Karson's 5th Grade Graduation

I told you that eventually I would be able to talk about it.  It only took a week! lol  Seriously, last week was a rough one, my baby graduated from elementary school.  I just can't believe it has flown by this fast.  I'm very proud of "K".  He's growing into a fine young man.  Here's a little about you Karson, just so that I will always remember.

Karson Nathaniel-

You are such a sweet boy, especially with little ones.  You are always playing with the younger brother/sister of your friends, your small cousins and any baby that's around. 

You are also a very good friend.  You always cheer on your team mates, encourage your peers, and always like your friends for who they are.  You are very good at making new friends, always the first to engage in conversation.  Always the kid to make a friend on vacation the first hour you are at the pool or beach.

This year you were involved in Soccer, Baseball, Tae Kwon Do, Jr. Beta Club, and STLP.  You did not like going to the 5th grade Valentines Day Dance and you refused to go with a date.  As of the end of your 5th grade year, you think girls stink unless they are cool like Baily Evans and don't bug you all day long. Your favorite teacher was Mr. Grant Sharp and your favorite subject is Math.  Your least favorite is Reading.  

This year you went to Mr. Carver's office for the first and only time.  You and your friend Cody were goofing around when you fell into a chair and hurt your side.  I came to school to pick you up and take you to the Dr.  Everything was just fine except for the fact that your feelings were hurt over Cody having to sit out recess and write you an apology letter. 

You never give me notes from school unless its something  you wanted.  I had no ideal about putting baby pictures of you in the annual or graduation slide show.   In the month of May you were awarded Student of the Month.

Most mornings you rode the bus to school with Mrs. Pam and rode the bus home with Mrs. Vanessa on the days I had to work.  2 days a week you would go to your Mamaw Maddox's and 1 day a week to your Mamaw Taters.

You were awarded President's Award for Education Excellence.  This award is given to those who maintain a 3.5 or above GPA through out the year. I was very proud of you.

You were very excited to be leaving elementary school and ready to go to middle school.  You were very sad that your friends Keenan and Tyler would be going to the next county over and wouldn't be able to attend middle school with you.

During graduation your class sang "If I Could Change The World" and " The Climb".

Those that attended your graduation was Mamaw & Papaw Deason.

Your Mamaw & Papaw Maddox, along with your Aunt Na-Na.

 And of course, your biggest fans!  Mom & Dad. Also your biggest pain in your side, your loving brother. lol

After graduation we celebrated with your closest friends and their family at the Purple Onion.

I have enjoyed being at all the fall festivals, ball games, reading nights, sleep overs, and field trips that you have always welcomed me to. You have always acted proud to have me there and never embarrassed of me.  I thank you for being such a sweet boy and being a mother to you and Lane is my biggest achievement.  You have made that so easy for me.

As Oprah said during her final show, I hope you easily find your purpose in life and "get to it".  Find what sparks you and illuminate the world.  Use your life to serve others.

Mom doesn't always know the answers, but there's a few things I know for sure.....

I can tell you that if you always give and expect nothing in return, you will be blessed deeply beyond measure.  You will always receive in return 10x what you put out into this world.  You can always go beyond your biggest dreams.  Don't ever lose your kindness, your sweet wrinkled nose smile, for it always warms my heart.  Always remember to put God first in your life.  And be thankful every day for what is given to you .   And always remember no matter what, I will always be your biggest fan.  

Love Mom

Our Favorite Vacation - Anything Disney

When asked...."What's the family's favorite vacation"..........no doubt the answer is Anything DISNEY!

I've been working on the post off and on for a month or more for a friend who asked me to give her some of our vacations tips, so...

Who's down for some mouse talk?
Starting off lightly....

My family really enjoys visiting Disney's Boardwalk for many reasons.  It's filled with lots of entertainment, dining & shopping and located on Crescent Lake.  It is accessible from Epcot thru the International Gate Way.  You can stay on location at one of the deluxe resorts or take a bus or boat over from any Disney Park  or Downtown Disney.  The view is just gorgeous!!!

Any sports fan will love ESPN Club and game room.  All 3 of my boys love to eat their wings while keeping up with their favorite sports teams.  As you can see they bleed blue!  GO CATS!

I myself am not a huge sports fan but I really enjoy seeing my boys have a good time.  They really like the arcade and I don't mind shopping at the gift shop.  They always have the cutest baseball mom gear.  So its a "like" for me.

One thing we like to do if we have a day off from the parks is Downtown Disney.  There's just so much to do.  Of course the boys favorite is Lego Land.  I can not tell you how much we have invested in Lego's.  And at the age of 15 & 11, they are still building.  

If you love seafood, you'll love Fulton's!  Its an old River boat anchored at the center of Downtown Disney.  The food is delish! and of course its a bit pricey.  But well worth the splurge if you like love seafood.

When Kris & I escaped away for a 4 night trip to Disney to celebrate our 15th Anniversary, we took advantage of doing a lot of grown up stuff which included a lot of time in Downtown Disney.  There's so much to do for everyone but the kids usually don't like the shopping, nice dinners or relaxing strolls along the lake.  It was just nice to sit down and take all that beautiful scenery in, just for a few moments.

EPCOT

Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow

Definitely the boys favorite theme park.  Test Track and Soaring are their two favorites.  Make sure you get your fast pass early! Wait can be up to 2 hours depending upon the season.

Oh how I love the International Flower Festival at Epcot.  Wish this was in my back yard.

The different countries are so much fun to visit as well.

Yummmmm....Teppan Edo located in Epcot's Japan Pavilion.  Another big splurge, but oh so good!

Magic Kingdom - My favvvvvorite!

I love love love Magic Kingdom.  MK holds a special place in my heart.  I have a lot of wonderful memories as a child visiting MK with my family and my Mamaw who has been gone for about 18 years.  And now I get to share these moments with my children.  Its just a special place for me. I think I cry every time I ride "It's A Small World", it was my Mamaws favorite.  There are so many great rides at MK, I love Splash Mountain and Pirates of the Caribbean.  I love Main Street and all the parades. My favorite way to end the day is the firework display....AMAZING!

Disney's Hollywood Studios
If you love movies then you'll love Hollywood Studios.  One of my favorite rides is Tower of Terror.
Plunge down the dark freight elevator shaft of the once glamorous Hollywood Tower Hotel in The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, it will literally bring you out of you seat, so hold on tight!

My other favorite ride is Aerosmiths Rock-n-Roller Coaster.  With the force of a supersonic F-14, accelerate from a stand-still stop to high speeds—then swoop into 3 inversions and discover a new twist on viewing Los Angeles: upside-down!  Karson loves this ride as well.

There's a lot of great tours and shows at Hollywood Studios.  I really like the Back lot tour, the Lights-Motors-Action Stunt show, and The Great Movie Ride.

One thing you must do if you are a huge Walt fan is to visit Walt Disney: One Mans Dream.  I feel that this gets overlooked by so many.  It iincludes one-of-a-kind memorabilia and photographs, as well as unique audio interviews that tell the story of Walt Disney—the man behind the myth, magic and that beloved mouse. 
I think anyone that enters the property of Disney should see this at least once in their life time.

Animal Kingdom
Well, we are zoo people so of course if you add Disney and Zoo together, that's a definite "go to" for the Maddox household.   But if you're not a huge animal lover, you'll still have a great time.  Mine and Karson's all time favorite roller coaster is here.  "Expedition Everest".   The best roller coaster EVERRRRR!  I could ride over and over and over and over....well you get the point. Pleassssse don't leave the kingdom without riding this ride!

Kilimanjaro Safaris, provides the chance to see African animals including giraffes, black rhinos and lions, as they roam the 100-acre savanna in the Africa.  We always get here early in the morning, as it's the best time to see all the animals and the line is usually very short as well. 

My favorite show in Animal Kingdom is It's Tough to be a Bug!.  Its located in the Tree of Life.  Enjoy the walk in and look at all the carvings in the tree trunk and roots.  Very cool!

It's Tough to be a Bug! is hosted by Flik, everybody's favorite ant, and his grasshopper friend, Hopper, from the Disney·Pixar film . The supporting cast consists of cute and creepy crawlers like spiders, termites, beetles, weevils and butterflies.

Disney Cruise Line

 We've only taken 1 Disney cruise and OH MY!!! What a treat it was.  The whole family thought it was so grand!  Here's some picts.

Every night was really great shows after dinner.  When it's Disney, its just so great!  My favorite was when it snowed while Belle and The Beast was dancing on stage.

Always take advantage of the off shore excursions booked through Disney.  The Caterman  ride to our snorkel location was breathtaking.  This was my favorite excursion!

Beautiful Water!  Just perfect for snorkeling.

Exploring Cast A Way Cay was so much fun.  The natural beauty with a little bit of Disney Magic.  So Lush and just Gorgeous.  We enjoyed time on the beach, nature walks, and lots of leisure.

A little down time for the boys.

We were the last ones to board the boat that day.  We took advantage of every hour on Castaway Cay.

Yep, last ones left.  This place was the perfect end to a perfect vacation.

I love everything Disney has to offer.  They have great kids clubs with very cautious and responsible chaperons.   The kids rarely wanted to be with us on this cruise.  The kids club offered games, sports events, movie theater, science lab, dance parties, teen hangouts and so much more.  It did allow for some adult time which is always nice.  The overall treatment by the cast members was top notch.  I never order dinner for my children or lifted a hand at dinner time.  I can't wait for the next cruise, I'm itching to go on the "Dream" and check  out the AquaDuck.

Where to stay?  Well, we've stayed at different resorts from cheap to very extra special!  Our favorite is probley New Orleans Riverside.  Its a moderate resort but very nice.  We've stayed at Old Key West and its very nice if you have a large traveling party.  Truthfully, any place Disney is nice to stay.  It's just magical no matter what resort you stay at, just always try to stay on Disney property if you can, it will make your trip extra special.
Transportation:  Always take Disney's transportation to any park or Downtown Disney from your hotel if possible.  We have found it quicker to drive to the water parks or to Disney's Boardwalk.  I love to take the monorail or boats anytime possible.  They offer great views that you can't always see on the bus or by car.

Last but not least,the food.  Wow you can really eat your weight in all the good food Disney has to offer.  We also really like BOMA at Disney's Animal Kingdom Resort and I've always wanted to do the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue.  I hear its FANTASTIC! Also if you want to see the fireworks during a late dinner, go to California Grill and ask for a window seat if possible.  Remember some of these places take priority seating so always call when planning your vacation.

 You've seen some of our favorite restaurants to eat at but here are some of our favorite Disney snacks to pick up in between lunch and dinner.
1. The Turkey Leg

2.  The Candy

3.  The Mickey Dilly Bar

As I've said, Disney does it the Best.  And the best part is when they say "Welcome Home Maddox Family"

Some of the information in this blog can be found at http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/