Taylor Armstrong wants to set the record straight about what viewers saw during the Feb. 18 episode of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. In the opening scenes, the 41-year-old widow called her costar Kyle Richards to inform her that she won’t be able to attend Kim Richards‘ nose job unveiling party, which was already underway. The reason, Armstrong said, was because she was on her way to the airport to meet an unnamed man for a weekend getaway. “I’m so happy and he loves Kennedy,” she slurred.
Armstrong appeared to be unaware that her 6-year-old daughter was at the event with Kyle. “Oh, you have Kennedy with you?” Armstrong asked as the Richards sisters look at each other in disbelief. “You know I trust you more than any person on the planet.”
“Well, take her,” Armstrong said after some back and forth. “I’m coming back for the white party.” (Recovering alcoholic Kim, 48, later questioned her costar’s sobriety while discussing the incident with her castmates.)
Kyle, 44, was visibly stunned that Armstrong was unaware of her daughter’s whereabouts. “Imagine my surprise when Taylor didn’t know I had her! At first I felt like I had done something wrong!” she wrote on her official Bravo blog. “Taylor had arranged for Kennedy to go to her mom’s for the weekend and had no clue the nanny had decided to let her stay and play with [my daughter] Portia. I thought I would be seeing Taylor at Kim’s and that she would be happy I brought both the girls with me. Some of this was discussed, but not all of our phone conversation was aired.”
The married mother of four clarified, “My family and I love Kennedy and treat her as one of our own. Kennedy is not with us all the time. However, when she is with us, Taylor knows Kennedy is happy and taken care of. Kennedy has gone through a lot and being in a house filled with kids is a happy environment for her.”
Armstrong, meanwhile, blames editing for making her look like a bad parent. “Let’s talk reality. I’m so tired of friends not standing up and supporting one another when they know the truth. This week’ episode makes it look like I wasn’t keeping track of my precious Kennedy,” she wrote on her official Bravo blog. “Nothing could be further from the truth. And Kyle knows it.”
The Hiding From Reality author explained that her daughter was meant to be spending the weekend with her grandparents in Orange County. “My nanny was instructed to stop by Kyle’s house prior to meeting my mother to pick up Kennedy’s iPad,” Armstrong wrote.
“When Kennedy and the nanny stopped by, Kyle suggested Kennedy go with she and Portia to Kim’s event so they could play together,” Armstrong added. “Kyle is one of my closest friends and she truly has been like a second mom to Kennedy. The nanny was very aware of the strong bond between our families and knew I would have complete confidence having Kennedy with Kyle and family.”
Armstrong continued, “As you can imagine, I was shocked on the phone to hear Kennedy was at Kim’s because that was not the specific instruction and plan we had for the weekend. I take my responsibility for Kennedy more seriously than anything. Kyle knows this well, and I am hurt she didn’t communicate this and the facts of the evening when the girls were discussing it at the table at Kim’s.” She also blasted newcomer Marisa Zanuck for commenting on the situation during the episode, saying she “has no business talking bout my child.”
The single mother — who admitted to being “tipsy” when she phoned Kyle — also expressed her disappointment in costar Adrienne Maloof, who was told about the situation at Kim’s unveiling. “I am not surprised considering her lack of support for both Kennedy and me over the last few years, just disappointed. . .again.”
Costar Brandi Glanville — who did not attend the unveiling but did watch the episode — shared her take on the situation with Us Weekly before signing copies of her new book, Drinking & Tweeting: and Other Brandi Blunders, at Barnes & Noble in West Hollywood Feb. 20. “I just can’t imagine that it went down exactly that way. . .Taylor is obviously a mess emotionally and going through a lot,” the 40-year-old model said. “I don’t know — I feel like Kyle having that conversation about Taylor at a party with people that don’t even know her that well, it was really not okay. It’s not okay.”
Glanville added, “If my best friend were going through something and she left her kid with me and forgot about it, or whatever it was, I don’t think I’d tell anyone. I would be like,'”You know what, this kid is better off with me right now.’ Would you rather have her with Taylor, who is a mess, or have her be happy with Portia?”
