Today is going to be a long post, but I hope it's worth it because we are talking DISNEY today!
Mom and I went out west to hang out at Disneyland over Mother's Day. We participated in the Tinkerbell Half Marathon as well as checked out all the new stuff they had for Star Wars and the 60th anniversary.
First off, we used The Mouse for Less Travel Agency to help us book this trip. Since we are normally Disney WORLD goers, it was so helpful to have someone give us an idea on what to expect for Disneyland. Jeannette Cona-Larock is our agent and she is FANTASTIC! When it came to restaurant recommendations and photo pass questions, she was able to help us out with all of it. Definitely check them out next time you are looking to go to Disney. Their services do not cost you ANYTHING and it's so helpful to have someone help you with all the questions you may have.
We headed out early on Friday morning. With the time change, it was like we time warped. We arrived "shortly" after we had left!
After getting to the hotel and unpacking, first item on the list was to get to the expo to pick up our race packets. Then came our favorite, shopping! After visiting all the vendors we made our way down Downtown Disney to shop in all the fun stores they have there.
At the expo!
There are several fun vendors at the expo and we always love the photo ops they have available with the photo pass photographers!
Look mom! I got wings!
All the swag!
Dinner that night was at Napa Rose. It was seriously one of the best meals I have ever had!
My tomato-bell pepper soup with shrimp!
The following morning, we rope-dropped California Adventure and rode several rides!
Hello Cars Land!
Going down Route 66!
I got to see Red! He's my favorite!
While out and about we got to see Chip and Dale! They were so excited to see us!
Happy Chipmunks!
Lots of love from Dale!
We dropped into the Twilight Zone!
Toy Story is our favorite! I actually got the high score for our car!
We pretty much did everything in California Adventure we wanted to do by noon, so we headed over to Disneyland and checked out the new Star Wars stuff they had! The Launch Bay ended up being one of our favorite things on the trip. They had a great small film talking about the impact the past Star Wars films had on movie making and where they were going in the future.
Then we got to meet Kylo Ren! They had us stand in a hallway to wait and so we started chatting. Then suddenly, he appeared from around the corner and just stared us down! He finally invited us in and said "I sense you sympathize with the resistance." I said he was correct. He told me that was unfortunate...he could teach me about the dark side of the force. After our picture he told us to give his condolences to those in the resistance. It was one of the BEST character interactions I have ever had!
Kylo Ren trying to use Jedi mind tricks on me.
I guess it isn't appropriate to side hug Kylo Ren??? I didn't feel like it at all!
Outside the exit they had a place for you to take photos with a lightsaber! Haha.
I'm feeling it. Just need the robe!
The force run strong in my family!
We then checked out the Blue Bayou for lunch...one of my other favorite meals!
The menus lit up!
Before we left the park we ended up stopping to get mom her Mother's Day present...a silhouette of her with my brother and I (who sent me a picture before we left!).
Hand cut. Saying hi to Walt as he looks over the town square!
That night we "carb loaded" at PCH Grill before going to bed early because the next day...we raced!
I could write a whole review about the Tinkerbell race, but I don't think I would be able to add any more than others have already written on other blogs. I enjoyed the course immensely. It was a little weird running down Main Street "backwards" away from the castle and not going down the main street for Cars Land. But the out and back nature of going through Anaheim helped the "non Disney" miles go by quicker. I am THRILLED that they switched to having Photopass photographers on the course because we were able to get awesome pictures like these!
About to run through the castle!
So awesome!
I don't know what we are smiling at, but we are apparently having a good time!
Finish line!
We did it!
My mother (who runs much faster than me) really pushed me on my pace this race. Not to mention we had just a great time chatting as we ticked off the miles. It was such a great race and we finished in pretty much 2:30 on the dot!
After the race we headed back to Disneyland. We got done so quick (and were able to walk back to our hotel) that we pretty much walked into the part shortly after it opened!
It's tradition...gotta take our pictures with our medals in front of the castle!
We rode our E ticket attractions today! Indiana Jones and Hyperspace Mountain galore! We also made our way to the Launch Bay again and we ran into Boba Fett!
Apparently I look like a spy that he needs to take back to Jabba the Hut.
Our second way through Hyperspace Mountain!
Let me say, Hyperspace Mountain was our favorite ride the whole trip! We loved the Star Wars overlay. Going up the hill and hearing the main title theme gave me goosebumps!
The rest of the evening we relaxed and saw the last things on our list.
Dole Whip while watching the Enchanted Tiki Room? Perfection!
Then we capped off the night with watching the Paint the Night Parade and the Disneyland Forever Fireworks!
We ended up snagging a spot on Main Street right before the parade started!
These shows were my fondest memories. Watching everyone interact together with the floats (which were spectacular in themselves) was hilarious. And then we all moved into the street together to watch the fireworks. Everyone was singing and dancing together as they moved from song to song. It literally feels like you are there with thousands of your best friends!
The following morning we had to leave, but we didn't leave before hanging out with our favorite characters at Goofy's Kitchen!
Chef Pluto!!!
The character interactions took the "waffle" (get it? It's breakfast so not cake...). Dale recognized my ears to be like Pluto and he refused to take a photo with me until I took them off!
Of course, Pluto loved them!
Did I mention my favorite, gluten-free Mickey Waffles?????
Last goodbye!
Disneyland has such a special place in my heart. It was my first park as a baby and the history behind it strikes a chord in my heart. I actually like it being a smaller park. It does not lack for things to do and it feels more immersive due to the compactness of it. I prefer the Disneyland version of several rides (like Haunted Mansion, Pirates, It's a Small World, etc) as well.
It was such a fun vacation. A whirlwind for sure...and I'm fairly certain I am still on California time. But we had such a wonderful time and lots of precious memories together. I know I will certainly cherish the fun Mom and I had together for a long, long time.
But the fun doesn't have to stop here! If you want a more in depth look you can check out all the Go Pro video I got from the trip! You can watch us on Radiator Racers, going upside down on California Screamin', hanging out in Tower of Terror, our awesome Jungle Cruise Skipper and more!
Have a great rest of the day and see you real soon!
We got the amazing opportunity to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon weekend a couple weekends ago. I'm not going to go into a full trip report as you can probably jump on Pinterest or any of the Disney podcasts I referred to last week and get them from there. What I can say is that it was an amazing trip. Most people might be a bit weirded out to have a trip with your in-laws, but my mom, my mother-in-law, my sister-in-law and myself all had a blast! We got to stay in our home DVC resort, the Grand Floridian. The room was spectacular and we loved the hotel amenities. Being able to eat a fantastic dinner right on property the day we arrived was perfect. Plus, we took full advantage of the monorail to get to the races. I definitely think it's the way to go!
All of us were admiring the chocolate sculpture at Narcoosse's
The weekend in the parks was amazing too. I finally figured out the Fastpass + system (it was still in testing phase last time we visited) and we had a great time riding our favorite rides and going to EPCOT at nights before our dining reservations. I got high praise from my family on the dinners. Those ADRs are super important people!
My little sister-in-law loved sitting next to the fish during dinner at the Coral Reef Restaurant.
The best thing about this weekend was being able to run. I was so careful on this training cycle to make sure I didn't get injured...a feat the ice in Dallas made difficult! But to share a special moment with my in-laws as they crossed the finish line of their first 10K, knowing how hard they trained, was super special. Then, while my mom and I have always shared a special bond, running has taken it to a whole different world. Yet, ever since we both fell in love with racing, we hadn't actually run a race together. Mom is always so much faster than me and I have frequently had Jared to run with on Disney races as we also train together (it's just natural I guess). So this race weekend, I made it a goal to keep up with my mom...and I did! Thank goodness she slowed down (just a little bit!) as we had a really special 13.1 miles to share and encourage each other on.
Mom and I at the finish of the Half Marathon after receiving our Glass Slipper Challenge Medals!
Ironically, it was racing with my mom that caused me to have my brilliant idea.
If you travel with me, you are probably going to have to deal with me breaking out the camera and the GoPro. I have made a scrapbook for every year Jared and I have been together. First, I stared cutting out photos and pasting them into a small book with a few paper embellishments. To a certain extent, I enjoy that form of scrapbooking. But then, I was introduced to digital scrapbooking and it has transformed my methods for documenting our memories. I learned how to scan and photoshop and love the layouts I have been able to create. But there were still a couple of hurdles I was working on overcoming.
These books are expensive! Even with me uploading my layouts and waiting for a Shutterfly sale, these books can get out of my price range.
All my GoPro videos were having to be incorporated into my layouts via QR codes. Now, I need to have the scrapbook and an iPad to see everything.
With all the special moments during our vacation, I really wanted to find a way to incorporate EVERYTHING. Mom and I were discussing during the race how much video was now being added to our memory maker packages and not just photos (we had video from rides and animated characters in our magic shots). I was lamenting that I wasn't going to have as many photos and how awesome it would be to incorporate videos on my page.
Lightbulb moment!
I remembered how in my playbook for the Daily Digi Files (where I get my digital scrapbooking supplies) they have videos incorporated at the end of the book. What if there was a way to make these scrapbooks and just have an iPad to view them?
So, after two weeks of research and work, I have finished my first ever e-scrapbook! It documents all we did over the weekend in almost 40 pages of photos and videos. I have uploaded a sample of it (not the whole book) for you to check out if you would like. It's an iBook file so you will need to have iBooks to check it out. Over the next few blog posts, I'll explain how I created it!
Last time I talked about my costumes that I have been preparing for my Princess Half Marathon Glass Slipper Challenge! I am running the half marathon part of this race with my mom, and so we decided to go as Queen Elinor and Merida!
Both costumes, flat
Details of my belt!
Mom's belt, secured with velcro!
Details of mom's crown!
These costumes make me really happy! Again, found some $5 clearance shirts at Walmart. They were actually bright lime green. So I had to buy some dye to make them the darker green I wanted. Then I sewed on the gold trim and made the sparkle skirts (who can run a princess race without a sparkle skirt???).
I really wanted to ad a few touches to make these costumes obvious to who we were supposed to be without a ton of weight and extra friction! So I saw Queen Elinor had a belt and crown. So I made a Velcro belt out of the streachy sparkle fabric and a felt crown that can pin to my mom's visor as she runs. I ran with a Captain America Sheild for the Disneyland half last summer, so bigger props are not as big a deal for me. So in addition to my belt and family crest (which I made out of felt) my husband is making me a fake bow to carry out of lightweight PVC! That's true love!
Really excited about this race. I'm really happy to have something to train for over the next few weeks and a fun trip to look forward to. I hit post marathon blues really hard last year. Add in cold and dark weather, and it was an uphill battle for me emotionally until March. So here's to running endorphins and family to share the experience with!
I have been breaking out the scrapbooks and home videos lately as the anniversary of my first marathon is coming up here in another week. I remember all the hard training runs, the research and the questions I asked of my sanity while I spent a year and a half training for this race. However, I still have very fond memories of my race through Disney. If you would like to see it, check out my video below!
I'm wishing everyone who is running this year lots of love and hopes for a very special and fun day!
Meanwhile, I am preparing for my own very special race in mid-Febuary...the Glass Slipper Challenge at Princess Half Marathon Weekend! I'm very excited as I am actually going to run the 10K with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law. It's their first 10K! I got to run the Houston Turkey Trot with my sister-in-law this past Thanksgiving, and it was so much fun!
So for the 10K we all four of us are picking our favorite princesses and I chose Rapunzel! I found a $5 clearance running shirt at Walmart. Then I broke out the sewing machine and added some cute little touches that helped turn this shirt into my favorite running costume piece I've made so far! The lace and gold trim was a bit difficult to sew on all together, but I think it turned out really well!
Add in some hair clips I made with flowers, a braid and pascal...and I'm set! I'm still debating on taking a frying pan with me. I'm wondering if TSA will give me a hard time about it on my carry on!
I'll go over my costume for the half marathon on the next blog!
I knew it had been a while since I posted. But I didn't know it had been THIS long!
Also late, is my post about our recent trip and race in Washington D.C.! Mom and I had a blast touring and racing. I PRed by 8.5 minutes on a gorgeous course. The race was really well run. But don't take my word for it. See for yourself!
Hello everyone! Yesterday I had the most amazing time racing with my parents at the Plano Balloon Festival! You can relive my race with me in the video below!
It was a great race. Several things factored into making it my best race ever:
1) We had our first cold front move in through Texas! The morning was just cold enough without too much rise in the heat at the end of the race. My hard training this summer in the heat really helped me be able to push hard in the ladder miles so that I was hitting negative splits. My last mile was my fastest!
2) I was racing with my family! Dad and I passed each other a ton and ran the middle of the race together. He was staying steady while I was having my middle-of-the-race slump and he kept pushing me to keep my pace up!
3) I worked on my speed. This training cycle, I spent one run a week working specifically on speed. I worked on pushing my lactate threshold back as well as learning to run on tired legs. I think working on my fast finish training runs really gave me the "umph" I needed at the end!
4) I learned from my last race to not drink as much water! All the sloshing around in my stomach was causing me cramps. Also, I remembered to fuel early and often. I didn't hit the wall in this race because I found Cliff Shot Blocks (which I love so much) to fuel my race!
5) I have the best family and friends! The constant cheering from my Nike +, the love I knew I had during training and the promise of getting to Skype with Jared at the end really contributed to the race day magic. Thank you so much for your support and love for me as I have gone through this journey!
6) The last, yet probably most important, was the special time with God I have gotten during my training. I have had moments where I have just been able to worship him during my runs and unplug long enough to spend quality time with him. You might think I'm weird, but it's true. God has shown me through running I am more capable than I thought and can do more than I could have ever imagined. He doesn't put limits on how he can use me, I do.
Put this all together and I was able to run the entire 13.1 miles without walking, a feat I have never accomplished before. Even on my previous long runs, I take numerous walk breaks to drink Gatorade or eat. Not this time! I ran and ate and everything! I felt so good, so prepped, that when I slowed to drink a tiny sip of water at mile 12, my legs were like, "What's this walking thing you speak of? We don't like it!" I hit my pace goal of being in the vicinity of two and a half hours with a final time of 2:33. I think I could have gotten a faster time if I would have really been serious about running the tangents.
But you know, that's learning for the next race. :)
