Mema and Grandpa Tom decided the grandkids needed a little Nascar exposure, so this weekend we all packed up and headed to the races! It was hot and humid (though it could have been worse!) and we all had a blast! The kids rooted for the Home Depot car (because we have a toy one), Alan observed the drivers and started rooting for the guy who’s driving he liked best, Mema, G’Tom, and G’Don all have their favorites. I corralled the kids and occasionally glanced up at the 50 cars racing around the track. :)
Lovely ladies off to the races. I love this picture because of the bright colors they both chose to wear. I think it’s so pretty.
Can you see the speedway? Waaaayyy back there, behind trailer row? This was our walk in (after we’d already walked through our parking lot and across the street).
Waiting to get through security. (The red mark on his chin is where he burned it on a cookie sheet the other day, eagerly leaning in to smell the blueberry muffins fresh from the oven.)
Can’t take a picture of Lex without Eve wanting one of her too. Then they both wanted to see the pictures to see what they looked like with the headphones one. :)
First things first, lunch!
The binoculars were a big hit. I don’t think either kid can focus them well, but they both had fun trying.
They both need glasses on here! They look like sports casters though. :)
It was so loud we resorted to writing notes to communicate. I started on the back of a receipt, but fortunately Mema was better prepared and pulled out a little notebook. This also helped us keep Eve busy for quite awhile with drawings and games.
A few other people joined us as well.
I liked watching the pit crews at work!
Eve found a creative place to store her ear muffs when not in use.
About half way through the races Eve was ready to head home. Lex was having a great time though, keeping track of the laps, rooting for his car, and trash talking (or writing, as it was too loud to talk!) with Mema. So we got some ice cream and played little games and kept Eve as entertained as possible until the end of the race.
Still smiling 301 laps later!
The day was overcast and the rain threatened, but it held off for us. We made it back to the car, sat in traffic for an hour, then we were on our way. By the time we stopped for dinner the rain was coming down and it hit hard on the way home. My car was quiet though. You’d think they were both asleep, but no, instead they were caught up in our new audio book, the original “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” (which, no surprise, is quite different from the movie!)
It was a loud, sweaty, 12hr day, but well worth the trip. Thanks Mema and G’Tom for exposing us to a whole new sport! :)