June Shannon and her brood — including Honey Boo Boo, Sugar Bear, Chickadee, Pumpkin and Chubs — may make for must-see TV on TLC's Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, but the McIntyre, Ga.- based mom insists they're just like any other American family.
"A lot of people say they can relate to us," Shannon (known affectionately as "Mama" on the Wednesday night hit) told Ryan Seacrest during a Wednesday KIIS-FM radio interview. "Our fan base tells us that when they have a bad day they can be able to watch our show and be able to get a good laugh; I honestly laugh at the show too because it is kind of funny, because we know we have fun filming it. It's just all about having fun making memories."
Rising to fame alongside her 7-year-old daughter, Alana Thompson ("Honey Boo Boo") on TLC's Toddlers & Tiaras, Shannon — who recently became a grandmother — tells Seacrest she has a special bond with her four daughters, who range in age from 7 to 17. "I am a parent first and foremost; I'm also their best friend and they're able to come to me about situations," Shannon says. "We do act crazy a little bit, [but] we know when to be serious."
And just because Shannon let Honey Boo Boo drink a cocktail of Red Bull and Mountain Dew (dubbed Go-Go Juice) on Toddlers & Tiaras doesn't make her a bad mom. "That was a one time and one time only thing and we don't do that no more," she confirms.
Speaking of pageants, Shannon says she'll let Honey Boo Boo — who recently went back to school — decide if she wants to continue on the beauty circuit. "When Alana says 'I don't wanna do any more TV, I don't wanna do any more pageants,' we're done. We go back to our regular life," she confirmed. "Sugar Bear still works seven days a week, the kids still go to school and we live our lives normally. Nothing has really changed since the show."
Here Comes Honey Boo Boo airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. (EST) on TLC.
