ROAD TRIP!

PJ came home from school the other day with a slip that said "Road Trip". Too cool. I am so excited about the field trips this year because I can schedule that day off, still work another day during the week, so I don't miss any hours and still be able to go to with the boys.

Now, this trip is also on a day that there is a manager's meeting, so I may have to schedule the time to go to Chuck's store for that meeting. If so, not a big deal. I will find out if I will be going next week or not. I think I am gonna be able to go. This stuff is very important to me. I don't like missing out on their lives. They are only this age once, and I want to be a part of it.

The field trip is to the Museum of Appalachia located in Norris TN. Norris is located about 20 miles north of Knoxville, so this is a huge trip for all of us to go on. It is about 2 1/2 hours away from home. Now, if you drive like me, well, I can make it to Knoxville in 1 hour. That is not supposed to happen. But when you are driving behind the school bus, well, make that 3 hours.

I tried to find the website for the museum, but the domain expired. So, thank you Wikipedia,
The Museum of Appalachia, located in Norris, Tennessee, 20 miles north of Knoxville, is a living history museum of pioneer, mountain, and early artifacts of the Southern Appalachian region of the United States.

Recently named an Affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, the Museum is a collection of more than 30 historic log buildings rescued from neglect and decay and gathered onto 63 acres of picturesque pastures and fields. Thousands of relics in authentic settings and in two large exhibit halls, which house one of the nation's finest collections of folk art. One of the museum's buildings, the Arnwine Cabin, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is a tiny one-room cabin built in the early 1800s and moved to the museum from its original site near the Clinch River.[1]

The Museum also seeks to preserve traditional art forms and music by providing performance and demonstration venues for artists and craftsmen. In addition to its Porch Musician Project, which features daily music performance from the porch of the Peters Homestead House, the Museum of Appalachia hosts the annual Tennessee Fall Homecoming, a four-day event featuring four stages of continuous performance of "old-time" music and dance. Hundreds of craftsmen, demonstrators, and cooks set up sales booths on the grounds.

The Museum of Appalachia's stated mission is to: (1) preserve both the physical heritage and daily experience of Appalachian life for future generations, and (2) develop, interpret, and present exhibits and programs that increase public awareness of and appreciation for our Appalachian roots.

In addition to thousands of photographs, the Museum's archives house collected oral histories and recollections, as well as donated mementos of the region.

The museum was established in the 1960s by John Rice Irwin. In May 2003 it was converted from private ownership to a non-profit foundation operating under the direction of a board of directors.

The museum employs a staff of 32 people, has an annual budget in excess of $1,000,000, and attracts about 100,000 visitors annually.

Living up in Knoxville, I always wanted to go there. But we were so broke that the trip there was almost impossible to afford. This is a chance for me to do this with him.

He told me he wants to ride with me, he is a mama's boy. But I think it would be good memories for him to go on the bus. You remember the field trips that you got to ride the big yellow bus. The fun that we all had when we did go on field trips.

This is actually a big trip for them. Usually the trips are to the pumpkin patch or to a bank, or to the battlefield (that is next year). I had trips that were to Statue of Libery, where my wrap around skirt fell off, of my trip to DC, where we had a pillow fight, and the feathers went everywhere. Or our trip to NYC, where I don't think anything happened, they were great trips, and I wish the boys had the chance to see the things that I got to see while I was growing up. But that is what happens when you want to raise them in a smaller area. I forget of all the history that is here in this area. Being raised in NJ, we learned of the Civil War and the part the North played. We didn't learn about the South and all that it held. I love learning this stuff now.

But this is cool, a ride on the bus all the way past Knoxville, not like he hasn't been there. He can tell the other kids all the stuff that is up there. Where he was born, where he lived, where the stadium is at, and the other fun things that are up there.

I will have to admit, life is good. Smile more, laugh more, joke around more, love all the time. Life is too short to miss out on anything!