En route to GRACELAND!! 
.. for lunch, souvenirs, and a tour of Elvis' house/plane/cars.

I had the Banana / Peanut Butter Sandwich.  Elvis' favorite.**

Monday morning -- 7:30am Breakfast.
8:30am -- Load buses and head out.

9am Arrival at Childcare Center.
The band played, choir sang, art students drew, little kids wiggled/clapped.  Mrs. Heuer and Mrs. Otto even read some books to kids.  :)
It was a really great way to start the day!

Some pooled it up.
Others ordered in Chinese food.
11:30pm all were in their rooms --- and hopefully tired as heck.
Goodnight!

Gaylord Opryland Hotel.
2,711 rooms.
171 suites.
152 meeting rooms.
3 indoor jungles. 

We explored and ate here
before heading back to our
hotel for the night.

Wow.

Palm Sunday Mass at
Holy Family Church -- Brentwood, Tennessee.

http://www.holyfamilycc.com/parish.htm#history

Tennessee State Museum.
Full of just about every fact from Tennessee's history.
Plus, the original 13th Constitutional Amendment.

Chad and Joey -- intense game of checkers.  Just like turn of century TN youth!?
http://www.tnmuseum.org/Information/History/

Downtown Nashville -- in the rain.
[photos to come.]

After driving through Music Row, our
next stop = Wild Horse Saloon for lunch and a little dancing.

Breakfast was at 7:30am.
Bus-loading at 8:30.

COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME.
We had an hour to tour the building.  Then met up in the lobby for the Choir's performance.
THe band performance was scheduled for out in the courtyard -- but due to the rain, we had to cancel.

So -- as the choir got warmed up and ready -- some kids and I doodled, others sat around chatting -- it was a fun, chill, together time.

The choir rocked it.  The girls singing -- with Mr. Bierer joining in.  It was really a quaint, lovely moment.  They were great.  So great, that we all clapped early... :)

 

45 minutes to get ready.... 6:15 departure... 7pm GRAND OLE OPRY SHOW!!

Line up included: 

Pizza and bedtime to follow.  Great day.***

5:30pm NASHVILLE ......









........and HOTEL ARRIVAL. Boom.  :)

 Bob Guennigsman got a kick out of all of the crazy-creative ideas the kids and even the adults came up with.  "One of the fifty ways to sleep on a bus," he said.  :) 

About noon --- Drove through St Louis & saw the Gateway Arch.***

 

It was built as a monument to the westward expansion of the US. At 630 feet, it is the tallest man-made monument in the United States, Missouri's tallest building and the largest architectural structure designed as a weighted or flattened arch.

 

We also stopped for lunch in Illinois & restrooms in Kentucky, I believe.

 

The kids picnicked -- since the sun was out and lovely.

We survived the night!!


First stop = Albert Lea - to pick up our extra driver and use restrooms.
Ben Ernhart must have been sleeping hard before the stop -- on the way out -- he saw a Minnesota sweatshirt and made the comment, "Dang.  We are still in Minnesota?!"  Seventeen hours might be long...


Next stop =  Waterloo, Iowa for a quick bathroom stop.  Chatted with Matthew Remer -- he hadn't really slept yet - cuz he was in an aisle seat.  He had just asked Joe Otto if he could rest on Joe's shoulder the next part of the trip... Best to just break those barriers early, buddy.

And currently -- it is 9am -- and we are in Hannibal, Missouri. 
Hannibal is the home of Mark Twain. 
And a Hardee's food stop.  :)

Cheers!

T-shirts are in!!

You will get one when you come to load the bus!
11pm tomorrow evening.
Get a good night's sleep tonight.
Much fun ahead.*******