Epcotiversary: Germany

Welcome to our second-to-last Epcotiversary. I can't believe we're rounding the corner to our one-year anniversary of marriage! It's been great, I'll tell you that.

This month took us to Germany, and the timing couldn't have been better. Ideally, we'd do Biergarten for this country, but with me being pregnant, I didn't want to experience it for the first time without the prerequisite giant stein of beer. So, we decided to forgo Biergarten until post-baby, and instead hit up the International Flower & Garden food kiosk in Germany. 

But first, plant seminars! 

We headed into the Festival Center in the old Wonders of Life pavilion to check out a handful of plant and garden seminars. We learned about the Secrets to Gorgeous Containers, All About Orchids, and The Edible Garden. The Container seminar was fantastic- John and I both left excited to go to our local nursery and create some containers! 

We were in there for three hours before heading back towards World Showcase. Everything was in bloom and just beautiful!

We hoofed it nearly halfway around the World back to Germany. There, we tried one of each of the food offerings from the Flower & Garden kiosk. 

This included the Currywurst with Paprika Chips, Chicken Fricassee, and Armer Ritter, which was basically french toast with cherry compote. John also had the beer flight (*jealous*). Everything was really, really tasty! I'd highly recommend this booth. 

After eating, it was time for a photo shoot. I have the privilege of being featured on my good friend Amanda's precious blog, Dixie Delights-- be sure to pay her site a visit now, and again on April 4th to see my cameo. John did his "Instagram Husband"ly duties and snapped pics for the feature. Look at that growing belly-- no, that's not just Armer Ritter in there. Dat's baby! 

Lilly Pulitzer Top (old) // Lilly Pulitzer Shorts // Rainbow Sandals

We of course couldn't leave without a Spaceship Earth Selfie- for some reason this one turned out a little warped. The mirror was funky, perhaps? 

Another lovely Epcotiversary. Thanks for reading! We'll see you next time on our last stop-- France! Oh la la. 

XOXO, Ashley 

Weekend Wear-abouts: MK and More

Ever have one of those weekends where your plans change last minute, and then it turns out to be one of the best you've had in a while? Whelp, that was me, this weekend.

J.Crew Shirt (old, similar here) // Jessica Simpson Maternity Jeans // Monogrammed Jack Rogers

I was supposed to visit my mom for the weekend, but she came down with a stomach bug on Friday. We didn't want to risk my getting it being preggos and all, so we changed our plans to visit for next weekend. 

John and I were suddenly left with a wide-open weekend! His main goal: get our taxes done. Yay! Fun! But necessary. 

First though, let me back up to Friday. 

My co-worker, Annastasia, and I decided to have lunch at Kona Cafe (one of the many perks of working on Disney property). We booked an ADR and headed there on our lunch break. Upon arrival, we were informed that the kitchen was currently closed and that they would honor our reservation at either the Grand Floridian Cafe or The Wave. We were scheduled to take photos after lunch for a project at the Contemporary anyway, so we headed to The Wave. This mamma had her heart set on a Dole Whip Float, so naturally I got one before leaving the Poly and before eating lunch.  Our lunch was good; I always like eating at The Wave. The next thing I'd like to try there is breakfast. 

Outfit details: here

On Saturday, Lilly Pulitzer had their annual Lunch at Lilly promotion, featuring gifts with every purchase. I ended up getting this top and this top, but also loved this, this and this. 

Before heading out to do our taxes, John and I stopped into the cute little 'downtown' of Windermere to check out the library. (Nerd fact: I love libraries) We stumbled upon a little cafe and had a delicious lunch there before heading on. After a quick stop at Trader Joe's, it was tax time. Uncle Sam gave us a generous return (yay for filing as a married couple for the first time!) and naturally, we celebrated by renewing John's Annual Pass! 

               

You see, the plan was for him to go without this year, with the baby coming and all, and we would just use my Guest Passes when we wanted to go. Sounds great in theory, but I only get 16 Guest Passes per year, and now that we live literally five minutes from the Magic Kingdom, it's just too convenient to go in for an hour or two. Yet we'd hesitate to do so when that would use up one of the precious Guest Passes. Long story short, we headed to the Magic Kingdom to John a new AP, meet up with our Disfam and have dinner at the Skipper Canteen. We also took a ride on 'it's a small world' and a nighttime spin on the Liberty Square Riverboat. 

Sunday was a nesting day; I toyed with the idea of heading to Epcot to check out one of the gardening seminars at the Flower & Garden Festival, but after doing a lot of cleaning, house stuff and grocery shopping, my comfies and the couch won out. 

So, we had a lovely weekend. How about you? Here's hoping your week is as beautiful as these ranunculus! 

Thanks for reading. XOXO, Ashley

My Disney Job: Workweek Wear

Five words to sum up my wardrobe this week: Jeans all day, erryday. 

I love jeans. 

Meet my assistant, who is always present when I take these photos before walking out the door for 

work. 

American Rag Jacket (old, similar here) // Anthropologie Top // Jessica Simpson Materinity Jeans // Kendra Scott Necklace // Stella & Dot Necklace // Tieks Flats

Anthropologie Blouse (old) // Mossimo for Target T-Shirt // Citizens of Humanity Jeans 

Azadouhi Jewelry Necklace // Tory Burch Flats (I've had these for almost 10 years!)

Lilly Pulitzer Top (old, but I'm loving this similar style) // Jessica Simpson Maternity Jeans // Stella & Dot Necklace (old) // Tieks Flats

Buena Vista Construction Company Work Shirt // Gap Tank (old, layered under shirt) // Liz Lange for Target Maternity Jeans // runDisney New Balance Sneakers

I was out in the field taking photos for various projects this week, including a certain big project happening at Disney's Animal Kingdom, so I kept it simple and wore my work shirt this day. Of course, it's Disneyfied- check out the cute little Mickey on the sleeve!

Lilly Pulitzer Top (old print, same style here) // Jessica Simpson Maternity Jeans // Lilly Pulitzer Flats (old) // Michael Kors Necklace

Emi Jay Hair Tie // Stella & Dot Bracelet 

Thanks so much for reading. Have a great weekend! 

XO, Ashley

Weekend Wear-abouts: Flower & Garden + MK + Baby Bump

Welcome to my favorite Epcot Festival of the year- the International Flower and Garden Festival! We spent a beautiful Saturday enjoying the splendors with lots of good friends. 

Lilly Pulitzer Dress (old, similar here)  // Lilly Pulitzer Cardigan (old but I LOVE this one) // Disneyland Dooney and Bourke

L to R: Seth (Ally's boyfriend), Ally (John's sister), me, John, Annastasia (my co-worker), Anna (Dan's girlfriend), and Dan (another co-worker).

I love the festival for so many reasons. The bright blooms make Epcot pop- check out the floating planters in the water!

We picked up a map for the EGGstravahanza egg hunt. TIP: There is often a long line to purchase these at the pin stand. They also sell them at the hat cart next to the Electric Umbrella, which usually has no line. This is also where we bought our wristlet gift cards. 

The egg hunt was a bit more challenging than it has been in years' past. We really enjoyed it. 

We sampled lots of items from the various kiosks. 

We even stopped in to La Cava del Tequila to say hello to Hilda (and for the non-pregnant people in our party to have a tequila shot). 

On Sunday, the weather was once again gorgeous! Too pretty to stay inside. I had been craving a Casey's Corner hot dog and Citrus Swirl and decided to pop in to the Magic Kingdom to get my fix. 

I've bought several pairs of maternity jeans, but no shorts yet. Thankfully, I found the Belly Band at Target which converts any pair of pants or shorts into maternity wear. Warning: five-month pale pregnant baby bump below:

Trying to squeeze into my Lilly shorts before Belly Band.

Comfortably wearing them after Belly Band. It's basically just a stretchy band of fabric (I have it doubled over; you can also wear it full sized as you grow) that hugs in the waistband of your pants. I wore it for three hours walking around the Magic Kingdom at it didn't slip or feel too constricting at all. 

See how absolutely gorgeous it was outside??!

Gap T-Shirt // Lilly Pulitzer Shorts // Rainbow Sandals // Longchamp Purse

I sat in the Hub Grass and read for a bit, wandered through Adventureland, rode the train once around the park, and picked up a few snack to bring home. One of the many blessings of living five minutes from the front gates of MK is a chocolate-covered pineapple and cream cheese pretzels in the comfort of your own home. 

Hope you had a wonderful weekend. Thanks for reading!

XOXO, Ashley