Misti Michelle

Walt Disney World Resort’s Animal Kingdom will celebrate its 20th Anniversary this upcoming Sunday (April 22, 2018). So I figured what better way to celebrate this often passed over resort with my top 5 favorite things to do at the Animal Kingdom Park. 

The Kilimanjaro Safaris: I mean what better thing to do in Animal Kingdom than get pretty up close and personal to some animals? What I really loved about the Kilimanjaro Safaris was just how many animals we really saw. I was kinda expecting it to be like the first ride through in Jurassic Park when none to the dinosaurs showed up, but nope we saw just about every single animal that is included on the ride including some of the more nocturnal ones like the lions. I really cannot wait to go back and do the new(ish) nighttime safari. 

Maharajah Jungle Trek: This walk-thru attraction was pretty awesome for just so many animals you got so see roaming around. There are over 50 bird species,  Sumatran tigers, Water Buffalo, Bar-headed Goose, and more. What I really loved was the Disney Cast Members that were readily available to tell you all about the animals, so much better than the standard information plaque you see at the zoo. 

Watching the Monkeys: All throughout the Asia island there are monkeys swinging around above you, going from one of their enclosures to another. It was kinda zen to stop and watch them go about their day and do their thing. Again, there were always a few Cast Members available that were more than happy to tell you all about their monkey friends. 

Street Performers/Live Shows: Just like how Magic Kingdom has the Dapper Dan’s, Animal Kingdom has its own variety of street performers. My favorites were the dancers in the African Harambe village section of the park. There is also the Festival of the Lion King, and while I’ve only seen it online the show looks amazing. 

Snacks: I mean Disney food if pretty much awesome in all the parks, but for just wandering around grabbing something to snack on, Animal Kingdom does offer some different, maybe more unique offerings. Our favorite were the spiced almonds carts offered at the spiced nuts carts throughout Animal Kingdom. There are also some great offerings at places like Flame Tree BBQ, Yak & Yeti Local Foods Café, and while I haven’t eaten at the Satu'li Canteen, in Pandora – The World of Avatar, I’ve heard amazing reviews of the food. 

So those are my top 5 favorites about Animal Kingdom but there is so much more to do at this park that I didn’t get to do on my first visit.  

Let us know what some of your favorite memories or attractions are from Animal Kingdom in the comments. 

XOXO,

Okay so I am a bit big lover of handbags and while I do lover a good high end designer bag, it’s the geek themed bags that really make my handbag heart got pitter-patter. 

Loungefly is pretty much the go to when you want a good Disney, Marvel or Star Wars bag and they just launched some bags that I am going to need to my growing collection ASAP. 

1. Pink Minnie Bows & Ears Crossbody - When I saw this bag show up on my IG feed I KNEW I had to have it. Not only is pink favorite color but combine that with my girl Minnie Mouse, sold. Plus this will pair perfectly with a pair of Rose Gold or Millennial Pink Minnie Ears. 

2. Mickey Print Crossbody - If you are going to have a Disney/geeky bag collection I believe Disney Law states one of the bags must be Mickey Mouse themed. I love that is just a good, classic Mickey Mouse print plus that Mickey hand tag is such a cute detail. 

3. Marvel Loki Duffel - Loki is the MCU villain to love to hate and hate to love, and I adore this Loki themed bag. It is not “in your face” Loki like some of the other Marvel bags seem to be, it just a nice subtle nod to Trickster God and perfect for any Loki DisneyBounds. 

4. Minnie Patches Crossbody - I first saw this on Chelsea Watson’s aka @StyledByMagic Instagram feed and I was OBSESSED. So obsessed that this bag is still on my wish list. The style is just perfect for everyday life and so be styled with so many different looks, my mind is spinning. 

5. Marvel Captain America CosPlay Crossbody - Just in time for Avengers: Infinity War Loungefly released maybe the PERFECT Captain America bag. I’ll be honest, Tammy and I have been looking for good Team Cap bag since before Captain America: Civil War and it is finally here. What I really love about this bag is it’s styled more about Captain America’s uniform than his shield. Which is great if you want to do a Cap DisneyBound or want it to be bit more subtle. Now if only there was a Winter Soldier bag (hint, hint). 

You can find all these bags and more directly on the Loungefly website, but be sure to look on other sites like ThinkGeek, Shop Disney, and Boxed Lunch as they have some great exclusive bags as well. 

XOXO,

I am still pretty new to DisneyBounding, don’t get me wrong I love it, but I’m still playing how DisneyBounding fits into my personal style. This is exactly why I was looking forward to the March DisneyBound Challenge. A full 31 days to stretching my style and DisneyBound creativity to see just how far I can stretch my wardrobe. Sign me up!

Thankfully Leslie (the brains behind @disneybound) put out the daily prompts in like February which should’ve given me plenty of time to figure everything out but I hit a wall. Like 4 days before the challenge I was standing in front of my closet and all I saw was a sea of black aka the NYC uniform. This is why FaceTime was invented. After an hour+ on FaceTime with Tammy and Alexia I had a solid plan for most of the days. I felt good, ready to go, then winter happened. 

3 NOR’EASTERS PEOPLE!! 

Yes, NYC got hit a snow storm a week for most of March and since I suffer from extreme anxiety with it snows outside, I was stuck. How do I do this challenge without freezing my butt off outside? The answer was pre-shoot. My friend Val came all the way out to Brooklyn for 1) Brunch and 2) to help me pre-shoot a ton of looks. There were still days when I just didn’t have a pre-shot look available and my front stoop was buried under 5″+ of snow, which when the prompt for the day is Little Mermaid or Moana doesn’t really sell. For these days I used older images from last year as throw-back bounds.  

My favorite bounds from the month were Sleeping Beauty for Disney Princess day, Lucky for 101 Dalmatians day, Peach for Pixar Day, Gus Gus for Cinderella Day, Stitch for Disney Dog day, Clawhauser for Zootopia day, and of course Mickey Mouse for Vintage Inspired day. 

Overall I only missed 2 days which isn’t too bad for my first big challenge. You can see all of my looks from the March DisneyBound Challenge over on my personal IG page: mistimichellexo. 

If you participated in the DisneyBound Challenge let me what your favorite look/theme was that you did in the comments below. 

XOXO,

I know I know, its Monday but this isn’t a new nail look from Alexia. We are giving her a few weeks off due to the upcoming Easter play that both her and Tammy are involved in. So, since I can barely polish my own nails I figured I would share some of my favorite beauty picks for when I head to the park. 

1. IT Cosmetics CC Cream - This beauty has everything from amazing coverage to SPF 50. Plus it is pretty long lasting and keeps my skin super moisturized. 

2. Dermablend Flawless Creator - If I am going for a more involved makeup look that really needs to last all day I use Flawless Creator, just a few drops and I’m set for the whole day. 

3. Urban Decay All-Nighter Setting Spray - A setting spray is a MUST when hitting the parks and nothing is better then the All-Nighter. It is the only setting spray I trust to keep my makeup looking good in FL or L.A. heat. 

4. Maybelline Total Temptation Mascara - I LOVE this mascara for long days. Thanks to the coconut oil lashes stay soft all day and there is pretty much zero flaking. Its perfect for those with sensitive eyes like myself. 

5. Tarte Tartelette Tease Palette - I love tossing a small travel eyeshadow palette into my bag. Tarte makes several of these and but this one has a pretty good array of natural shades for any look. 

6. Fenty Beauty Stunna Lip Paint in Uncensored - I personally love a good bold red lip and nothing these days compares to the lip paint from RiRi. 

7. Coola Suncreen Stick - SPF is a must, that is just a fact which is why I love tossing SPF sticks in my bag. They are a quick, mess free way to reapply your sunscreen. Plus the Coola line of sunscreens smells AMAZING. 

8. NYX Blotting Paper - Doesn’t matter which park you are in, you’re gonna get sweaty. Keep some blotting paper in your bag to get rid of any access shine and sweat followed by a few spritzes of the setting spray and you’ll be good to go. 

!function(doc,s,id){ var e, p, cb; if(!doc.getElementById(id)) { e = doc.createElement(s); e.id = id; cb = new Date().getTime().toString(); p = '//shopsensewidget.shopstyle.com/widget-script.js?cb=1521471946960?cb=' + cb; e.src = p; doc.body.appendChild(e); } if(typeof window.ss_shopsense === 'object'){ if(doc.readyState === 'complete'){ window.ss_shopsense.init(); } } }(document, 'script', 'shopsensewidget-script');

What are some of your favorite park approved beauty picks? Let us know down in the comments! 

XOXO,

Disney graced us with not one but TWO new teaser trailers this week for two of their upcoming fall/winter releases, Mary Poppins Returns and Christopher Robbin. 

MARY POPPINS RETURNS (December 25)

This of course is the sequel of sorts to the beloved 1964 Mary Poppins with Julie Andrews. This new version sees Emily Blunt re-cast in the role of the famous nanny with Lin-Manuel Miranda of Hamilton fame cast as Lamplighter Jack.  

We don’t get much in the trailer but we do see a return to Cherry Tree Lane a well as grown-up versions of Michael and Jane Banks, the children from the original film. 

Now I am excited for this one, Mary Poppins is one of my favorite films and I love Emily Blunt who I think was a perfect casting choice here. Plus we will get new music from Lin-Manuel.  

CHRISTOPHER ROBBIN (August 3)

Now first, let us not get this confused with Goodbye, Christopher Robbin which is a totally different film that cam out in 2017.  Disney’s Christopher Robbin will follow a grown-up Christopher (Ewan McGregor) who seems to have lost his way a bit and will see the return of his silly, willy, nilly old bear Winnie the Pooh along with the rest of the residents of the Hundred Acre Woods. 

Now I’m not gonna lie, this trailer made me tear up a bit. I LOVE Pooh Bear, he was the first Disney character was I introduced to as a baby and that has stuck with me.  

Hi Hi Everyone, One of the best parts of any Disney park is the food. Now granted we’ve only been to Walt Disney World a few times but we still have our favorite eats. So this week we are listing out some of our favorite foods to chow down on at the WDW park.

Enjoy, Comment, Like and Subscribe!

🎥 Latest Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URx3fDeR2IM 🖥 Latest Blog Post: http://cousinswhodisney.com/post/171449337697/blank-panther-celebrates-strong-women

Living in Northern Virginia this past weekend meant a crazy wind storm and no power for 2 ½ days. So, we’re doing a flashback mani for today. 

The year was 2015. It was December. And Disney has made us all happy by making Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Our family was VERY excited! And Alexia wanted to do her nails up right for the opening night. 

The look she decided to go with was the force vs the dark side. Her left hand was the dark side - storm troopers, royal guard, and Darth Vader. The right hand was the force - a purple lightsaber, a green lightsaber, a blue lightsaber, R2-D2, and C3PO. 

I’m going to be honest with you all - it took a lot of work to do this look! It was a lot of detail work, and we were never happy with poor C3PO. But Alexia was very excited that her nails showed her love for Star Wars. 

Alexia and Chloe have a friend who played young Simba this weekend in a community theater production of The Lion King Jr. So, in honor of Brian and his role, Alexia put together a Lion King inspired mani. She chose to focus on the two best sidekicks a lion could ask for - Timon and Pumba. Her ring fingers are grubs, because they are what’s for dinner.

To create this look:

On one hand, paint your nails red, followed by a bit of black at the nail base (for the hair line) and white tusks at the tip of the nails.

On the other hand, paint an orange shade, with a bit of red at the nail base (again, for the hair line) and a black nose toward the tip of the nails.

Congratulations- one hand is Pumba and the other is Timon!

For the grubs, Alexia made black beetles with red spots. You could really make any color grub or beetle you want - let your creativity flow!

If you’re like me, then DisneyBounding if your new way of life. Ever since I fully got the hang of what DisneyBounding is, I’ve been obsessed. In fact I’ve tried to participate in every DisneyBound challenge that has come along (you can head about those here and here). 

Well now there is a BIG DisneyBound challenge coming, The March DisneyBound Challenge. This is a challenge created by Leslie Kay aka @disneybound and it’s a month long event with a new DisneyBound challenge each day! 

Thankfully Leslie posted the daily challenges ahead of time allowing for plenty of prep time! I have literally been taking stock of what is in my closet so I can participate in as many of the daily challenges as possible. 

You can see all the daily challenges below and more information can be found here.  

Black Panther is AMAZING! If you haven’t seen it yet, stop what you’re doing and go, like right now. 

When putting together today’s nail look, naturally Alexia wanted to do something inspired by T’Challa/Black Panther so she looked no further than the Black Panther suit. 

The steps are the same for all fingers:

Start with a full coat of black polish. 

Add a stripe of silver polish down the middle of each finger. 

Add a smaller stripe of metallic purple polish down the middle of each silver stripe. 

Finish up with a high shine top coat. 

WAKANDA FOREVER

Hi Hi Everyone, It’s that time again, time to unbox yet another Mickey Monthly.  This month we are unboxing a Gender Neutral, 18+, Theme Park Edition Box.

You can find out more about Mickey Monthly here: https://mickeymonthly.com/

🎥 Latest Video: https://youtu.be/Q-UUOvtLNpY 🖥 Latest Blog Post: http://cousinswhodisney.com/post/170796711684/valentines-day-nail-look-manimonday

Enjoy, Comment, Like and Subscribe!

xoxo, Misti & Tammy

Hi Hi Everyone, Let’s be honest, as much as we LOVE Disney movies, we all have those flicks that just aren’t our faves. You know the ones you watch once or twice. Well these are our least favorite films from Disney Animated Vault.

❤️ Top 5 Favorite Animated Movies: https://youtu.be/pPbiGw0QyAk 🎥 Latest Video: https://youtu.be/so8pf66C3_k 🖥 Latest Blog Post: http://cousinswhodisney.com/post/170536482637/peter-pan-nail-art-manimonday

Enjoy, Comment, Like and Subscribe!

Last Sunday was the 60th anniversary of Lego applying for their patent for the Lego brick. This is a big deal in our family. If you’ve seen any of Alexia’s mani videos, you’ve seen a few of our Lego minifigs. I don’t even know how to explain to you how many Legos we have. Our dining room is no longer a dining room. It was turned into the Lego Lab a number of years ago. Jon built a shelving unit to help store Lego bricks of various sizes. Gabriel has the Death Star. We spent a snow storm two years ago finishing the Lego AT-AT, and then posed it in the snow. We know almost every employee of our favorite Lego store by name (shout out to the Potomac Mills Lego store).

Disney and Lego is just the perfect combination. Both inspire imagination and encourage creativity. Both allow kids and parents to bond over a shared love.

We have so many Star Wars and Marvel sets. We have some of the old school Toy Story sets. We have a few of the Frozen sets - who doesn’t love Olaf? We have family builds with some of the larger sets, where we all participate in putting it together. Like I said, Lego and Disney is just a perfect combination.

Then, true magic happened a few years back, when Lego announced that they were releasing a Disney themed Collectible Minifig Set. We stood in the store the day they were released and felt every bag until we had all 18 minifigs. Yes, we are those people.

And then Disney and Lego decided to make my head and heart explode by releasing The Disney Castle set. It is amazing! There are little Disney easter eggs hidden all through the set. I want it! Unfortunately, my budget has informed me that I must be an adult and put adult responsibilities first for a while. But I do plan on getting that castle. The only reason we haven’t bought any of the other princess themed castles is because I’m holding out for the main attraction. (Also, my kids prefer to get the sets that are compatible with traditional Lego minifigs.)