Hooray for Hollywood Studios

Lights, Camera, Action! Hollywood Studios, here we come! We started the day at the Starring Rolls Café - another Plain Chicken recommendation. We had a sweet roll for breakfast - and some coffee, but it was HOT outside, so the coffee was soon replaced by an icy cold drink instead!

And the star of the day is... Shelly!

After breakfast, we made our way to The Great Movie Ride. We waited in the line - and were glad that it wound in and out of the shade,

Flowers and food - Epcot Garden Festival

If you are ever able to visit Disney in the Springtime, be sure to check the schedule for the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival. On any normal day in Epcot, the landscaping is beautiful, but during the festival, it is UNREAL.

Donald and Huey, Dewey, and Louie working in the gardens!

Gorgeous flowers!

Wild Life - Animal Kingdom - Walt Disney World

We had been looking forward to the Animal Kingdom since our last visit! We had not gotten to spend much time there, so we planned to start our day and take as much time as we wanted...

Magical Days - Magic Kingdom Adventures

Today's SisAdventure started in the Magical Kingdom! 

Only Disney can make waiting in line fun!

We had another gorgeous weather day - and made it to the park just in time for lunch at the Liberty Tree Tavern.

Tea for two - Disney SisAdventures

What a lovely day for a trip to Disney!  We had canceled an airplane trip last year, so we had a "credit" on Southwest - after examining the options, we decided to go back to one of our favorite places on earth - Disney World!

Since we are still "getting to know" Disney after a LONG hiatus, we are having fun exploring all the hotels and options for grown-ups who are kids at heart!

Double SisAdventures - Helen, GA

Earlier this year, we had the chance to take a weekend trip to Helen, Georgia with our aunts - Linda (aka "Linki") and Joyce. Since it was only 4-5 hours from our starting point in North Alabama, it was the perfect distance for a little getaway and adventure! Of course we had to come up with a relevant hashtag, so since we had two sets of sisters, we went with two hashtags: #doublesis #sisadventures for the weekend!

And... we're off!

We headed east through the hills of North Georgia, where we passed through McCaysville and caught a glimpse of the Pearly Gates...

Easter 2016

This Easter was a little different for the Maddox sisters. We weren't sure how the day would go, since a lot has changed in our little world. We decided to keep our Easter "traditions" of church and family as intact as we could, and knew that if we were surrounded by those we love, that would go a long way in helping us through the day!

If you don't follow @PopeIsHope - go do it right now! 

We had a wonderful Easter service at Corinth FCM - our church "home." Shelly played the piano and Bud Woods (still going strong at 80+ years) directed us in some classic Easter songs, including my favorite, "He Arose" (you know... up from the grave He Arooooooose!!!).

After church, we had our annual Easter pose with Aunt Link. We tried to get a side angle for the Easter Lilies to be in the picture, too!

In case you think Shelly and I are dressed similarly, I thought I'd include this meme - which sums up a weekly conversation we have about our outfits...

After church, we headed back to our house, where ALL of our family met for lunch! Thankfully, everyone was willing to take assignments, so we divided and conquered that Easter lunch and fed about 20 people (plus PLENTY of leftovers for the rest of the week)!

It ended up being a wonderful day - we were able to be with our families and there were "just enough" memories to keep the day full of smiles. Thanks to my cousin Catherine, we got a few family photos!

The Walker guys - Griffin, Caleb and Uncle Jack

More Walker guys - Wesley, Caleb and Griffin

Cousin-ly Love - Clete, Belinda and Melanie

Emma Lampi, on the piano (Amanda's daughter & Uncle Jack's great-granddaughter)

The Maddox crew - Melanie, Darrell Ray, and Shelly

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter, too! 

Destination: Cullman, Alabama - Small Town Tour

This weekend brought a special treat! One of our good friends let us know she was coming for a visit, so we got to play tourist in our own hometown - Cullman, Alabama!  First stop - the Ave Maria Grotto at St. Bernard.

Because "the grotto" is practically in our backyard, it is one of those places that we have always known about, but have never really taken time to go visit.

At first glance, it's a little overwhelming. The life work of Brother Joseph, one of the St. Bernard monks, is artcycling at its finest...

I spy the sights of Rome

By the end of your walk through the grotto, you'll be in awe of the detail and the sheer number of miniatures in replica... if you're going to have a life's passion, this is a place to visit for inspiration and to see what dedication looks like!

Shelly and Ashley and Brother Joseph

The Grotto

Mini-Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Mini-St. Bernard

Next we headed downtown to the Warehouse District for a little shopping and lunch. The Warehouse District has lots of fun shops - Monograms Plus, Kernel Kullman (popcorn), The Added Touch, Too, and more! No stop is complete without posing at the Oktoberfest photo-spot.  If you're planning a visit to Cullman, Oktoberfest is a great time to visit! Downtown transforms into a German celebration like no other!  All in all, we had a great day exploring our hometown!

Oktoberfest is always in style!

Springtime fun

Stopped in to DQ for a treat today... and then realized it was FREE CONE DAY!

FREE CONE DAYs are the BEST days!

Ended up with an ice cream cone, which really went well with my springtime hat!  Get out and enjoy the sunshine today!

Springtime Selfie