Photo: Alana Thompson/Instagram
Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompsonis no longer the little girl audiences watched grow up on the small screen.
Despite being the same little girl audiences first became acquainted with several years back, Alana — who turns 18 on Aug. 28 — tells PEOPLE that some fans can’t see her as anything but a child.
Alana ‘Honey Boo Boo’ Thompson in 2017.
But Alana is far from it, especially as she prepares to go to college followingher recent graduationfrom Wilkinson County High School in McIntyre, Georgia. She also has been dating her 21-year-old boyfriend,Dralin Carswell, since 2021.
“A lot of people still think like, ‘Oh, you’re not supposed to be this’ and ‘You got a boyfriend? Oh no, you’re not supposed to have a boyfriend,'” she says. “And it’s like, I’m almost going to be 18. I’ve already graduated high school. I’m basically already grown. So I just don’t understand it.”
Alana Thompson/Instagram
Alana’s parents previouslyrelinquished custodyof her, putting her in the care of her sisterLauryn “Pumpkin” Shannonand her sibling’s husband,Joshua Efird. From Lauryn’s perspective, navigating raising Alana alongside her own children came with its challenges.
“I feel like it’s been tough to navigate because, of course, me and Josh have four kids of our own and we’re also trying to send Alana now off to college and stuff,” Lauryn, 23, tells PEOPLE. “And even before then, it was like we were trying to get Alana to graduate and we were trying to learn how to manage five kids under five and also a high school graduate. So that was always very, very complicated for me and Josh to figure out. But some way and somehow, we always seem to manage all five of the kids.”
Lauryn Efird/Instagram
Alana, fortunately, feelsvery prepared to head off to college.
“I am ready. I think that it is definitely going to be a different journey, but I think I’m ready for it,” Alana says. “I don’t know if the cameras will be following me just yet. Y’all are just going to really have to wait and see what happens.”
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source: people.com
