Nanny Faye Chrisley is the elder matriarch of the Chrisley clan on Chrisley Knows Best, and she
might be the show’s unsung hero. But the untold truth of Nanny Faye Chrisley reveals that the
adorable grandma has lived quite an interesting life, even before she became a reality star.
Fans of Chrisley Knows Best know that the Chrisley family doesn't appear to struggle with money.
While Todd Chrisley has had some drama when it comes to his finances,
he's provided a nice home and lavish lifestyle for his family, including his mother.
But even though Nanny Faye Chrisley doesn't seem to struggle with money now, when she was a child,
she didn't have it so easy. In one episode, Nanny Faye got visibly upset with her grandchildren,
because they were looking at their electronic devices instead of listening to her.
“Whatcha lookin’ at Chase, put the phone down.”
When Grayson pointed out that she uses her own devices just as much, she scoffed, saying,
"I think about how hard I had to work,
milking cows every morning at 4:30 in the morning, and then going to feed the
hogs and the chickens. Y'all couldn't survive one week on what I had to do."
Honestly, she might be right about that!
Just because the Chrisley clan is super close-knit,
that doesn't mean the family is without its hardships. And for Nanny Faye, whose family is
significantly larger than the cast of Chrisley Knows Best, there's a tragic story there, too.
Though Todd Chrisley seems to be Nanny Faye's favorite son, he isn't the only child she had.
Nanny Faye actually had two other sons in addition to Todd: Randy and Derrick Chrisley.
Unfortunately, Derrick sadly passed away when he was just a baby. It's unclear how,
but Derrick reportedly died back in 1971 when he was only 4 months old.
It's truly hard to imagine the grief that Nanny Faye must have felt losing her baby,
but she remained strong for her other children. In fact, Todd posted a throwback photo on Instagram,
sharing that she worked 60 hours a week just to provide for her family.
On Chrisley Knows Best, it's pretty obvious that Todd and Nanny Faye have a special relationship,
despite the fact that Todd pranks his mother on occasion. But at the
end of the day, the pair are two peas in a pod.
Todd shares his love for his mother on social media, too. In a sweet, heartfelt Instagram
post in honor of Nanny Faye's birthday, Todd revealed just how much he loves his mother.
He wrote,
"There are no words that will ever explain how blessed I am to have you as my mother,
through every trial and tribulation our family has ever gone through.
With all of my heart, I love you beyond words and thank God everyday for you."
Nanny Faye isn't silent when it comes to her affection towards her son, either. In fact,
she's shared several posts on her Instagram page about how fond she is of Todd, showing the world
just how proud she is of him. These two might just be the sweetest mother-son pair out there.
As a grandmother and even a great-grandmother, many people might assume that Nanny Faye is
a reserved and gentle matriarch — but that couldn't be further from the truth.
Not only is Nanny Faye quite the spitfire, but she also has a fun side,
and really likes to gamble. She could even be considered a professional at the Blackjack table.
Nanny Faye is such a huge fan of gambling that in one Instagram post,
in which she posed with grandchildren Chase and
Savannah, she wrote a hilarious caption about the important things in life:
"Love these children. But I like them more when they go gambling with me."
As Nanny Faye said in a special video for USA,
"I've been all over, and any place I go, I Google to see if there's a casino around."
Gambling might not be your typical grandma hobby,
but it makes Nanny Faye happy, and that's all that matters.
While Todd Chrisley is the head of his family, and typically pretty fun to watch,
his mother is also pretty entertaining. In fact, Nanny Faye Chrisley is arguably the best part of
the show, as she's the most beloved member of the family — except for maybe Chloe Chrisley.
Not only does Nanny Faye get plenty of love and attention from her family on the show,
but they've also shown her lots of love on social media. In one Instagram post,
Savannah Chrisley wished her grandmother a happy birthday with a sweet message.
She wrote,
"Y'all know her as the funny crazy grandma...but
me...oh I am lucky and blessed to know so much more of her."
Nanny Faye's grandchildren aren't the only ones showering her with love,
either. Savannah's ex-partner, Nic Kerdiles has also treated her like the queen she
is. In one of Nanny Faye's Instagram posts, he can be seen fanning her as she lays out by the pool.
She quipped,
"I've got a pretty good gig going as long as @savannahchrisley stays out of my business.”
While Nanny Faye is close to her entire family, there's someone who is no longer
around that the sassy grandma misses dearly. What really happened to Todd Chrisley's dad?
Sadly, in 2012, Nanny Faye lost her husband to cancer. Gene Chrisley,
a Korean War veteran, was 77 when he passed on.
While his death took a toll on the whole family, it was especially hard for his widow.
Still, Nanny Faye seemed almost ready to try and find someone new
in Season 1 of Chrisley Knows Best, when she tried out a dating website.
"I was just looking for someone to find a cup of coffee with or just maybe to talk."
However, as her grandson Kyle helped her figure out the website, she sadly noted,
"None of them look like Poppa, do they."
She later concluded,
"I'm not ever gonna find nobody like him."
It's clear that her husband was the love of her life.
As funny and sassy as Nanny Faye is, she has a softer side as well.
And though she misses her late husband, she's also tried to move on and find a new romantic
partner on more than one occasion. After all, everyone deserves love.
In Season 1, Nanny Faye tried moving on by going on a coffee date with a
man — but that didn't work out. Then in Season 5,
Nanny Faye attempted to join a dating app with the help of her grandson Chase.
Not one to give up, Nanny Faye also tried out speed dating in Season 8,
making it clear what she was looking for in her next relationship.
"First question I'd ask him is,
'how much money do you have in your bank account, and do you have a yacht?’”
Of course, there's also all the flirting Nanny Faye has done over
the years with Nic Kerdiles. Though Nanny Faye doesn't yet have a steady boyfriend,
it's clear she enjoys playing the field whenever she can.
Nanny Faye has her own children, grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren, but that doesn't
mean she's done having a baby around the house. These days, Nanny Faye's baby has
a little more fur. Yes, Nanny Faye Chrisley is a total dog lover, and she can't hide it.
Nanny Faye spoils her dog Miley to bits, and in one episode of Chrisley Knows Best,
she'd had enough with Todd’s rude remarks about her dog.
Nanny Faye was planning for a trip and having a hard time finding someplace for
her beloved pooch to stay. Julie offered the family’s services,
but Nanny Faye quickly shut her down, saying that she wouldn’t let Todd watch the dog.
“I would never leave her here with that hater.”
She went on to say she couldn’t leave Miley in a kennel either because,
“She has to stay where she can watch the Hallmark channel because she has separation anxiety."
Nanny Faye has also shown Miley some love on social media.
She gushed an Instagram post of her and her pooch, saying,
"I love my little Miley.”
Most fans of Chrisley Knows Best know that Julie, Todd's wife — and oftentimes the only
voice of reason on the show — had a long battle with breast cancer.
It was obviously a very trying time for the family,
so when Todd heard that his own mother might be sick, he understandably was concerned. Fans
followed along on Season 4 of Chrisley Knows Best when Nanny Faye had her cancer scare.
Julie called Todd to tell him that she took Nanny Faye to the hospital to run tests because the
doctors found a lump in her breast. Everyone was worried, but the doctors ran tests right away.
The family didn't have to wait long to find out that the tests came back negative,
and Nanny Faye didn't have breast cancer. Still,
it was a very stressful time for the Chrisley clan, given the family's history with the disease.
When you watch Chrisley Knows Best, you might assume that the family has never had money issues
given how wealthy they appear, but that couldn't be further than the truth. In fact, there was once
a time when Nanny Faye's home was foreclosed on because of the family’s financial problems.
In 2014, Radar Online obtained official court documents,
which showed that the U.S. Bank National Association and Homebanc Mortgage Loan
started the foreclosure process on Nanny Faye's home.
The bank reportedly alleged that Todd Chrisley defaulted on a
$362,300 home loan, missing over $33,000 in payments.
Perhaps that's the reason why it seemed like Nanny Fay was living with her son
and his family for a while? Fortunately everything worked out, as Chrisley Knows
Best fans have seen Nanny Faye living in her own home, but still regularly visiting her son.
Nanny Faye is very wise, and has been through a lot in life.
But interestingly enough, for as long as she's been around,
she never learned to swim. That was something that the Chrisley family had to rectify, for sure.
To that end, in Season 7 of Chrisley Knows Best,
Chase tried to teach Nanny Faye how to swim, but it wasn't working.
But once Chase hired a different swim teacher for his grandmother, she seemed pumped about learning.
When the very attractive instructor walked in, Nanny Faye's face lit up,
and she couldn't help but gasp, "oh Lord," as he walked towards her.
She gushed,
"This is the best lesson I've ever had!"
Nanny Faye later shared a post on her Instagram page of her and her chiseled swim instructor,
showcasing again that it really was the most exciting swim lesson she's ever had.
And while swimming may not be in the cards for Nanny Faye,
that doesn't mean she doesn't like to look good while at the pool or beach!
On Chrisley Knows Best, Nanny Faye often picks on her grandchildren,
and isn’t shy to boss them around. But even though Nanny Faye can be quite feisty, she's also a total
softy — especially when it comes to her grandkids, who she clearly loves with all of her heart.
Taking to Instagram, Nanny Faye shared a sweet photo of Chase and
Savannah leaning in for a hug from their grandma.
She hilariously captioned the photo,
"I just love my grandchildren...but I don't always like them.”
Then, remaining true to her sassy form,
Nanny Faye also gave a special shoutout to Savannah on Instagram.
She captioned a photo of her granddaughter,
"I love my granddaughter @savannahchrisley so much, she checks on me three or four times a
day. [...] I mean, it's a little much because I'm not that old but I love her with all my heart."
Honestly, Nanny Faye's Instagram account might just be the best out
of all the Chrisley family because of her witty and hilarious captions.
It’s clear that even though she loves her grandkids, she still keeps it real.
Fans of Chrisley Knows Best probably wouldn't be surprised if Nanny Faye never cooked, and had
chefs prepare her gourmet meals daily. After all, she is the queen of the family. But as it turns
out, Nanny Faye has quite a knack for cooking and baking, especially classic southern meals.
In a clip promoting Julie's online cooking show, What's Cooking With Julie Chrisley,
Nanny Faye supervised Julie's attempt to master her biscuits
and gravy recipe — and didn't let Julie off the hook when she made mistakes.
Specifically, Nanny Faye said Julie was folding the dough too roughly.
She explained,
"You learn over time. [...] The more you make, the better you get."
Then, when the dough was ready to be cut, Nanny Faye handed Julie a rolling pin to use,
which confused Julie because she said Nanny Faye never uses a rolling pin.
Nanny Faye quipped back,
I don't have to, beginners need to."
At the end of the segment, when Todd taste-tested the biscuits, they were so good he didn't believe
Julie had made them. That goes to show that Nanny Faye has true skills in the kitchen.
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