Well, I didn't get to see Monkeys Ridin' Dawgs

For the past three appearances, Kim, from Live From the 205, has wanted us to go to the Alabama State Fair together.  One thing or another has gotten in the way, but this year we were determined to meet up.

Friday afternoon, we picked the kids up from school and headed west to meet up with Kim.  We made great time getting there and even managed to be about 30 minutes early!

We met at a neutral location right off the Interstate, and while we were walking in, we thought we would make Kim's vehicle look a lot nicer...

That Alabama decal looks SO MUCH BETTER than that Auburn car tag....IJS.  LOL

Kim was a great sport about it and even left it on (until she was out of our site)!

I decided to leave my big camera in the car, so all my pictures were made with my phone.  Sorry for the poor quality.

Jameson and Chelsea petting Essie the Bordon cow.  The best thing about this attraction is that I got a $1.00/off coupon for Borden products!

Ummm, YES PLEASE!

Jameson's first ride on a roller coaster. He LOVED it!

Jameson and Marty getting in some bumper car action.

The ONLY thing Chelsea and I rode...the Merry-go-round.

The best part of the night for Jameson.  He got to see some "real" wrestling!  He was SO excited!

He just HAD to get a mask.  He loves this thing.  And I will let you know, if somebody walks into your bedroom at 6:30 am on a Saturday morning wearing this, it WILL scare you to death!  (not that it happened or anything)

We also saw duck races.

And pig races.  The audience "winner" of the pig race got to kiss the winning pig.

By this time, Kim had left, we were about to melt because it was so hot, Marty and Jameson were soaking wet from riding the log ride, we were thirsty and starving to death, and we were BROKE!  Yeah, I don't remember the fair costing SO MUCH MONEY!

Here is the breakdown:

We drove over, parked for $5.00 and walked to the entrance, where we paid $9 for each adult ticket and $6 for Jameson to get in.  Once in, we realized that the entrance cost did not pay for any of the rides or games.  You had to buy separate tickets, at $1.00 EACH for those.  Oh, and each ride cost 3 - 5 tickets EACH and the tickets didn't pay for any of the games.  Those were cash-only at $3 - $5 each, as well.

After Jameson and Marty blew through the first $20.00 worth of tickets within the first 5 minutes there, we decided to buy Jameson the $20.00 bracelet, which covered all the rides, but not any of the games, or the food, or the souvenirs, or the drinks.  Since this was Jameson's first time riding any kind of rides, he didn't want to go by himself, so we bought tickets for Marty to ride with him.  We thought after he rode them a time or two, he would be fine, but NOPE, Marty had to ride every time...costing us another $30.00 in tickets.

We spent $6.00 for a lemonade, and then $3.50 for a refill later.  Jameson had a $5.00 Icie.  Chelsea wanted cotton candy, which was $5.00/bag.  Jameson had to have the wrestling mask, which was $10.00. Chelsea saw a knock-off purse that she really liked, and that cost $10.00, as well.  Oh, and that doesn't count the cost of our gas to drive 70 miles from home each way either.

So, as much as we all wanted to stay and see the MONKEYS RIDIN' DAWGS, we had seen (and spent) enough and decided to head back home.

But not before us grown-ups splurged on one thing....

Funnel cake!  Or rather cakes....we ended up buying two so the front seat (grown-ups) would have one, and the back seat (kids) would have their own.  And two fountain drinks, too.  So, that added an additional $20.00 to our trip.  (But by far, the best splurge of the night....haha!)

We took a detour on the way out, thinking it was closer to our car...

WRONG!

We were probably 1/2 mile from it!

So, Marty went to get the car while we waited in the shade.

Don't they look excited?

Daddy's here!

(sorry for the blurry picture, but we were running to the car to get in the air conditioner)

I won't say the night was a total bust.  We DID get to spend some time with Kim and her friend, Tommy.  They were a trip and had us laughing the entire time.  We also got to spend a lot of time together as a whole family, which doesn't happen too often.  That had to be the BEST part of the night.

Jameson had a great time and can't wait to go again.  I hated to tell him that unless he drives and pays himself, next time will be at least 30 years from now, when we are too old and senile to remember.

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I hope you all are having a wonderful and fantastic Labor Day! Please stay safe!!