?Tameka Raymond was featured in an Uptown Magazine exclusive interview where she speaks about motherhood, her public custody battle, and managing relationships as a single mother.
Nine months later, Tameka filed for sole custody as a counteraction, which sparked that whole drug test battle between she and her ex.
As far as what prompted Usher to seek full custody of his boys from their mother, Tameka believes its his way of trying to control her.
He is a man very accustomed to having his way.
This has nothing to do with how I parent. Trust me, I never will have a desire to keep a man away from his kids. I am not June Cleaver or head of the PTA, but I know I am a good mother.
Tameka, who’s divorce from her R&B superstar hubby was finalized back in 2009, also speaks about enjoying the single life as a single mother and what she is searching for in a potential mate.
More excerpts PLUS photos below…
I am dating. It?s refreshing. I have not been single in a while. I got divorced and married in the same year. It was a run-on relationship. But a lot of guys like to play games.
I like a man that?s a boss. I am not the dominant one. But a lot of the ones with the right mind-set wear OshKosh overalls. And if they are not ?y, I don?t like them.
I don?t bring men around my children. They have never met an ?Uncle Tony.? The two that I did bring around, I married.
Tameka, mother to Usher V (aka Cinco), 4, and Naviyd, 3, Kile, 10, Ryan,12, and Darin,21, also takes the opportunity to introduce ALL 5 of her kids to the world.
Ryan is the football star obsessed with girls. ?Go into my office and do your homework,? she tells him. ?And don?t get on Facebook.?
Kile is a budding Steve Jobs; one time he disassembled his mothers malfunctioning Beats by Dre headphones, then rewired and repaired them. Today, she is helping him with his science project? a robot he built that?s unfortunately fallen to pieces? yet, he skillfully sneaks in some younger-brother hateration. ?Ryan is on Facebook in your office,? Kile says nonchalantly.
?And you?re snitching,? Raymond says quickly. ?That?s why your robot broke!?
Neither Carol Brady nor Clair Huxtable, Raymond manages motherhood by her own rules, which is evident in her relationship with her son Darrin, 21, whom she had at age 19. (His father was murdered before he was born.)
During the photo shoot, he noticed me snapping a pic with my cell phone and immediately signaled to his mother. He is ?ercely protective. ?Because I had him at such a young age, he and I basically grew up together and we are extremely close. But I am very conscious not to be an overbearing mother.?
