Amp Suit

As everyone probably knows, Dylan's favorite NASCAR driver is Dale Jr. Since Dale Jr. changed to the number 88 this year, Dylan wanted a new NASCAR suit. He SOMEHOW talked Nana into making him one. He was so excited, but also very detail oriented. He wanted it to be perfect. Nana tried her best and we all think she did a GREAT job!!!! He loves it! To make things even better, when we got home Brandon had redone his room and repainted his bed to look like Dale Jr.'s National Guard car. We were home probably 30 minutes and I was taking pictures of him in his "suit" next to his car.

Camping Out

One of the fun things we did when we went home was camp out next door at my mom and dad's new house. There is just a frame and a roof, so we pitch tents inside the house and camp out. It is a lot of fun and the kids love playing and just being "free" to run around. My sister, Preston, my two nieces and my nephew all came to camp out with us. We usually cook hot dogs and hamburgers and make Smores (yum yum) for desert!



























My sister thought it would be fun to bring some water guns. It was a blast! I wish you could have all been there to see all the grandkids gang up on my dad for a water gun fight. It was priceless! Sutherlan had the most fun, I think, trying to "get Papa".



Papa also took them for a four-wheeler ride.


By the time the day was over, Sutherlan was so exhausted from playing with everyone that she passed out while eating her hot dog.

Singing Diva

Lately, Sutherlan has gotten into singing for us. She loves to perform for anyone who will watch. She will actually get upset if you're not paying attention. She definitely commands the stage and forget about Bo Bo (Dylan) trying to sing with her. He is only allowed to play instruments. After she sings, she will say, "I'm going to Hollywood!" Do you think we watch too much American Idol around here???

Maw Maw Pannell

While we were home, we went to visit my grandmother (Maw Maw Nell). I feel like I haven't seen her in forever and really needed to take the kids for a visit. She enjoyed having them there and they had fun too. They got to visit with some of their second cousins (Chance, August and Noble). Poor Sutherlan was the only girl, but that didn't slow her down! She was right in the middle. I guess having an older brother helps with that. We also got to visit with my Aunt Sandra and Buster (her husband). It was good to see everyone and makes me miss home!

This is a picture of my grandmother with just a few of the great-grandchildren. There are 9 in all.

The Birmingham Zoo

One of the reasons I haven't blogged in a while is that I went home for a week to visit family. We had such a great time! We are always so busy that time just flies by while we are there. It seems like a week goes by in a day or two. One of the first things we did was go to The Birmingham Zoo. I LOVE the zoo!! This is one of my favorite things to do when we go home. We try to go every summer. Dylan's favorite things to do at the zoo are to see the reptiles and tigers. They had a white tiger this year that you could actually see up close and he played with a ball instead of just lying around sleeping. Dylan thought that was so cool!! I got LOTS of pictures of the white tiger. Sutherlan loves seeing the giraffes. Also, she saw a peacock by the picnic tables where you eat and one of the first things she said is that she wanted to see "Island Princess". Island Princess is a Barbie movie that she has and one of the characters is a peacock. She also enjoyed seeing the camels. They offer camel rides now, but that was a little much for me. I wasn't ready to get on a camel. My favorite thing to do is go to Alligator Alley. I just love seeing the alligators, but also wonder what would happen if that bridge suddenly fell out from under me. Scary!

They have added several activities to the zoo such as the Foam Zone. It is an area where the kids can play in the water and they have a HUGE bubble machine spitting out bubbles. Sutherlan wasn't crazy about this, but Dylan had a blast!!! They have also added Kangaroo Kountry. Next year, they are adding a safari, which should be interesting. Their only elephant had passed away this past year so there wasn't any elephants this time, but they said there are bringing in lots of elephants for the safari along with several other new animals. Can't wait!! Until next year......

Speeding?

Hello! I know it has been a while, sorry...I've been busy. Anyway, this is sort of a goofy entry, but just had to include it because I thought it was funny! Our next door neighbor is obsessed with people speeding in our neighborhood. (Which, for me, is great because I worry about the kids playing outside). Anyway, he has connections at the police department and they are out here constantly monitoring speeding. One day, the boys were out playing and here comes the police truck to set up a speeding monitor at our next door neighbor's house. They went crazy! They thought it was so cool because they were using it to see how fast they could ride their bikes. THEN.....Brandon got involved. He wanted me to take his picture riding the golf cart past the monitor to see how fast he was going. Do they ever grow up?!?! Ha Ha. See for yourself. I guess you had to be there..it was funny! :)