Venice - a City on the Water

A few years ago, in preparation for my epic Birthday Adventure, my friend Ashley gave me a travel journal. I wrote in it religiously - recapping each days events and escapades. I've taken notes on quite a few trips and I definitely think it's worth the time and effort. Especially for big trips where you're traveling to different cities - the notes are very important as you go back through your pictures and start organizing (or if you want to write about your trip and finally get around to it much much later). Hope you enjoy the journal view and notes on Venice!

Train: Verona to Venice - We woke up early to catch a taxi to the train station. This time, we didn't want to risk being in the wrong place! We quickly realized that something was different about my luggage - it was VERY HEAVY. Going up and down steps is a bit of a challenge with 50+ pounds of suitcase. Note to self: when packing for next European excursion, remember that the backpackers are onto something... travel light! We made it to the correct platform and boarded the train... but we were in the wrong car! We had to weave through 5 train cars before finding our seats. Finally, we were able to relax. That's one of the best things about riding the train - once you're settled in, you can just sit back and relax!

There were two stops in Venice: one was still on the "mainland" and then our stop - Venezia St. Lucia. The train crossed the water and we could see the big cruise ships docked nearby.

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! 

A Disney SisAdventure!

A couple of months ago, Shelly and I got a chance to go to the most magical, happiest place on earth: WALT DISNEY WORLD! I had a work conference, and when I found out the location, we immediately planned to extend the stay and mix some FUN with the business trip! 

Over the next few posts, I'm going to share some of our favorite Disney moments from our trip. We had SO many, because this was the first time we had been to Disney world for a vacation since we were little (we did go a few times on band trips in high school and college, but those don't count because we were in band uniforms, duh)!

Stay tuned for the recap and, of course, a few #sisadventures tips!