Catching Up!

It seems like I've been on the go since school got out on May 21st.  So I thought I'd share with you guys all that I've been up to! (Above pic is River Street, in Savannah, at sunset!)

My daughter turned 13 in May and she wanted to spend her birthday on Tybee Island, which happens to be my most favorite place in the world! School got out on the 21st and I picked up Leah and one of her friends and we headed to Tybee, where one of my friends would meet us.  We got there just in time for the Tybee Beach Bum Parade. Picture any small town parade you've ever attended. Now, picture it with hundreds of water guns. When they say you WILL get wet, they aren't kidding. Being dry is like having a big, red target on your back! It was great fun, though!

We went to The Crab Shack for Leah's birthday. I'm not sure if she likes to go there to eat the food or PLAY with it! The weekend was great. The place we stayed in, not so much! Oy!

Playing with her food!

Me and my birthday girl! HOLY COW, she's a TEENAGER now!!

This past week, the family and I spent the week in Pigeon Forge, TN. We love Pigeon Forge and Dollywood. We've had season tickets for years now. (It's magical at Christams!) We went to Dollywood a couple of days and the weather was fabulous. Now, we are cheap and we all know that parks are not. But we always take in back packs full of water and snacks and even sandwiches. We just do not spend money on expensive park food! We really don't eat out much when we go on vacation either. We always get a house or a condo. It's been my experience that you can get a house/condo cheaper than a hotel room, and there is more room. I love VRBO. We've used it for years! The only time it has let me down was the weekend in Tybee, and I really blame that on the person who placed the ad, not VRBO. Anyway, we cook on vacation. It's sooo much cheaper.  We also did something different this time. We actually went on one of the time share things so we could get FREE tickets to the Titantic Museum and Ripley's Aquarium. It wasn't bad. They weren't high pressure. It only took 2 hours out of day. And it's really easy to say no when it's $30K! And we got FREE tickets!! Which is good, because I was not THAT impressed with Titantic. I liked it. It was fun. It was not worth $23 each, though.

 We had much more fun at the aquarium. They have PENGUINS now! And I LOVE LOVE LOVE Penguins!

We spent the day in Gatlinburg and since it was Blake's birthday week, we went to  Dick's Last Resort. Now if you've never been to Dick's, it's an experience. They are rude, crude and hilarious! And they make you wear hats and bibs. It was great!

Not my best fashion statement!

Ben also had a good time in Gatlinburg. We went to Cooter's Place, where Ben got to touch a real General Lee. (He's still 12, too!)

The only thing to make him happier? To drive it.

We were home by Friday and Saturday was Blake's 12th birthday. I picked up Lise's boys and brought them to my house where they all had a day of gaming. And boy did my sun room smell a little gamey after it was over. Phew! BOYS!  I think they all had a great time, though.

Me and my birthday boy!

I just realized that I'm wearing the same top at Leah's and Blake's birthday. Ok, that's kinda funny!!  And I also just realized that school starts back in **5** weeks!!