good news! no one went to the hospital today!!

Dear you'uns,
It has been a great day in GradeEightsville. We had a nutritious breakfast of poke greens and sow belly before heading to the moonshine still to help cousin Elmer. What a good lesson it was. After our chores were completed we packed up snackand drove to Dollywood for an adventure. Wegot there, found a parking space and climbed aboard the trolley to get to the entrance. After registering, we split up into 4 well disciplined and orderly groups ans set off for the day. What a treat we were in for. We had a hard time picking between caramelized funnel cakes, fudgy bon bons and Kool-aid, but we persevered and got through that first stumblingblock. The chili-cheese fries were really good. Well, gotta go now. Just kidding.
p.s. The Philly-cheese steak sandwiches were primo.

Oh yeah, the trip.
The groups all went in different directions; some went to the gift shop; some went to the large wooden roller coaster called THUNDERHEAD, and some went to the bathroom.
The rides were very alluring. There were 4 roller coasters, ranging from large, long and wooden, to small dark and steely. Some were scary, and some were tame. There were also water riding experiences, things that rode you up and down, rides that turned you around and around, and rides that shook you up. I guess you had to be there. The class l;oved it one and all as far as I know. No one complained, but after 6 hours(three of them in the rain), people looked pretty beat, and were glad to get into a warm van, then a warm and cozy couch to watch a movie, following a warm and nutritious supper of more poke greens and sow belly (prepared by Kelly); it sure tasted good, but it also used up all the corn cobs and catalogs.
The rain was a real cob floater, but it did not dampen the fun.
Also at Dollywood, we got another funnel cake on the way out.
Don't worry, we are sharing Forrest's nutritious herbs. (just kidding)
Overall, Dollywood was true to it's southern heritage, and most of the displays and themes were of a local nature. Local people were dressed in stereotypical hillbilly fashion. We were able to videotape a talking buzzard who commented on our group. Ask Jim if you want to know more.
But, It was a very beautiful park, clean and interesting, and the children old and young, had a great time. Wish you were there with us as well.
All the class is downstairs now watching a movie, warm and cozy they are, and very happy and glowing with togetherness.
Tomorrow we are planning to have breakfast and then drive to a river rafting site for an adventure. We will keep you posted. If you have comments or questions, please post them at the end of this blog. Thanks a lot for loving and trusting us. We are all having a great time, one and all. I love you. RC ( with editorial input and help from JS)