and the Beast or Robin Hood- the Kevin Costner version) were not on in the background. My kids are going to say the same thing about finding me working away with When Harry Met Sally playing in the background.
#7: I’m going to “piddle”.
Do any of you say this when you’re going to do a few little non-important things? I’m often going out to my yard “to piddle” or heading to Target “to piddle”. Geez, I sound like my mom AND my grandmother.
So that’s my little list…and here is Andrew’s list:
Okay, so those are a few of ours, but now, I hope you share some of yours in the comment section too!
I cannot wait until my kiddos are old like me someday and hear me come out of their mouths. I literally cannot wait 😉 .
Happy Wednesday! I’ll see you guys tomorrow! xx
Emi says
I LOVED this post!!! At nearly 46 I can so relate! I also find it interesting the different things that “stick” with each of us from our parents. 💕 We are all raised differently but somehow the same.
Elspeth says
I’ve noticed there are certain traits I have picked up and phrases too! Love the list you compiled. And yes-I’m always cold too!
http://www.elspethsdaybyday.com
Emilee says
Ohhh my mom and I are SO similar. We’ll walk into church and be wearing similar outfits in color, it makes us laugh every time!
candice says
The big thing my dad used to say is we need to finish a box of cereal before we open another box. Every time I catch myself saying that I think of him. He also said practice makes perfect. To which I continue to tell my kids.
My mom used to say you can only get glad again when I was upset. I say that a lot to my kids too.
Grace says
Talking on the phone with my Mom when the conversation dwindles, we both start to hedge, “Well, I better let you go…” but one of us always thinks of something else to say. “I better let you go” is really just a 5… 10… even 20 minute time’s up warning. 😂
Katie Stewart says
So something my grandmother would always say when someone would say something she found to be a bit naughty or inappropriate was… “Awww HERE….” why? Who knows?
Guess who does it now? 🤦🏼♀️ Me!
“Quit your pilfering.” That’s another one…
When she would open the curtains/blinds each morning, she would sing in this extremely obnoxious voice, “Leeeeeeeettttttt the SUN iiiinnnnn….” so annoying at the time. Guess who does it now? Me AND my husband! 🤣
Lyssy says
I always thought it was so annoying when my mom would frantically clean before a trip, but I’m the same way and appreciate coming home to a clean home now. Good boxes are also starting to look more appealing ha!
traci m says
lol love this! Yes, I am my mother!
Francine Sinatra says
I always catch myself saying “Our last name is NOT Edison” when I see my kids leaving every single light on, just like my dad would say. And I often will rearrange the dishwasher – just like mom 🤦🏽♀️
Allison says
Piddle – YESSSSS. hahahahaha I def go and piddle around, love it! Also, the dining room cut-through is classic!
Mallory Hansen says
I definitely thought this meant go to the bathroom….!
LG says
Yes! This has always meant going to the bathroom in my house too!
Kati says
Crazy how often I reference time in “two shakes of a lamb’s tail” – just like Grandma
Rae says
My mother used to say “Please don’t use the good scissors to cut paper.” I’ve said that to my own children MANY times!
Mix and Match Mama says
I just lol! I can totally relate to this one too!
Karen says
Always!
Theresa says
I use to get so irritated at my MIL when she would watch our kids and insist they have a sweater on. She went as far as buying them sweaters to keep at her house. Guess what I have, yep, jackets for each of my grandkids in the closet!
SS says
Shay, this was a good one.
My neighbors were little and I was a teen when my mom came out of my mouth. I was driving them somewhere (before there were rules how many kids a teen could tote around). They were complaining about something and I said “Do you want me to turn around?” We were like 2 miles from home. My sister in the passenger seat about died of laughter after I said it.
I tell our kiddos all the time, just you wait…you will say it too!!
Tell Andrew…my husband is the same way about eating in the car and his tools…(We always know which son has been in his tools). Lol!
Nicky Hutcheson says
😆 Your piddle and my piddle are not the same. If I were to “piddle” in my yard or at the store, I’d likely be arrested (I mean I live in South Africa, our cops would actually have to work 🤪)
Ps, my piddle means to urinate 🫣 and I got that from my mom AND dad
Jane says
Thanks for saying this so I didn’t need to. I’m in SE Pennsylvania. I thought perhaps it was a geographical thing.
Monica says
Hahaha! Yes, our piddle means the same thing as Nicky. We take the dogs out to piddle 😉
Kacey says
LOL!!! This was my exact thought! That’s the only way I’ve ever heard the word used, but usually in the context of the dog going out to do their business.
Anne says
I do not live in South Africa but I also thought going to piddle meant going to the bathroom.
K.K. says
This is so funny! Shay, I use piddling to mean sort of doing odds and ends… just like my granny often said! Maybe it’s a Texas thing to mean it that way?? 🙂
Stephanie says
Here in Kentucky we call it “piddling”…..my dad and now my grown son are exactly the same as they are always in their garages “piddling” which is the same as piddle. It just means to tinker around with your stuff. LOL
Kim says
Yes!! My mom would say, “I need to piddle,” and it meant she needed to use the ladies’ room. That expression mortified me as a teenager!
KC says
I think it must be a southern thing because we say we’re just “piddling” if we are doing non important things. Like piddling around the house, or piddling around Homegoods. It’s definitely not urinating, haha! 🙂
Amy says
We say – “I’m gonna putz around the yard” rather than piddle…but same idea.
Jess says
That’s what piddle means in Maine too! When we do little things we “putter”.
Sheaffer says
Yep, when I open my mouth and often times when I look in the mirror, I am my mom.
Trish says
Where I live “piddle” means to use the washroom. I assume you don’t do that in the yard or in Target.
Erin says
Ha! Yes.. especially my dad about school and academics as he was a public school superintendent. One morning, I said something to my boys on the way to school said, ‘wow I just heard my Doc’s words come out of my mouth!’… this little voice from the back seat said, ‘yes, we’ve heard that twice’. LOL My dad loved helping out by picking them up from school in the afternoons! I guess they had already gotten the same speech!
Deb says
What a great post! I have a sign that my son gave me that says when I open my mouth, my Mom comes out! But what had me really laughing is “piddle”. Growing up in Iowa we used the word piddle to mean we had to go to the bathroom!
Lauren Palmer says
My Dad alway says “piddle around.” I’ve never heard anyone else use the expression. Now I’m going to listen for you to say it!
Melissa says
No shoes in the house. I used to hate that rule when I was a kid. Now when outside shoes are worn in my house, I cringe. 😂
Beth Valenta says
So cute…reminds me of those silly Progressive commercials. I am my mom as a passenger in the car. Did you see that car on the right? You look a little too close to that car? Can you slow down? The turn is right ahead, right here, right here…LOL. We call my mom GB, and now it is GBS.
When I was growing up, I was like why are you always teary at stuff? She would say it’s emotional. Now I am just as bad, and when my daughter and I went to Hamilton this year in NYC, tears were flowing at the power of the music.
Skye Rose says
My Dad would say “c’est la vie” when something would go wrong. I say that to my kids when something they are trying to do goes wrong. It means, “that’s life.” He also would say, “Were you born in a barn? Close the door!” Sometimes when he said that I would wonder if I had been born in a barn, but I found out years later that nope, I was born in a hospital. I still say that to my adult kids when they walk in and don’t close the door.
Allie says
Anytime I would ask my mom why I had to do something or why I couldn’t do something, she would always say “Because I am the momma!”, and it drove me crazy…now, that is the most common phrase used in my house.
Pam Zercher says
YEESSSSS! “Don’t ask me ‘Why?’ Because I’m your mama. That’s why!”
Christina says
My dad would always say “tuck your wings in” when we were on a plane or at the movies and I was hogging both armrests. Guess who uses that phrase now?? 😂
Mary Catherine Green says
My mama used to always say “you’ll thank me one day” whether she was giving me advice or punishing me. I always did the inner eye roll but now as a mama to 3 daughters, I say this all of the time!
Shirley says
I love this post! Isn’t it so true how some of what we heard or saw our parents do come out in us? Growing up, my mom’s birthday is on Jan. 6th, so we would always leave our Christmas tree up until after the 6th. I still do this, as do my sisters. It just seems wrong to take it down right after Christmas! I’m reminded of a story I once read: A mom and child are prepping a roast for dinner. The mom cuts off one end of the roast and puts it in the roasting pan. The child asks why she did that. The mom thinks for a moment and then says it is because HER mom always did it that way. Perplexed by this, the mom calls her mom (grandma to the child) and asks why she always cuts off the end of the roast. The grandma thinks for a moment and says it is because she always saw her mother do that. So the grandma calls her mom (great-grandma to the child) and asks why she always cut off the end of the roast. The great-grandma doesn’t hesitate a beat and replies that her roasting pan was too small, so she always had to lob off an end of the roast to fit it in the pan! My youngest son loves this story because it brings to light some of the things we do “just because our parents did it that way” that might be very silly and even unnecessary now!
Mix and Match Mama says
I LOVE THIS SO MUCH!! Thank you for sharing, Shirley!!
Erin H says
I go through the house turning off lights just like my dad did. And even though I have one child, some days I still go through cat names or whatever before I say her actual name.. again just like my dad. I called my sister once and said well, it’s official… I am Bill.
And then there was the time I was on a tirade lecturing my daughter about how everything has to get done and I’m the one doing it… feeding her, feeding the cats, cleaning, blah blah blah. And then I paused and thought – oh, my mom just legit took over my body there for a minute. Good grief!
Paige says
I laughed out loud at Smith saying “no you and Lovie jusrt need to stop being cold” hahaha…yeah Smith just wait😂
Elizabeth says
“You are the company you keep.” My mom said this all the time to which I likely rolled my eyes every time… and now I say it to my kids all.the.time. My mom and I also say piddle. 🙂
Erika Slaughter says
I do things ALL the time that sound just like my mom but can’t think of a great example right now! I’ll keep thinking!!
Kay says
Kitchen is CLOSED. I remember both of my parents saying it. And I remember being so annoyed when I heard that as a kid!
But now, I have three teens (14-18) and one is playing Football. I would say they spend 99.5% of their time in the kitchen eating MEAL AFTER MEAL. Like, it’s not even snacks! They eat a full meal and then ten minutes later, usually right when I just put the finishing touch on my sparkling clean kitchen, they are back! FOR MORE! I find myself telling them the kitchen is closed all the time. Though, they do NOT take this seriously ;).
Maggie says
This is such a fun post! When doing chores as a child my dad would come inspect what we did when it was done, and if it wasn’t done well or we’d skipped a few corners, he would ask us to do it again and always say “If you’re going to do a job, do it right the first time”. Which now I always think when I’m doing any task, don’t take shortcuts sometimes doing something well takes longer but it cuts down the time you have to do it again.
Becky G. says
My dad used to drive my brothers and I crazy when our chore was vacuuming because he would always say “the point of the vacuum cleaner is not to turn it on. The point is to clean the floor”. I now catch myself saying this OFTEN to my kids!
Kirsten Juenke says
These are all great! I had an absolute paradigm shift, hovering over my little boy, making sure he washed his grimy hands after digging in the dirt. And I said “do you want to get WORMS!?!?” Honestly, my mother gave me absolute nightmares. Truly.
sandi says
SNOT… that is the code word in my house for when I open my mouth and my mom comes out. It is usually not a funny or good thing, but that word can diffuse a situation and my immediate family can laugh about it. Growing up my mom was super critical and very much controlling. I felt loved when I did something well; as long as you did not do anything to disappoint her all was peaceful. Love to me was very much performance based. Watching her hand my college kids $50 for gas money and telling them to make wise decisions and make her proud brings back all sorts of childhood junk.
One thing that does comes straight from her is “I need a degree”. I am always hot. When starting dinner I will loudly ask for someone to give me a degree of air conditioning. They all put on sweatshirts and reply with snot yes snot (an ode to ma’am yes ma’am). The other thing is the feeding and watering of kids… do you need something to drink? would you like water for the road? how about a granola bar? a banana? Here, take some trail mix at least, you might need a snack. But when something critical or controlling tries to leave my mouth, a simple “snot” lets me know I need to tone it down.
Alison says
Because I said so.
The response my mom would give me if I asked why and she didn’t have time to explain, didn’t want to explain, or didn’t care. It basically meant the end of that conversation. It annoyed me and I swore I wouldn’t be so dismissive. But then I found myself using that same line when my kids were young. Alas, I get it. Motherhood. 😂
K.K. says
So relatable!! So many times I hear my parents!!! Or my husband says, “Yes, Gary Jr.” (My dad, who is still always big about safety… “Wear your bike helmet.”, “Watch your step.”, etc.!) – ha!
Maddie Giamello says
Ways I’m like my mom:
1. Get a hot coffee from Starbucks in the morning and heat it up in the microwave all day long and forget it’s in the microwave and then have to heat it again 😂😂
2. Always always cold so bring a pagmina everywhere
3. Watch the today show every morning, have it on in the background
4. Never go to bed with a dirty kitchen, even after a party
5. Clean before the cleaning ladies come. This drove me nuts as a child and now I totally get it 😂😂
Carol says
I remember well the realization that I was turning into my mother. I told my pre-adolescent daughter, “You won’t get anywhere by being ugly with me.” And BAM! My mother. I honestly felt the need to clap both hands over my mouth! LOL.
Jen W says
“Close the door, we aren’t cooling the outdoors!” or “Don’t make me turn this car around!”
Marcia says
One thing I say that my Mom does too (and my kids and husband laugh about) is when I’m sitting on the couch (dozing off). My family will laugh and say I was sleeping but I tell them “I was just “resting” my eyes! Ha! Ha!
SS says
When we would pull up to the house my mom say “home again, home again jiggidy jig” and I say that. My kids are like what does that even mean and I don’t know! I really do talk like a lady from the 50’s.
My dad would always say “night night, don’t let the bed bugs bite” when putting us to bed and I say that :-). Makes me happy and reminds me of him.
And when my kids are choosing the easy not right way thinking it will save them some time now “lazy people have double trouble”. I say this to myself too when I’m not wanting to go get the step stool and just try to shove that item on the shelf in the pantry that is out of reach.
Total side note: but anyone who grew up in the 80’s should watch the Goldbergs bc there are so many things like this that will remind you of your parents and your upbringing!
Mix and Match Mama says
Oh my gosh, my mom used to say that exact phrase ALL THE TIME!!
Carrie says
I say the same coming home phrase. I think the words that come before it are, To market, to market to buy a fat pig.
Ana says
My mom would say the “lazy people have double trouble” saying to us in Spanish, when in our haste to do things quickly, we’d have an accident. She’d say “El haragán y el mezquino, andan dos veces el camino”, which translates to “The lazy one and the stingy one, will end up walking the same trail twice.” And, though I don’t have children of my own, I say it to myself in my mind all the time before I stop and do things right! 😉
Lyndsey says
Waiting for a Q&A with Lovie and Jay (video??) They must have SO much wisdom up their sleeves!
Gwen says
I useRetiree here. I piddle like you. I can piddle for hours:)
Debbie Hibbert says
My cousin and I both refer to our “butt” as our “seat-end”, just like our Granny did!
Lisa says
My dad is a big fan of killing time, or piddlin, as he says. I’m a big fan too. Must be a Texas term. My mom used to say “pretty is as pretty does” to me growing up, especially when I was a grouchy teen, and I must admit I’ve said that a few times to my daughter, even now that she’s 25! I think she loves it now, she used to roll her eyes like I did as a teen too : ))
Tiff says
When my dad tells me something and it ends up being right, he would always say “If I tell you the moon’s made of cheese, you better bring crackers when you go!” I’ve always laughed and rolled my eyes…now I say it ALL the time to my kids! My ex-MIL had a bumper sticker that read “Only trash litters” and I also say that all the time. Haha!
On the same note…Does anyone else put the same meals together like they had growing up? For instance, my mom always made cabbage, macaroni & cheese, and cornbread with pork chops or grilled BBQ chicken with rice and green beans. Always. I’ve found I always put the same sides with the same protein just like my mom did. 🙂
Amy says
I find myself saying when one of my girls has an attitude “If you feel like the world is against you maybe it is you against the world”. It used to make me so mad but she was always right, it was a “me” problem. Love this post!
Michelle O says
I remember when I was a young mom and I got upset with my son. Later I called my mom crying and she asked what happened. I sniffled and said, “I opened my mouth and you came out” She laughed and told me she was glad to know that I was listening. Hahahahaha!
Sherry Lowe says
I loved this post so much, and yes I stand by all my little idiosyncrasies, some passed down from my mom! So glad Shay is finally getting me! Can hardly wait to see what Kensington picks up!😂
Ari says
My dad has so many sayings! But all of mine need to be translated which doesn’t exactly have quite the same effect. One thing I do notice and I love about myself is that sometimes when I laugh, I laugh just like my mom. My laugh sounds like mom’s laugh!! And I don’t know how that happens, I don’t know if anybody else notices but I do. I lost my mom almost 4 years ago now and whenever I hear my mom in my laugh it’s like she’s right there with me.
~B~ says
My mom, my stepmom and eventually in my life – my mother-in-law, all followed the same rule of no shoes in the house and I am identical to all three of them with that habit/rule!
Where I found myself the same in this post, Shay, is you will so often any time of year, but always in the fall, catch me with When Harry Met Sally on in my background (followed super closely by You’ve Got Mail, The Holiday and always-always, The Office). I call them “my comfort shows” and if blessed with grandchildren, I fully expect my kids will be sharing that little tidbit about me!
Rebekah Mortensen says
“Piddle” in our family was always going to the bathroom… I think it came from our great grandparents!!! 😂
Jennifer C says
Loved this post! I finding myself saying, “Get off the bed! I just made it!” to my kids (kids love to flop). I remember thinking she was insane as a teenager when she’d say that, but here we are….
Amy says
My mom ALWAYS was (and still is) singing – when I was a kid it was so embarrassing. Friends in the car? Singing. Friends over? Singing. Walking through the grocery store? Singing. Now I’m the one singing all the time, with my kids saying “Mom! Stop!!” But I can’t help it! I love to sing along, especially now that the grocery store plays 80s music all the time…
Laci says
I do so many things that my mom did or said! It cracks me up, I loved this! I always say my dad is “tinkering” when he is at his garage all day and night. It’s just funny what people in the South (me) do and say!
Becky says
My janmama always said “well I’ll swanee” when she was amazed at something. And my mama always baby talked to babies and animals 🙋♀️
Rachel Kazmier says
Piddle means the dog peed. Puts for is is what you use piddle for!