A House, um, Woody Bus Call

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! It is Sunday evening at our doghouse in Shepherdsville. It was the perfect day - a Sunday afternoon nap, a nice hearty dinner, and beautiful weather that was made for playing outside!

Everyone knows that I am a small-town, ordinary, country wiener dog from Kentucky. But I will tell you that sometimes being somewhat well-known has its perks!

This past Tuesday, our family was at Eminence Elementary in Henry County, KY. After we arrived in Henry County, I had a minor - and I mean MINOR - issue that Mom thought needed medical attention. (It was so minor that I won't bore you with the de-TAILS. Think pimple/hang nail/ingrown hair/ear wax/you get the picture.) Anyway, we happen to have a friend in Henry County who is a veterinarian. His name is Dr. Muncey Pryor. Mom called Mrs. Pryor and asked if Dr. Pryor could see me - even though we didn't have an appointment. Dr. Pryor worked around MY schedule at the school and fit me in! Can you believe that? He worked around OUR schedule! While Mom worked with some students in the afternoon, Dad and I slipped away for our appointment with Dr. Pryor. He fixed me right up and I went back to the school as good as new!

Well, if that wasn't enough, yesterday we were at Commonwealth Stadium TAIL-gaiting before the UK and Western game. I had just finished up dinner when Dad said, "Woody, guess who is here?" "The Wildcat? The UK Team? The cheerleaders?" I kept guessing. Just then, I heard a voice say, "Hey Woody! I came to do a house, I mean, um, Woody Bus call. Let me take a look at you!" It was Dr. Pryor and Mrs. Pryor checking on me! Now if that's not service, I don't know what is! So, right there outside of Commonwealth Stadium, Dr. Pryor performed a re-check. He looked me over and said, "Looking good, Woody, looking good!" He patted my head and said he had to go focus his attention on the cats - and by that he meant the Kentucky WILDCATS! Dr. Pryor must be a great vet. I am back to normal and the CATS had a big victory! It doesn't get any better than that!

The UK game was a late game which meant our family didn't get to bed on time. So, Mom is making us go to bed earlier tonight - even though we had a good nap. She is making our bedtime snack now. I better scoot! Take care of yourself, see your vet regularly, and Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY

More Predictions

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! We keep getting predictions for why I am shocked and what will happen next in Heads and Tails. Take a look at these:

Dear Woody,

We are Ms. Dunn's third grade class at South Todd Elementary School
in Guthrie, Ky. We really are enjoying your Heads and Tails, story this
year!

We are writing because you wanted us to E-mail you and tell you why we
think you are shocked. We think you are shocked because you have lost
the very special penny with Abraham Lincoln on the front of it. We are
excited to read next week and find out what really happens.

We hope you E-mail us back! Thank you for your wonderful stories!



Love,

Ms. Dunn's Class


Lost the penny... very interesting and very possible. I can be forgetful and clumsy. Here is another predition:


I have a small group of 5th and a small group of 6th graders who LOVE
the story this year! They were "quick" with these predictions, but
wanted me to pass them along to you!
Thanks for bringing this weekly book to us!

1) We think Woody will make a game called Heads & Tails.
2) We think Woody will donate his 1909 penny to a museum.

Classes taught by Mrs. Bess, Bracken County Middle School

A game called Heads and Tails- wow! That sounds fun! Donating it to a museum would be a great idea. I guess everyone will have to wait and see!

Have a great night! Keep the emails coming, save those pennies, and Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY

HEADS AND TAILS

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! My inbox has been overflowing with emails telling me how much everyone loves our new story, Heads and Tails. We are only at Chapter 2 so if you haven't caught it, it's not too late!

At the end of Chapter 2, I open my eyes and am shocked at what I see. We asked students to email me and tell me why they think I am shocked. Here are a few emails:

(We) predict that Woody is in shock because he is in the year 1909. Chapter 3 will take place in 1909. At the end of this episode, Woody will end up in 1929-The Great Depression. They guys figured this out based on ten chapters and putting the dates in order.

Students from Ms. Smith's Class
Spring Meadows School
Bullitt County Public Schools
Bullitt County, KY

That's a neat idea! The Great Depression, hum...


Here was another email:

Our predictions as to why Woody was in shock when he opened his eyes:

He opens his eyes and he is in 1909.

He opens his eyes and the penny is gone.

He opens his eyes and the words property of Abraham Lincoln on the penny.

Ms. McClard's 4th Grade Students
Sharpe Elementary
Marshall County, KY


"Penny gone???" Oh no! Could it be? "Property of Abraham Lincoln" - I like that!


Here is another email I received this morning:

Hi Woody my name is Tyler. So what will you do with the penny. If you aren’t going to do anything with it could you send it to me at (my house in) Maysville Kentucky.

Sorry, Tyler! Nice try, though! I won't send you a penny, but check the mail, you may see something else!

Stay tuned to see what happens with the treasured penny! In the meantime, Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY

TAILS from Eminence

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! It is Thursday morning and we are at our doghouse in Shepherdsville. As usual, the Woody Bus is being loaded for yet another road trip! Before we crawled in and buckled our seat belts, I wanted to tell you about our day and evening on Tuesday. Our family was at Eminence School in Henry County, KY. It is a school that has preschool through the 12th grade! We saw students of all ages. Even though we only spoke to the elementary school, we met plenty of middle and high school students! Everyone made us feel right at home!

The principal greeted us with open arms. (See the first photo.) Students made posters for us and the walls of the school had our names all over them! We felt like rock stars! Ms. Bland and Ms. Tina from the library did a PAWS-atively perfect job in planning the day! (The fourth photo is of Ms. Bland and Ms. Tina.) It was almost like the school declared Tuesday, Woody, the Kentucky Wiener Day!

Well, as usual, my family is ready to leave, so I better skee-daddle! We are headed to Madisonville to talk to 50 teachers tonight. We can't wait! With 50 teachers, I have to be on my best behavior!

Have a great day! Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY

A Week in Review

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! I am taking some deep breaths right now! Why? Because our family has been so very busy that it has been hard to catch our breath! In fact, Dad is loading the Woody Bus, making sure we have all our supplies for yet another week away from home!

Last week was packed with fun stuff! I have lots of things to tell you in a short amount of time. So, please listen closely because I am going to bark real fast! Are you ready?

On Sunday, our lights went off due to all the winds blowing from Hurricane Ike. I know we live in Kentucky and not in the Gulf, but Ike was a pretty powerful man! So, when we left home on Monday, no electricity. That didn't stop us from having a great week!

We kicked off our week in Bowling Green, KY at Cumberland Trace! We were treated like royalty. Mrs. McCubbins, the media specialist, made us feel at home. The first photo is of her two sons saving us a parking place! Now that's what I call the royal treatment! In addition to the great day, Mrs. McCubbins treated us to lunch from Mancino's. They had the best sandwiches I had ever eaten. I ordered a turkey with extra pickles! It was doglicious!!! Mom says I talk too much about food, so I better hush. It wasn't the food that made the day great though. It was definitely all the neat people we met!

We left Bowling Green and headed to Lexington. We decided to stop at our doghouse to see if our lights had come back on. Our house was still dark. I was worried because my jammies needed to be washed. We went to a fun place called the Laundrymat. There were more washers and dryers in one room than I had ever seen before!!! An hour later, my Scooby jammies were as fresh as daisies!

Thursday found us at Northern Elementary in Lexington, KY. We love Lexington. It is WILDCAT COUNTRY! Ms. Heady (see the third photo) was from LaRue County, which isn't far from where Dad grew up. In fact, she knew lots of my cousins. There were a few teachers at Northern who had wiener dogs.
As you can imagine, Chloe, Frannie, and I were showered with hugs and love!

On Friday, we spent the day and evening at Julius Marks with our good friend Mrs. Mason. They had an evening event and grilled hot dogs outside! Chloe and I were a bit scared at first, but Frannie the Body Guard said everything was safe! We weren't worried!

We left Lexington Friday night and arrived in Indiana about midnight. Why were we in Indiana? Well, our good friends in Evansville were having a Blessing of the Animals at their church. So many animals attended. It was the neatest event. We were able to visit our good friends, the Straw family. We met Faith and Connor (see fourth photo) about four years ago. Connor is a second degree black belt. Frannie the Body Guard is a black belt too, but Connor looked much stronger. Faith was as pretty as a picture. Faith and Connor have a wiener dog named Nook-Nook!

Guess who else was at the church? Our good friend, Cleo! You know, Cleo - our friend who goes into nursing homes and cheers up the residents! We met Cleo through our vet, Dr. Campbell. Cleo has a big heart. Her heart is so big because it is full of love for so many people! Her mom, Ms. Diane, showered us with gifts. I know I am not supposed to talk about food, but my parents say that Ms. Diane makes the best candy in the world! I wonder if she makes any doggie candy. I will have to ask Cleo.

Well, we returned home late Saturday night and guess what? That's right - our lights were on! Our family clapped and cheered, and then went in the house for the first time in a week!!! We slept so good!

Well, it's off to work again! We are headed to Eminence, KY. I will tell you all about it! By the way, are you reading, "Heads and Tails?" If so, email us and tell us how you like it!

Have a great day! Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY

HEADS and TAILS

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! Hope everyone is having a terrific day! Our day is a bit crazy. We had a terrible wind storm yesterday so we don't have any electricity at our doghouse in Shepherdsville. It feels like we are camping - which we love!!! So, I am borrowing a computer to say "ARFF!"

We wanted to tell you about our new story, HEADS AND TAILS. It starts this week in the newspapers across Kentucky. Be sure to check it out. Also, our online doghouse will have the podcast and activities soon. Mr. Nathan, the man who takes care of our online doghouse, lives in Texas. He may be a bit behind due to Hurricane Ike. Boy the weather can make things crazy!

I better go. We are off to Bowling Green for a school visit tomorrow! I will keep you posted! Be thankful for your electricity. Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY

West Irvine Wiener Dogs

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! Our family is once again in the trusty old Woody Bus driving down the highways of Kentucky! We spend lots of time driving down the road. I thought I would take a minute to tell you about yesterday's visit to West Irvine Elementary. (Don't worry, I have my seatbelt on while I type!)

The students at West Irvine Elementary have been faithful followers of the Woody Series. Ms. Rhonda Smith of The Citizen Voice and Times does a terrific job! She makes sure the students receive newspapers so they can read our story! Ms. Smith called and asked if we would be interested in visiting West Irvine!!! Well she certainly didn't have to ask twice. Our motto (besides Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!) is Have Toothbrush, Will Travel! Ms. Smith got the ball rolling, and then Ms. Woolery and the Family Resource Center helped put the plan into action!

Everyone at West Irvine made us feel right at home. Some of the teachers showed us how they had really followed our last story. We posted a photo of Ms. Jackson and the book she made! It was impressive!!!

The principal, Ms. Isaacs (last photo) is considering changing the mascot to the West Irvine Wiener Dogs! I will keep you posted! We can't wait to visit our friends in Estill County again!

We left Estill County, made a quick stop at our doghouse in Shepherdsville and are now traveling to Owensboro. I can smell the Bar-b-Que now!!! DEE-LISH! I will tell you all about it!

Have a great day! Wear your seatbelt and Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY

Mr. Dogwood Wins WORLD

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! Happy Literacy Day! That's right - today is National Literacy Day! We hope this finds you celebrating the day by reading your favorite story!

Well, we promised you a big announcement on September 8th so here it is:

The World Association of Newspapers awarded our last newspaper serial story, Mr. Dogwood Goes to Washington first place in the special "Literacy and Newspaper" category for the 2008 World Awards. To say our family was excited is the understatement of the year!!! We still can't believe it. We were the only United States entry to win.

A great big thanks to the Lexington Herald Leader, all the newspapers who ran the stories, our sponsors (LG&E/KU/E.ON Companies, the Kentucky Press Association and the Kentucky Secretary of State). Of course we have to thank our illustrator, James Asher, who is the best illustrator in the entire world, and a big special thanks to Kriss Johnson (Aunt Kriss as we now call her) for directing this entire project. She worked countless hours on it. (I sound like I am accepting a Grammy Award.)

The judges loved the story, and in addition to the story and the illustrations, one of the things they loved most was how Chloe and I read the story. They thought we sounded great behind the microphone. That made us feel proud! We love being in the studio!!! We feel like rock stars!

You can check out the information on
http://www.wan-press.org/nie/articles.php?id=1503.

Aunt Kriss gets to go to Amsterdam (not to be confused with HAMSTER-dam as we first thought) to accept the award!!! We can't wait to hear about her trip!

I would tell you more, but Mom and Dad said that Chloe and I can be happy and celebrate, but we can't brag or rest on a prize. We still have lots of hard work ahead!!! So, with that, we are loading the Woody Bus headed to Estill County for a school all day tomorrow! Meeting people in Kentucky is the best part of our job!

I better go. I still have packing to do! Have a great day! Celebrate Literacy Day and Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY

Hurricane Woody???

Kentucky Greetings, WoodyWatchers! We hope everyone enjoyed Labor Day! Our family spent the day doing as little as possible. We have such a busy schedule for the fall, that we took the time to take as many cat naps as possible. Today, it's back to the drawing board as they say. We have emails to answers, meetings to attend, and plenty of packing to do for our school visits!

We watched lots of TV yesterday - more than usual. We wanted to see what happened with Hurricane Gustav. I didn't really know exactly what a hurricane was. Mom explained that it is a fierce storm that has heavy rains and really strong winds. I asked if we could ever have a hurricane here in KY. Mom said that a hurricane starts in the ocean and moves to land, so since we don't live near the ocean, no, we couldn't have a hurricane! Mom also explained that to keep track of hurricanes, the weather experts give the hurricanes names. "How do they name them?" I asked. Mom said that there names are both girl names and guy names and start in alphabetical order. I wondered how many hurricanes had been named Woody. I looked and looked but came up short! It seems that Woody - or even Dogwood - is not that common of a name! Maybe I will write a letter to the weather people and ask them to name a hurricane after me.

We have a few ties with Louisiana. First of all, our Granny was born and raised in a little town called Kinder, Louisiana. Kinder is just a few hours west of New Orleans. Even though Granny lives in Paducah, KY now, she remembers boarding up her house to protect it from all the strong winds and rains. If that isn't enough, our baby brother Walter is from New Orleans, LA. In fact, his real mommy was named Katrina - from the last big hurricane. (If you don't know about Walter, he is our baby brother. He travels with our family but doesn't have a job.) When I was looking up names of hurricanes, I saw where Walter will have a hurricane named after him in 2010. With Walter in our house and on our Woody Bus, it makes us think there ARE hurricanes in KY! I put a picture of Mom, Granny, and me, and then of Baby Walter for you to see. Anyway, the good news is that Gustav didn't do as much damage as it could have. That's PAWS-atively perfect news!

I better say ARFF for now! Duty calls! Work and Dream like a BIG DOG!

WOODY