Karen Holder | RealiTeen

Tia Bandavanis

My name is Tia and I'm very excited to join the Realteen team. I am a fun-loving, caring, and colorful person. I begin and end everyday with a smile. There is only one man in my life and that is my 15 yr. old son John. It's been my job to raise my son from a young age through his teen years. I am a single mom and I feel as though I have done my best to help my son become a responsible young man. I was born in Washington D.C. and grew up in the Maryland and D.C. area. I moved to Jacksonville, North Carolina in 1992. I now consider myself to be a native. I miss family dearly but find ways to visit often. My home and heart is here in Onslow County. This is pretty much due to the fact that I have raised my son here and found it to be a great place to live. I currently teach preschool at a local preschool. I have been teaching for over 20 years. I love children of all ages and could not imagine myself doing any other profession. I enjoy outings with my son to the movies, watching football, visiting local spots such as the Lynwood Park Zoo, going to the beach, and canoeing along our local rivers. I look forward to writing and reading the blogs. I feel this is a great opportunity to explore my parenting role and others. Parenting my teen son has been very rewarding and challenging. However, I have learned that being an effective parent is about learning and growing along with my son!

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I’m Karen, a stay-at-home mom of two girls, one 16 and the other 18. While I know it’s unusual for a mom to still be out of the work force with kids these ages (especially when the money would really come in handy!), I think it’s been the right choice for our family. It’s nice to be available to the teens during the day and to be able to keep an eye on things during those afternoon hours. (Can you hear my girls gagging and groaning while they’re reading that?!) I am a constant embarrassment to my kids in so many ways…the things I wear, say, do, like. I am so skilled at embarrassing them that I don’t even have to try hard at it. I’m hoping someday they’ll look back and think of me as fun and spunky and creative rather than just horribly strange. I love all things creative and crafty, spicy food, diet soda (possibly love to the point of addiction?), fresh paint, and casual clothes. I hate doing laundry, attending meetings, and getting dressed up. (If I’m wearing heels and a dress, there’s probably either a wedding or a funeral!) If you’re looking for someone who’s an expert parent who has all the right answers, you might want to read someone else’s posts. But if you’re looking for someone who is out there struggling every day to get it right, I’m your girl.

Home Alone

May 22nd, 2012 Karen Holder

I mentioned briefly in a previous post that we went to Georgia for the weekend and left 19 year old Lexie here at home alone for the first time. I joked while we were gone about wondering whether Lexie had …
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1018

May 20th, 2012 Karen Holder

Love all three of them!

Here’s the shocking number for our Mother’s Day Weekend: 1018. That’s the number of miles that we logged according to the trip meter on the car. In one weekend. I think that’s a …
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Last Month of School

May 17th, 2012 Karen Holder

Ah, the last month of school. The month between mid-May and mid-June where moms lose their minds. Oh, wait. Moms lose their minds every month. This is the time where moms feel frantic because there is so much going on …
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Happy Mother’s Day to Mother’s Helpers

May 14th, 2012 Karen Holder

This weekend we celebrated Mother’s Day. It’s nice to have a day to feel appreciated. And I do love getting gifts and cards. And I love being treated to a meal at my favorite restaurant. But I feel like it’s …
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The Village Moms

May 13th, 2012 Karen Holder

I've got crafty covered. Send the village kids over to make stuff!

The other day while Katie was getting ready to go out, her friend was hanging around while I put together some items in photoshop to make …
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