Search Results for: kylee

Family Fun at iT’Z Pizza Pasadena TX

Looking for family fun in the Houston area? iT’Z Pizza Pasadena TX is where it’s at. Endless pizza, pasta, salad, desserts, and more, plus video games, laser tag, bowling, bumper cars, and even a bar. iT’z the affordable place to be in Houston!

Endless Food at iT’Z Family Food & Fun

The minute you walk in the door, you’re greeted by a friendly staff where you can check in or buy your tickets for the day. Once the business-like stuff is over, it’s time to dive in…to endless food! Literally, endless pizza, salad, pasta, chicken, mashed potatoes, desserts, and more. It’s all buffet style, it’s replenished regularly, and even with my picky bunch (I’m probably the worst!), there’s plenty for everyone to eat.

Just so you know, I’m a pizza snob. A snob, I say. Growing up in upstate New York will do that to a person. That said, I like the pizza at iT’Z. It’s fresh, cheesy, plenty of toppings, and if they don’t have what you like, they’ll make you whatever you want (as long as they have the ingredients – don’t go all psycho on the topping choices!). I was super hungry so I got excited to see that they had a veggie pizza (my fave) with marinara. I have no clue why most pizza buffets use Alfredo for veggie pizzas. Duh, we’re vegetarians, we absolutely do like tomatoes! But I digress…

Of course, they have the meat lovers covered too. There were literally about 20 varieties of pizzas out at any given moment and all were fresh. You don’t get that over at the place with the mouse!

The salad is FRESH and there are so many options, from the lettuce to the toppings to the dressing. Soooo good! You can’t eat pizza without salad. It’s a scientific fact. I’m glad the folks at iT’Z gets that.

Can we just talk about this hummus for a sec? Creamy, rich, roasted red pepper hummus and pita chips. If you have an addictive personality, stay away from this hummus.

Just in case I haven’t talked about food enough (you’d think a 95-pound grown up woman could think of something else to talk about), there’s dessert. All the dessert. So many desserts. And did I mention it’s endless? That’s right. If you buy the Biggest Deal Package for just $28.99 each, you get unlimited video games, mini bowling, laser tag, and more, plus you get one free game of regular bowling with shoe rental AND unlimited food and fountain drinks….for the whole day. The whole day, people!

The fun starts here!

OK, sorry about all of the food talk, this girl was hangry when we got there, but the real fun starts here!

Why iT’Z Pasadena TX for us?

Well, here’s the thing. We live on an island, a tourist town, and although there is a lot to do in Galveston, we’ve pretty much done it all and sometimes we need a change of scenery. We don’t want to break the bank and we need to find something that two adults, a brassy tween cheerleader, and an elementary school straight A student can all enjoy. That’s a hefty task, but iT’Z offers us that. We can all have fun; together, alone, and in pairs. It’s a beautiful thing!

Eyes on the prize!

The straight A student is a serious gamer. Like, we all believe we’ll be living in wings of his mansion when he grows up. When he’s playing for tickets, it’s eyes on the prize, baby…EYES ON THE PRIZE! Note: If you buy the Biggest Deal Package, you get a $5 fun card which equals 20 points to play the ticket games.

The fun goes on forever. Air hockey, anyone?

Bubby would literally spend ALL DAY at laser tag. Well, he kinda did, but that’s OK because he had fun!

Bumper cars? You betcha!

Kylee loves hitting things, so the bumper cars are therapeutic for her.

Regular bowling is very colorful at iT’Z Pasadena TX.

But if handling 10-lb balls isn’t your thing (yes, I really said that), they have mini bowling too!

What’s in it for the adults?

For us, lots of shoot-em-up video games (don’t judge) are great. Stress relievers are fun and I oddly find shooting dinosaurs amazing! Also, at the end of the day, if you have a DD, there’s an adults-only bar outside of the bowling alley that you might want to stop by. Looks like a lot of fun!

Grab the deal and have some fun!

Not in the Pasadena TX area so you’re a little bummed about missing this deals and fun? They have locations in Euless TX and Willowbrook (Houston) TX too and you can take advantage of the fun and BOGO Biggest Deal savings right now at any of their locations. Buy one Biggest Deal at regular price ($28.99 plus tax) and get one Biggest Deal Free! All day food, fun, and family together time. It doesn’t get much better than that, so what are you waiting for?

Disclosure: I received a family 4-pack to iT’Z Family Food & Fun through a partnership with US Family Guide, however, all opinions are my own.

An Unlikely Casualty of Bullying

By Christy 5 Comments

As a mom, it’s hard to deal with your child being bullied. Constant contact with school officials, too many scares to be counted, crying (both of you) more than you should, but what do you do when your child becomes an unlikely casualty of bullying?

An Unlikely Casualty of Bullying

Our experience with bullies in today’s middle school has been life altering. Literally. There’s been an unlikely casualty here, and although I’m fortunate it’s not a tangible human casualty, my daughter is forever changed, I fear. Before you go thinking I’m being a little overly dramatic again, let’s define casualty.

cas·u·al·ty (noun):

a person killed or injured in a war or accident.

a person or thing badly affected by an event or situation.

My Bug falls heavily under that second definition. She’s different. Everything about her has changed. She’s no longer just a bad ass, she’s borderline bad, and she’s completely shut down.

From Cheers to Tears!

Although Kylee has always had an “attitude” issue, she was a very cheerful kid who sang, danced, and took over every situation whenever she could just to be the star of the show. The start of middle school was a huge win for our Bug. She was on the cheer squad, in band, getting fantastic grades, and all of the teachers just thought she was a doll. She was the quintessential student and she had a huge group of “friends”.

Then the bullying started. One incident after another. Some mild mannered that we worked through, some absolutely blood curdling. But with each instance, I watched my daughter change. With each mean word, slap, threat, lack of action (and actual bullying) by some administrators…she just kept changing. She was shutting down.

My daughter was shutting down.

The Day My Daughter Changed

I can’t say I recall the exact day, the exact moment, that Kylee became a different person, but I can say that her entire personality is an unlikely casualty of bullying. I’ve been supportive, I’ve been at the school, I’ve documented everything, I’ve encouraged my daughter regularly, but she’s different.

Whatever day it was, or series of days, I’ve watched my daughter slowly die inside and a new person has emerged. This person is not as kind or loving as the last one was; not even close. She’s no longer very talkative, she fights with everyone at home, she rolls her eyes at her teachers, she complains about changing for cheer (if she goes to practice at all), she stopped bringing her bassoon home to practice. She doesn’t sing like she used to, she doesn’t dance a whole lot.

Her new “friend” group is actually the last round of bullies. Yes, she’s with them now since she couldn’t stand strongly against them, since the administrators labeled her “one of them”. I mean, if she has to go to ISS every time she speaks up against one of them, she might as well be friends with them. Of course I understand, but I don’t condone it. She hasn’t (and will NOT) hurt anyone, but she’ll slowly roll with this group of girls until she’s in the wrong place at the wrong time. She’s afraid to find a new friend group since they all “turn on her anyway” so she’s settled here rather than being alone.

What would you do?

I, personally, would rather be alone and I’ve told her that repeatedly, but I can’t be there every minute of every day. I can only be there to pick her up every time she falls. And I will.

In the meantime, I’m here watching over her as best I can, protecting her every step of the way, and watching her slowly die inside while I stand helplessly by. No words I can say, no hug, no anything will erase what she’s gone through. I just hope one day in the near future she realizes that her whole life doesn’t have to change, she doesn’t have to change, and she’s back to the feisty little bad ass that I love so much!

Right now, unfortunately, her psyche is an unlikely casualty of bullying and I miss her.

Are Your Boos Ready with Halloween Costumes?

By Christy Leave a Comment

Busy Mom Alert: You can still be your kids’ Halloween hero without leaving the couch! Did you know that there are affordable options for Halloween Costumes online? Just so you know, the kind folks at Oriental Trading® did send me costumes for this post, but the opinions are entirely my own.

Halloween! It’s everything, right? OK, it’s not Christmas, but it’s a really close second. I have a Halloween baby and it’s a big deal in my house. A really big deal. But what’s a busy mom to do when she wants to make sure her kids are clad in the best costumes in town, but she doesn’t have a bunch of time for shopping, traveling from shop to shop, or worrying about sizing? She turns to Oriental Trading®, of course, right from her couch! The fact that her kids look amazing on Halloween (OK, I’m talking about myself and my own kids here) is a true win. Want to be a Halloween hero this year, and every year, too? Follow my advice because these costumes are amazing, affordable, and SIMPLE for mom. I’m a Halloween hero and I didn’t even try!

See, just like with my Halloween decor, I logged into Oriental Trading®, and I let the kids do the work. They picked out their costumes, I pressed a button, and done. DONE. Ninja, Gothic Prom Queen, and skeletons…oh my. Oh, how I love my simple life!

Are Your Boos Ready with Halloween Costumes?

I ordered the costumes, headed to the dollar store to pick up some extra props, and I’m a Halloween hero without taking out a second mortgage. Seriously, this holiday stuff can get expensive if you don’t know where to shop! Plus, how cute is he? I know, I know…cute as a button, in a threatening sort of way, of course.

Plus, having all of the best (and affordable decor) for photo ops is amazing because we, as moms, need all of the pictures we can muster to savor every memory!

I can’t wait for the actual night of all Hallow’s Eve. With the outside decor, plus the amazing backdrops in the house, there are so many memories to be made and cherished for years to come. What are you waiting for? The clock is ticking. Halloween is JUST around the corner. Be a Halloween hero this year! Your kids will thank you for it, and so will your bank account!