but she won’t discover that it’s him…

…’til chapter three!

Beauty and the Beast has always been my FAVORITE Disney movie! I have watched it so many times that most of it is memorized, and I have even seen the Broadway play multiple times. Plus, the recent(ish) live action movie was surprisingly good!

I’m not sure why I always connected with her. Maybe because she was intelligent and spoke her mind? Maybe because she wasn’t born into royalty and thus more relatable? Or it could simply be that she was the only Disney princess I knew with brown hair like me 🙂

This dress was a costume I sewed AGES ago – one of my firsts. I made it out of a bedsheet from Walmart and used iron-on hem tape since I didn’t know how to sew a proper hem. It doesn’t really fit great and the zipper is kind of a mess, but I was always proud of it and have worn it many times. Since I teach elementary school, it’s a good go-to costume for Halloween at work.

When a friend of mine was having a Disney costume party for her birthday in September, this again became the obvious choice. I no longer have the same locks as my favorite heroine, but I think I still can pull off the look 😉

I paired my dress/apron with simple flats as well as a Beauty and the Beast book purse and a rose pin from Disney.

Hope this inspires you for Halloween! (ps, this is not my costume for this year. I’ll share photos of my actual outfit soon!)

Dress and Apron: made by me 🙂
Blouse: Candie’s via Kohl’s
Shoes: Jessica Simpson Mandayss Ballet Flat via Amazon
Purse: Target Girls Beauty and the Beast Purse (not sure why it is popping up at $44…I think I paid around $12)
Pin: Beauty and the Beast Stained Glass Pin

an apple a day

Last week, Dave and I met Sara and Cody to go apple picking…because that’s just what you do in the fall in New England. I LOOOOOOVE apples, so I knew this would be the best opportunity to get a bunch of fruit for snacking and baking.

If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, I at least know I won’t be sick for the next few weeks!

Isn’t it crazy how much better fruit is when you get it fresh? Obviously it would be better than store-bought, but it is significantly better. My favorite is McIntosh, which I wouldn’t stop talking about during the hayride to the orchard, and I think it drove everyone crazy! My friends let us pick those first, maybe just to shut me up?! LOL!

Now, it wouldn’t be an apple photo shoot without some staged photos…

(ummm, I literally took a pre-picked apple from my bag and pretended to pick it off that tree. ha!)

…and I needed to take a few with my buddy:

Sara threw the apple and I tried to catch it. Not shown: the poor apple plummeting to the ground (and it happened more than once!)

Did you know that Sara also has this skirt from Joanie Clothing? (It’s because I bought it for her! lol). Maybe one day we will have to be dorks and do a twinning post! It has cute little strawberry jam jars all over it and has a sweet homey vibe.

I think I’ll wrap things up with a few more photos from our day:

Top: Express Short Puff Sleeve Tee via Express Outlet
Jacket: Guess Faux Leather Jacket via Wilsons Leather
Skirt: Joanie Clothing Jamelia Jam Jar Print Skirt
Purse: MMS Design Studio
Boots: Indigo by Clarks Cedar Street