We had so much fun at Silver Dollar City!
We arrived early Thursday afternoon and hit the roller coasters first thing.
Annie fretted all the way to Branson that she'd be too short to ride a roller coaster. So, as soon as we got there, we measured her:
Tall Enough!!

So, she rode her first wolly coaster, Thunderation. I wanted to sit with her, but I was spurned for Courtney.

Annie loved the ride. Unfortunately, it was the only big roller coaster she could ride, so we rode it over and over and over and over again. It's REALLY fun, but it's an old-fashioned wooden coaster, and a very rough ride. My back is killing me!
We had the best frozen lemonade, and great fried chicken and fried potatoes and fried okra, and fried sweet potatoes...lots of fried food at Silver Dollar City. Country folks like their fried food.
Silver Dollar City was crawling with old folks, which was fantastic, because I love old people. I kept offering to hold the funnel cakes and kettle corn of various kids while they went on rides, saying I'd "take care of it" for them. My girls didn't think it was funny, but I did, and that's what matters. I'm dorky that way.
The second day, we went to Wilderness Church for early morning services. That's how I like to start my days at SDC. It's just fun, no matter what one thinks about religion, and the church itself is really an old country church that was painstakingly moved to Silver Dollar City. The minister leading the services is a real minister, who told me he'd just graduated from Asbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky. He didn't preach, but he did sing. Fantastically.

The woman playing the piano noticed my girls singing. My girls are great singers, so she asked Madeline to come forward and lead the kids in a loud rendition of B-I-B-L-E!

Then, Courtney led the congregation in
What A Friend We Have In Jesus. After hearing her singing along during the first verse, the pianist asked Courtney to sing the remaining verses solo. She did it, and did it beautifully. She didn't seem a bit nervous, though I know she was.

(The pics taken inside the church aren't very good. The early morning sun was coming in that huge window, taxing the ability of my daughter's cheap camera and its incompetent operator.)
The girls and I learned how to wind and spin old fashioned tops, so I bought some which were made right there in SDC by the gentleman who showed me how to spin one. They're fun and beautiful, as well. Here's Chloe and Anna learning how to wind the thread on their top:

We had such a lovely few days. We stayed at a place called Deer Run Hotel and the girls had a blast making
pretend phone calls to the "front desk."
Chloe--Dials pretend phone. "Hello. Ith this Deer Run Hotel?"
Courtney--(faintly) "nee-aa-aah aaa-aa" (deer noise!)
Chloe-- (calling again) "Hello, I broke my remote control. Can I get a new one?"
Courtney--"NAAA-AA-aaa????" (then the sound of an angry deer hoof pawing the floor behind the front desk.)
A hotel run by deer.
On the way home, a semi truck broke down in front of us. The highway was down to one lane, due to construction, and was blocked in by concrete barriers. So, we were
stuck. We got out of the car and played with kids from the van behind us. We shared our plentiful snacks with them, the trucker in front of us and a couple of very young Marines who were on leave. I guess everyone loves Doritos, Fritos and bean dip, Coke, Nutty Bars, grapes, and gummy worms.
I'm glad to be home, but I do think we'll again venture to Branson later in the year. Maybe Annie will be tall enough to ride another coaster and those Silver Dollar City fried potatoes and okra were the best I've ever had!

KA