Disney Vacation Recap!

Happy Back-to-school Monday!

This has to be one of the most hectic Monday of all Mondays! 

Fortunately, I don't start until next Monday and I could not be more nervous excited!

I know I am getting this recap up a bit later than I would have liked to. This is partly because I've been so incredibly busy finishing up my room renovations, working, and enjoying the too few days left of my summer and partly because I knew that reliving the memories of this trip was going to make me go into major Disney Withdrawals. (Yes, they are very real)

Though going to Disney World never needs a real reason, CM and I made the trip in honor of our anniversary. We have been together since high school and are totally wanting to start traveling together! This was our first official road trip together, if you exclude our few day trips to Miami, so we were so excited! 

Our trip was originally consisting of 2 days at Disney and 2 days with his family at their beach condo about an hour from Disney property. Due to multiple changes we ended up doing one day at Downtown Disney and one day, our actual anniversary day, at Disney, more specifically Epcot.  The last day was spent relaxing on the beach. 

I never get tired of seeing this sight!

The iconic Downtown Disney is always a must-stop for me whenever I visit. I especially wanted to go this trip as I've read of all the new additions and soon-to-be additions to the area. I love the direction it is going in!

 I had 3 missions that day: 

1. Have my first Disney Starbucks Drink

2. Disney Quest

3. Find the Disney Alex and Ani bangle collection

And I am happy to report that I was successful in all 3 missions!

Disney Starbucks is so much more magical than regular Starbucks. 

 A DD store that was new to me was the Spice and Tea Exchange located near the corner of Mickey's Pantry. A fun little stop with a wide variety of spices and teas (well, duh) and salts and sugars and other fun Disney culinary tools.  

You best believe we smelled pretty much all of them! 

I had to contain my excitement when I came across this specific tea though. Hazelnut Cookie Tea?! Yes please! 

We ate lunch at a restaurant I've always wanted to dine at, the T-Rex. CM loves dinosaurs so choosing this restaurant was fairly easy. I loved the atmosphere and experience. We ate in the Ice Cavern that went from blue to red whenever there was a "meteor shower". So cool and so yummy!

Since CM and I were both not feeling too great from the start we pretty much took it easy the rest of the day, which included a trip to Disney Quest which was both of our's first time going there. 

After a good night's sleep we felt much better and ready to take on Epcot! 

Epcot is my second favorite park, behind Magic Kingdom of course, mainly because of the countries. They are my favorite and that is where we spent the entire day. 

It's funny how the pictures you snap the quickest end up being some of your favorites!

We ate "brunch" I guess you can call it in France at Les Halles Bakery. I was really craving a chocolate croissant which we split along with the Jambon Buerre sandwhich and the cappucino glacé. It hit the spot! 

We then spent the rest of the day exploring each country which was so much fun! If you can, I highly recommend you take a day to spend in just the countries. It'll allow you to take your time in each country exploring all that there is to see...and eat and drink xD. 

After a long day we decided to have dinner in China at the Nine Dragons restaurant. Something we said we would do for this anniversary for a long time now. 

I ordered the Honey Sesame chicken with an iced chai tea and it was the best way to end the long day!

And last but not least: souvenirs! 

Since we did not want to do traditional anniversary "gifts" this time around we treated Disney as our gift for each other and bought each other souvenirs along the way. Since neither of us had a pair of Mickey/Minnie ears that was first on the list. (I know I am totally ashamed to admit this) I love these sparkly Minnie ears and I will probably be wearing these a little more than I should! A Disney tradition I have is to buy a trading pin that symbolizes the overall trip. I started this when I was a kid and have now continued this with CM. We bought each other this Epcot World Showcase countries pin that spins! Another little unique purchase we made for each other was for a pair of chopsticks from Japan. This past year we have been all about sushi (shoutout to CM for getting me on this bandwagon!) so to symbolize this we bought real (and really beautiful) chopsticks! We cannot wait to use them! And finally we bought matching little Minnie/ Mickey picture frames to hold a picture from our little trip so we can remember it all year round! 

Oh! And I can't forget these adorable little Minnie bow sticky tabs so I can have Disney magic as my study inspiration!

I am absolutely head over heels over my new Disney Alex and Ani bangles. I have been dying to start a collection and I am so happy I did. These are so cute and create a beautiful, yet not annoying, jingle. Needless to say I have been stalking the website in search of my next addition. 

Disney couples are the happiest couples.

And that's all she wrote! It was an amazing little weekend getaway that was the perfect way to end a long summer of hard work and to start off a new year of long distance. 

Weekend Recap: Forrest Gump and Free Donuts!

Wow! Last week flew by, am I right? 

Luckily I had a pretty low key weekend to catch myself up...or at least feel like I did. 

Friday:

A local doughnut shop was giving out free breakfast Friday morning and I don't know about you but I can't think of a better way to begin my weekend than with a free doughnut AND coffee! Score! 

That little added excitement made running my Friday errands a lot happier! 

After that my morning went by quick and since the weather was surprisingly beautiful out, despite it being the thunderstorm prime-time, CM and I chanced it and headed to the beach. 

And it was worth it!

We spent our afternoon soaking up the sun and salty air and it was just what I needed. 

We finally made it to one of our favorite beach restaurants, Bubba Gump's. Going to this restaurant was one our summer bucket list because, well, it is a summer must do! 

I had a Bubba's favorite, Pear and Berry salad. So yummy and light enough that I didn't feel bloated in my bikini, but filling enough so I had the energy to lay out and tan (Because that involves so much work). 

Saturday: 

Saturday started bright and (semi) early at my nephew's toddler soccer class. He had a blast! 

 After that I headed over to CM's for a picnic by the lake, another summer bucket list item. Well, FL made up for it's lack of rain on Friday with a downpour for all of Saturday afternoon so, needless to say, we had an indoor picnic. Oh well!  

If you are from the South, you must know about the awesome-ness that is a Publix sub. There is nothing more beautiful than a fresh pub sub on a hot, summer day. Okay, I'm getting a little carried away, but seriously you have to try one if you haven't! I opted for the chicken tender sub today, a cult fave, and it did not disappoint, other than the fact that I couldn't even finish half of it. 

Source

In honor of our trip to Bubba Gump's restaurant the day before, CM and I decided to watch the movie that started it all, Forrest Gump. I'm not much of a movie person, actually the (small) amount of "classics" that I have seen is quite embarrassing, so when I realized I have never seen the entirety of this movie in one sitting, we decided it needed to be done asap. It is a great movie, a little on the longer side, but when you have a summer afternoon with nothing but a thunderstorm going on, it is absolutely perfect. 

 Sunday: 

Sunday was once again a day of errands, grocery shopping, and cleaning, but this Sunday was sprinkled with a trip to IHOP for breakfast and running into an old friend at good ole' Target. Always nice!

Sunday dinner was enjoyed poolside, something I've been trying to do all summer, but the timing never seem right. Salmon, shrimp, brown rice, and veggies, one of my favorite meals! 

What's your favorite summer meal? 

I'd love to know!

Linking up with Bella and Lisa for The Weekend Recap!

As well as Lisa and Rachael for the Weekly Wrap Up!

Weekend Recap: Spontaneous Miami Adventures

Happy Monday all! 

I hope everyone had a great weekend. After my very uneventful/ bedridden weekend last week I was really itching to get out this weekend and thank goodness the weather was beautiful... for the majority of it. Hey, for Florida, that's good enough. CM and I decided to take advantage of this and make a day trip down to Miami to visit the Vizcaya Museum that has been on our to-do list for awhile now. But before I get ahead of myself, here's the recap!

Friday:

Friday morning was spent doing the all-so-fun task of renewing my passport (more on why I had to do this later). I do not have any pictures from this glorious occasion because, well, I was quite pee-oed about it. Long story short, DO NOT smile in your passport picture, even if the lady taking it at the CVS says that it is indeed okay to do so and even confirms it by saying, "What a lovely smile you have!". You'll end up paying $12 for ugly passport photos that are completely useless and another $10 in usable yet borderline mugshot pictures at the courthouse. Ugh.  

After that glorious occasion, my sister and I treated ourselves at a local doughnut shop for breakfast. This is the coffee in which I took out my frustrations. #noshame

The rest of my day was spent outdoors with my nephew, inside cleaning, and on the couch napping with this guy. Pugs are the best sleeping buddies, am I right? 

Saturday: 

As I began to mention before, CM and I made a mini day-trip to the Vizcaya Museum in Miami. We've been trying to do different things this summer and visiting a museum was a first for us! 

The front of the house.

 My outfit included a black and white paisley sundress and hints of rosegold. 

To get the full experience we took the audio tour. (Oh, and please excuse my ugly nails xD)

The back of the house. Unforutantely, you could not take any pictures inside but it was beautiful. 

The barge in Biscayne Bay. 

The tea house. I would love to have one of those!

Decided to give the panoramic feature a try to capture the breathtaking gardens surrounding the house. This was just the center of it!

I actually liked how this selfie turned out (which is highly unusual), but please excuse the weird filter on some of these pictures, we came to realize after the fact that he had a filter set on his phone. 

After a long morning/afternoon of touring we left the magnificent gardens and ventured out into the surrounding area for lunch. We stumbled upon a cute little brunch place that CM had been to previously on a business meeting and knowing that brunch is my favorite meal of the day, we decided to stop here for a very late brunch. 

I now have a tiny little spot in my heart for Morgan's as it served the BEST french toast I have ever had. And can we just take a moment to appreciate the cinnamon butter served on top. It was heavenly. 

CM had a chicken and waffle sandwich that is going to be the next dish I order from there! (There goes that darn filter lol)

We ended the day with a stop at one of our favorite places, Lincoln Road. With a 3 story Forever 21 and the best H&M in our area it was bound that I did some damage. 

Gotta have Starbucks for the ride home. Lovin' their new vibrant green straws for the summer! 

 Sunday:

Sunday was a pretty easy day. After an eventful day before I had a lot of errands to run and cleaning to do.

Healthy grocery shopping always makes you feel good!

Made a carafe of one of my favorite summer drinks! So yummy!

And that was that! If you're in the Miami area I HIGHLY recommend visiting the Vizcaya Museum and Gardens. It is a beautiful way to learn about some Miami history. Also check out Morgan's Restaurant near Midtown, you will not be disappointed! 

Did you eat at any good restaurants this weekend? I'd love to know!

Linking Up with Bella, Lisa, and Molly! 

xox,
J

Weekend Recap!

 Happy Monday! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. Mine was pretty eventful, for once, so I wanted to share, plus I took a lot of pictures so I figured this would justify it. 

 Friday:

After a week full of thunderstorms and gross humidity, I lucked out and was able to spend my morning off soaking up the saltwater and sunshine at the beach. Turns out I really lucked out because within two hours after I left a huge thunderstorm rolled in, complete within terrifying thunder and lightening and enough rain to overflow my pool. Gotta love summer weather in Florida!

Friday night we welcomed home my grandma and aunt who spent the past month visiting our family in Italy. And what better way to welcome them home from their Italian excursions than homemade Fettuccine Alfredo! Like they needed more pasta, lol. My grandma surprised me by bringing back this beautiful silver Madonna that she made sure to get blessed while on her retreat. Such a thoughtful gift that will always remind me of her as you will never see my grandma without her own Madonna around her neck. 

Saturday:

Saturday morning cleaning, as per usual, but thanks to this ah-mazing candle I just bought at the B&BW Semi-annual sale this past week, my chores suck a little less!

Saturday night date night at PF Chang's, our absolute favorite. Ever since we discovered the Chang's 2 for $40 menu over 2 years ago (excuse me while I stare blankly at the screen wondering how 2 years have gone by so fast) PF Chang's has become our most visited restaurant, and we have no shame!

I steered away from my usual sesame chicken with brown rice and went with the chicken lo mein. Delicious, no doubt!

We always upgrade on the dessert to get one full size rather than two small individual, again no shame. While the Great Wall of Chocolate is our go-to because, I mean, the name says it all, but this time we went with the "Chocolate Dome", sounds almost as awesome as "The Great Wall".  Essentially it was a chocolate mousse cake with raspberry syrup, but realistically it was a heavenly dome of thick, creamy chocolate that is currently making my mouth water as I type this at 9am, no less. 

Our date night continued as we went this adorable art studio where you can either paint ceramics or create mosaics. Yay for fun, artsy dates!

He ended up going thing a surfboard ceramic and I chose to mosaic my initial. Here are the before's....

 

It is of utmost important to pause mid-project to take a happy selfie.

The evolution of my design. I'd have to say I'm quite pleased with myself as my creative skills since graduating high school have dropped to an embarrassing low. Overall it was a very therapeutic experience in many ways. From being in a laid back environment, creating something individually, but also together at the same time to letting my aggression out cutting the tiles, it was overall a really fun and different from the norm date! Highly recommend! 

I didn't have time to grout my piece that night and he has to wait three days for them to fire(?), I think that's what it's called, his piece so I will keep you updated on the after's!

The coffee menu that was on the table. I thought it was hilarious!

Sunday:

                   

Sunday morning was spent rummaging through old shes boxes for pictures of me and my dad. Loved walking through memory lane.... and also hated did not love cringing through my awkward years. xD

Since my dad was out of town visiting his dad Sunday morning we had his favorite once-a-year breakfast of biscuits 'n gravy for dinner Sunday night! Yes I am a toddler still and make smiley faces with my food #20goingon2 

I'm doing my first link-up and I'm so excited! Thank you Bella and Lisa! 

Thanks for reading!