The Rocket Boys and the Boo-ti-ful Girls

The rocket boys get some help in order to construct their disk rockets. This gentleman was awesome with J and J, and we appreciate all that this organization does for kids at events like this.

Setting up the launch...

Five, four, three

two, one...Blast off!

Rocketry is hard work, and they needed a treat...They give this funnel cake a four-thumbs up!

We stopped by the O.S. depot on the way home. If it weren't for my Grandma Rose Ingram (my dad's mother), this depot would have never been moved and renovated to a museum and town library.

The boo-ti-ful girls having a spooky fun time...

Saturday was a perfect day. The weather was perfect, and we took full advantage of it. Despite all that needs to be done here at home, the kids and I couldn't resist visiting a new-to-us festival and heading to the zoo for some spooky fun.

Saturday morning, the two J boys and I took off to the other end of our county to visit the Oliver Springs October Sky festival. In 1997, Hollywood came to Roane, Morgan, and Knox Counties to film most of the scenes from Homer Hickam's autobiographical novel called Rocket Boys. (The director changed the title of the film to October Sky....It was to appeal to the female audience and it's an anagram of the original title.) If you haven't seen the movie, let me give you the heads up. It features a young Jake Gyllenhal who plays the future NASA space shuttle designer and trainer Hickam. (Hickam was a "coal kid" from the mountains Coalwood, West Virginia, who with some other boys with the same goal, refused to make a future for themselves in coal mining.) At that time, I had many students from Central High in Wartburg who were extras in the film, including our next door neighbor and another neighbor one street over from us. Heck, one of my first cousins is in the opening football game scene. It was certainly a big deal in this area, and it was a huge buzz of conversation with most everyone. One evening, Chris and I even drove over to watch them film the scene where Homer finds out that his dad had been involved in the coal mine collapse. Coalwood hosts the real festival with Hickam and the other rocket boys always in attendance, but Oliver Springs still celebrates the event every year to raise funds for their museum under construction. This year we finally had the opportunity to check it out, and I am so glad that we did.

Later that afternoon, Tori, Mia, Addison, my mom, and I took the opportunity to attend the Knoxville Zoo's annual "Boo at the Zoo." The girls had a blast pointing out their favorite characters and getting treats at the stations as we walked around the path. It is a pretty good hike, and the girls were more than ready to eat supper by the end. Before we went home, they all inhaled big bowls of buttered pasta and cheese at one of my favorite Italian restaurants, Bravo! The girls wanted me to thank Mamaw Teina once again for the neat owl, raccoon, and tiger purses she bought them and for the great dinner!

If you think we had a busy Saturday, this was nothing compared to Sunday. The Cornstalk Heights Mom Crew was at it again with our fourth annual pumpkin party at the park. Check back soon for those highlights...

Until then, have a great week! Only six days until the ghosts come out to play! Moo-hah-hah!