Someone is sleeping in my bed

 We managed to get 8 persons in my friends eight passenger van

 we dog sat this old soul, and he went on a run with me, and he survived, and then became my best friend

 I took this girl and her sister out for lunch, she ordered the kids steak!

 What nice girl time

 we took these little kids to the Good Guys Car show, and sweated a lot

 Noelle looking sweet next to a corvette

 water fun

I should have taken the time to rotate this.  This is the back of Em's birthday list.  I love the picture she drew, it has people handing her gifts!  so funny.  The backside of her list is everything she wants from the American Girl catalog...

 Swim lessons are in full swing

this girl is working on the front crawl with breathing and can now tread water for over 30 seconds!

NASCAR Hall of Fame

Well,  NASCAR Hall of Fame.  So fun.  It was a very interactive museum.  My first Hall of Fame experience, in any subject matter.  They had tons of activities for all ages.  Some of the highlights were stepping on various grades of track, feeling different track surfaces, seeing many famous movie cars, the actual Hall of Fame inductees and learning their respective histories, an interactive pit stop area where kids of all ages could hold a gas can, change a tire, the works, and the crème de la crème - a simulator.  I loved walking through the areas and reading all of the history.  Even a non NASCAR person would find it somewhat interesting.  For instance, the modern day net covering the drivers window was developed by Richard Petty's mother.  After a brutal accident that had "the King' in his early days hanging half out of his window, she had a brilliant idea, and went to weaving and sewing the net.

 Herbie

 The Fabulous Hudson Hornet, or Doc

 The "Piston Cup"... you pissed in what?

 The cars were all being displayed on a track that wrapped around the room, occasionally there was an opportunity to climb up on the track to test the degree grade

 racing seat

 changing a tire

 tailgating with the M&M's

 a Jeff Gordon #24 collection

 Rob was impressed with the Shock dyno section

 NASCAR rear end

This is the net Richard Petty's mom made

Saturday night dinner with friends after a couple hours at the swimming pool

 Rob was more than thrilled to receive five packages of his favorite Forbes Beef jerky for his Birthday.  (let me know if you ever need to get a present for Rob, he loves this stuff)

 This kids decorated his birthday chocolate pie.  Em drizzeled the chocolate on top.  Dallas helped make the pie and then sunk a General Lee in the middle. 

 We had an extra pie crust, so quiche or as well call it "bacon pie" made  a good lunch this week.

 Our first bloom from the lilles, I love that it is Cyclone colored

Early morning reading time

Hair designs

My summer seems to be turning into "how can I tire out my kids today". 

Since we have been home in Ames, all but one weekday has been devoted to visiting a park.  The day we took off was spent in the church parking lot teaching Em how to ride a bike.

We either picnic or come home for lunch, let Noelle nap a couple of hours, (and me sometimes) and then around 3:30 we hit the pool for an hour or two.  We then finish our Mondays and Wednesday with Dallas at T-ball, or our Tuesdays and Thursdays with Emily at softball.  These are each an hour and are at a park so often we all go, and the kids not playing sports get to play on the playgrounds.  Dinner and then bed!  Emily sleeps until at least 8:30!

Another thing I have learned is that kids will eat anything after a trip to the pool.  We are on our third bag of apples.  I bring three in the swim bag.  I seriously think I could bring whole  green peppers and they would chop down on them.

Vacation Day 5, Charlotte, NC

After we saw the Wright Memorial, we headed for Charlotte.  The drive was about 3 hours and really scenic.  We crossed several bridges.  Bridges connect mainland NC to the Outerbank string of islands.  After the bridges we drove through about an hour of what I would consider marshland.  Every now and then we would cross another long bridge, but most of the road wondered through a lot of nature.  I think at one point we were on a two lane road named Crocodile Hwy, we also saw a couple of signs that warned against feeding bears from your car. 

 

We arrived in Moresville and grabbed dinner.  Day 5 consisted of seeing Charlotte Motor Speedway and the NASCAR Hall of Fame. 

I had booked the "Over the Wall" tour package, which gets you into a couple extra areas at the track.   

 

A view from the box

 

Waiting for our ride, outside the track

Our van, we loaded the kids car seats inside and buckled in for our tour. 

 

This was in the media center.  Drivers will come here and talk to the media.  The rest of the room consisted of long tables with tons of outlets for all the media to hook up their laptops.  Each row of tables had two tv suspended from the ceiling.  One tv showed the race as broadcasted, the other tv would be spitting out facts or insider statistics

They had a lot of neat and rare photos inside the media room. 

 

This was winners circle

 

This is the PRN broadcast booth.  I think Rob was enamored with the recording set up

 

This is the Memeber's only restaurant.  It is open to the public for lunch but dinner is reservation only for members.  During a race members can sit at a window side table for 1 hour alotments, then they are moved to a different table.  A scene from Talladega Nights was filmed there. 

Charlotte Motor Speedway also has the biggest outdoor HD tv screen.  It was huge!  I could spew random facts about the whole tour, pretty interesting.  I think the kids enjoyed driving fast in the van, and going on the embankment.  I think this speedway has 29 degrees embankment, and the van would start to flip at 33!

 

Up next our trip to the NASCAR Hall of Fame...

Vacation Day 4, Kill Devil Hill, Outer Banks, NC

First Flight!  The Wilber brothers picked the Outer Banks for their testing site even though they lived in Ohio.  The lure of a need for a vacation and the soft landing the sand and dunes would create sealed the deal.  We learned a ton of information at this National Park. 

 We woke up on Sunday, checked out of the motel and drove five miles down the road to get to park. 

Monument resurrected on Kill Devil Hill, I think funded by Congress

Inside the museum

Three of the markers that mark the distances of the first three flights

Standing at marker 2

and at Marker 4 (because he is four)

The rail the plane used for take off

Walking up to the Monument, we made it.  I took turns carrying either Noelle or Dallas, Emily was a trooper and walked the whole thing without complaining (it was hot, 90 degrees).  Robert was walking with his Dad

We made it!

 

Family pick

This little statue showed the positions of the seven men who helped with the flight.  They had a timer, a photographer among them. 

 

I could write a ton more about all we learned, but you all should really go see it for yourselves!