Claire’s Minnie Mouse Birthday Party
We celebrated Claire’s 3rd birthday on Saturday. I ran out of time, so I was missing some of the decorations I had planned… like the water bottle labels and food labels. But oh well. I still pulled it off– even if I was in jeggings and a tank top and decorating cupcakes when people started showing up.
The wreath… well worth the full days worth of work, I think!
The banner.. I didn’t get a picture once all the food was set out.
Thank goodness I got a picture of these and the cake. These ended up falling during Claire opening her presents and breaking the 3 off the cake. So sad.
Cupcakes.. not as decorated as I would have liked. Oh well.
In case you weren’t sure who Becca was that I always talk about– she’s my second husband and my personal stylist. (and of course a sleeping baby Avery)
Claire thoroughly enjoyed her 3rd birthday party… I thought it was a hit and my best party yet! Even if my time management skills were lacking. I’ll blame it on UPS and my husband working until noon. 
The Disney Playlist
Apparently some of you out there actually dug my obsessiveness over Disney and wanted to hear my playlist. So, I’m gonna give it to you, just not in list form.
If you follow me on Twitter, then you know how obsessive I was over this playlist. It HAD to be perfect. Because it was going to be my only friend for almost 3 hours–I totally had conversations with the singers and may or may not have yelled and sung lyrics under my breath. Apologies to you if you were running next to me at those points.
The Black Eyed Peas had a feelin’– they wanted me to live it up, and jump out that sofa and get it crunk. DMB would’ve dug a hole all the way to China, unless of course they were there, then they would dig their way home because I am their Dreamgirl. I wasn’t settlin’ for less than everything with Sugarland. Beyonce and myself were up in da club, just broke up, and doing our own little thang because we are Single Ladies. (Not really, but that’s how the song goes.) Rihanna taught me that I may be bad but I’m perfectly good at it. She’s a little too into the S&M for me. AC/DC wanted me to get Thunderstruck. Bruno Mars told me to just say run, run, runaway, runaway baby-which I did. Lady GaGa was quite inspirational– she told me there was nothing wrong with lovin’ who I was, ’cause I am beautiful the way I am, ’cause God makes no mistakes- I was just Born This Way. Glee was quite inspirational is Disney– they do love me, River Deep, Mountain High. Glee told me to run for my mother, run for my father, run for my sister, for my children and my brother because the Dog Days Are Over. They also told me that I needed some TLC cause I was a P.Y.T. They wanted me to Forget You cause the change in my pocket wasn’t enough, but I just couldn’t do it. My love was Ke$ha’s drug. Tom Petty rescued me with You Wreck Me and informed me to Run Down My Dream that never would come to me. Pink wanted me to Raise my Glass ’cause we’re gonna lose our minds tonight. Miranda Lambert was giving up on love, cause love’s giving up on her. Eminem wanted to know if I had one shot to seize everything that I ever wanted in one moment, would I capture it? Yes, I will, just don’t Lose Yourself, Marshall! I will be Bulletproof next time, just for you La Roux!! I should have Evacuated the Dancefloor, Cascada style, ’cause I was infected by the sound. I had that glitter on my eyes, stockings ripped up the side- Ke$ha style. Carrie wanted me to know about a good time Cowboy Casanova and wanted me to Undo It. I also needed to Pump It because BEP be reppin’ it. Flo Rida was spinnin’ my head right round- from the top of pole, he had me throwin’ my money around. Taio Cruz came to dance, hit the floor cuz that his plans, and wearing all his favorite brands– only because he is Dynamite. B.o.B. wanted me to pretend that the airplanes in the night sky are like shooting stars, because they could really use a wish right now. Jay-Z and crew told me that victories are within the mile… Life’s a game and it’s not fair, but Rihanna breaks the rules, so she doesn’t care- Who’s Gonna Run This Town Tonight?? I pulled out a Forrest Gump favorite, whenever I was Running On Empty- Jackson Browne style. Stevie Wonder was wondering about the writing on the wall, because he’s very Superstitious. Jason Mraz wanted me to throw away any work to be done and let the music play on because we are going to party All Night Long. And let us not forget that Eminem is who got me across that finish line. cause sometimes you feel weak, and you gotta look in you and find that inner strength. You know, til the roof comes off, til the lights go out, til my legs give out, can’t check my mouth, cause I’m gone rip this **** til my bones come out.
Yes I realize that was weird. I pulled my favorite lines out of each song. Here is real playlist.
1. I Gotta Feeling –BEP
2. Dreamgirl– Dave Matthews
3. Settlin’–Sugarland
4. Single Ladies- Beyonce
5. S&M- Rihanna
6. Thunderstruck– AC/DV
7. Runaway Baby– Bruno Mars
8. Born This Way- Lady GaGa
9. River Deep, Mountain High– Glee
10. Your Love is My Drug- Ke$ha
11. You Wreck Me-Tom Petty
12. Raise Your Glass- Pink
13. Kerosene- Miranda Lambert
14. Lose Yourself- Eminem
15. Bulletproof- La Roux
16. Evacuate the Dancefloor–Cascada
17. We R Who We R-Ke$ha
18. Undo It- Carrie Underwood
19. Pump It- BEP
20. Cowboy Casanova- Carrie Underwood
21. Right Round- Flo Ride
22. Dynamite- Taio Cruz
23. Airplanes- B.o.B.
24. Dog Days Are Over- Glee
25. ‘Till I Collapse- Eminem
26. Run This Town- Jay-Z, Rihanna, Kayne
27. P.Y.T.- Glee
28. Running Down a Dream- Tom Petty
29. Running on Empty-Jackson Browne
30. Superstition- Stevie Wonder
31. Forget You- Glee
32. All Night Long- Jason Mraz
Disney 2011
Hey, remember that time I went to Disney and then I couldn’t stop talking about it and bombarding the blog with thousands of pictures? Yeah.. me neither.
Hey, remember that time I went to Disney and forgot a Compact Flash card for my camera? Yeah. Me neither. Luckily, my mother in law brought an extra card. Let’s keep in mind that I shoot RAW normally. Let’s also keep in mind that the spare card was 512MB. Normally my cards are 4GB, and that evens out to about 200 RAW pictures. So.. I had to shoot in JPEG. Which I am not used to. And I also had to be careful with what I took pictures of. There was no room on the card for bad pictures. Which, in the end, I was thought, “Hey, I can only take around 100 pictures, which cuts down on editing time!” But then.. I forgot I came with my step-dad. Who is a paparazzi. And doesn’t delete pictures. And who burned me a disc and turned my 89 pictures into over 1,000 pictures. Insert panic attack over editing here.
Moving on…
So, we went to the Magic Kingdom on Wednesday afternoon after we got to Orlando. I had visions of a wonderful family picture in front of the park.. yeah. That didn’t happen. Addison didn’t want to take a picture with me.
The park wasn’t that busy, but everything we wanted to do, we couldn’t, it seemed like. Rapunzel? The line was 2 hours long. Princess Tiana? Wasn’t out taking pictures. So, off the teacups, it was!
My step-dad, Bill and myself, ready for the teacups!
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| Addison looking into the wishing well outside the castle |
We ate dinner at Tony’s and then rode the train around the park.
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We watched a little bit of the Electrical Parade.. Super cool stuff!
We ended the night late with both girls passed out from exhaustion. But, the next morning, we were having breakfast at the castle!!
You walk into the castle and Cinderella was there to greet us. Watching Claire was adorable. She was so excited! She just kept touching Cinderella’s dress and when it was time for us to go upstairs to eat, she just kept staring at Cinderella.
We saw Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Belle, and Jasmine at breakfast. The food was really good and it was definitely worth the price tag to see my little girls. Claire wanted to follow Sleeping Beauty around.
Once we got outside, The Fairy Godmother was outside the castle! Claire was so excited to see her too! But when The Fairy Godmother took her autograph book, C sat down and screamed, “NO!” Only my daughter would tell her Fairy Godmother “No.”
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| I promise Addison was more excited than this picture shows |
We tried to go see Rapunzel again, but her line was an hour and a half at 9:30, so we sent John to stand in line for Princess Tiana. Score! We were third person in line when they got there.
The princesses loved them! Claire gave Prince Navine a kiss on the cheek and just kept hugging them.
They were probably one of my favorites. Navine sounded JUST like in the movie and they stayed in character and kind of bantered back and forth!
We left the Magic Kingdom and went to Epcot for the day. We rode the Nemo ride, did Turtle Talk with Crush and tried to go find Alice and Mary Poppins for the girls… they weren’t around when they were supposed to be, and hadn’t been out all day. Don’t know what was up with that.
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| While we waited for Turtle Talk, Addison wanted to sing a duet.. “Fire”– the Glee version |
They had these amazing topiaries out of the characters all around the park.
I visited the UK.. and got in a phone booth- I’ve always wanted to do that! Yes, I am super cheesy.
We ate lunch in Japan and then headed over to the Mickey and Friends line.. Claire hated waiting in line, but once she saw Mickey, she was sold. She would run to the characters and even cut in line. It was funny to watch the difference in how Addison was petrified of them and Claire runs over people to get to them.
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| Giving Donald a kiss
John, Mom, Bill and I rode Soarin’… Wow. Everyone must ride that ride! So awesome! |
We called it an early day at the park and headed over the Downtown Disney to shop and eat at the Rainforest Cafe. The girls hated the animals and the rain storms that happen about every 30 minutes.
Friday, MeMac and Poppy and the girls went to the pool while the rest of us went to Universal Studios.
We talked Mom into riding The Hulk rollercoaster.. she loved it!!!
Of course we were there for one thing.. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
Oh, I was in nerdy nerdy Heaven.
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| The Hogwarts Express |
They did a fantastic job with everything. I honestly wanted my Hogwarts robes and my wand and wanted to go to Potions class or something.
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| Honeydukes!!! They really had Chocolate Frogs and Bertie’s Box of Beans! |
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| “I wanna go to Hogwarts” |
We waited in an extremely long line for the “Forbidden Journey” but MAN OH MAN, was it worth it!! That ride is fabulous! It’s inside the castle and the line wraps through the greenhouse, the dungeons, past the Fat Lady– and the pictures really talk and move! And finally, we got to go through Dumbledore’s office. Seriously awesome.
After the ride, we headed down the another long line for a butterbeer! Y’all.. seriously delicious!! Definitely worth the $11 it cost per butterbeer. Yes, you read that right. $11.
We did the Hippogriff ride and it was fun! Then we headed out of the park through the Dr Seuss area.
We ate lunch at Bubba Gump and it was SO GOOD!! Seriously.
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| Hi. I’m weird and don’t know how to pose for pictures. |
Saturday we headed to Hollywood Studios. I, of course, donned a crown. My Princess race was the next day.. I had to get in character!
Claire was excited and ready to go!
We talked Mom into riding the Aerosmith Rockin Rollercoaster.. I wish I could ride it right now. 
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| I love Fantasia! |
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| No one rode the Tower of Terror.. they had scaffolding all around it.. No thanks. |
We rode the Backlot Tour and Addison didn’t care for it.
We ate lunch at the 50′s Prime Time Diner and it was delicious but I had to cut my time short so I could go meet the Princess Media Group.
I really love Disney. I wish I could live there. I promise not to talk about it anymore. Unless, perhaps, you might want to see my playlist for the race?
Disney Princess Media Event Re-cap
Sometimes, while I am over tweeting about my life, something magical falls right into my lap because of it. (Hello? Flash Mob anyone??) The same is true for the Disney Princess Media Event. I was contacted through Twitter about this amazing event. At the time, I had no idea what it was, that it was for the Princess runners, and since I triple puffy heart Disney, I may or may not have done a happy dance about being a part of anything Disney related.
Let me tell you, Disney did NOT disappoint. Since my plans involved my family and staying at a different resort from the rest of the group, I was picked up and taken to meet everyone at the Polynesian Resort. Wow. Oh wow. I’ve never been inside of this hotel, but it was like stepping into another world. Beautiful lobby, complete with ladies handing out lais at the door.
I was introduced to everyone and quickly realized that I was in the presence of some of my running blog idols. To say I was starstruck, was the absolute least.
We boarded our own bus, which had all kinds of yummy snacks and water and were taken to ESPN’s Wide World of Sports for a private tour and a little shopping at the Expo.
We had a welcome dinner with Ethan Zohn and Jenna Morasca from Survivor. Then, we received a pep talk from the amazing Jeff Galloway. He is super nice and answered questions from us.
We also had a special guest join us… Minnie Mouse!
We were taken to a wonderful dinner at Mama Melrose’s at Hollywood Studios.. and man, oh man, was it delicious. The conversation was awesome, as well. I also realized that Selfish Mom and myself had sat across from each other at Blissdom too– how awesome is that??
I was dropped off back my hotel and found a wonderful surprise from one the most awesome friends in the world.
If you don’t know about Sherri’s Berries.. you are missing out!! They were delicious pre-race and post race. Thanks Becca!!!
The Media tent didn’t disappoint for race day either.. private bathrooms, danishes, prime seating for the finish line– you can’t get much better treatment than that. After the race, there was a brunch and lots of great conversation!
I had to part ways early to catch my flight, but I am sad to say that I missed out on an awesome Sunday afternoon. The rest of the crew watched the Braves vs Mets game then went over to Disney’s Palm Golf Course and had a golf lesson followed by a presentation by Chef Gary Jones. They ended the night with a special dinner at Bistro de Paris in Epcot and watched the Illuminations Fireworks Show. I mean, I don’t think it can get much better than that.
Well played, Disney, well played. I am not sure if I can go back to being a regular Disney runner now. I am spoiled.
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| I stole this picture from AskWifey |
Do you see the running greatness?? Ask Wifey, Long Legs on the Loose, Run Faster Mommy, Running with Babes, CutieBootyCakes
I seriously had an amazing time. Thank you so much for including me in this awesome bunch!
2011 Disney Princess Half Marathon Re-Cap
I decided to go ahead and just do the actual Race Re-cap before I went through the entire trip.. I must warn you, if you hate pictures, running, or Disney then you will hate this post.
Disney really does a race right. Except for the fact they start so dang early. The alarm went off at 3:00. I was on a bus by 3:30, and made it to the Media tent- which was awesome. We stayed there for a little bit, and I got to use a line-free bathroom! Win! Snapped a pic of the outfit before hand- had to wear the flash mob gloves and ended up adding a houndstooth ribbon to the pony since Natalie couldn’t believe I didn’t have anything Bama in my outfit.
This is the video I took… iMovie was hating me this morning and wouldn’t let me add pictures, so there are no pictures.. sorry. Kind of makes it a crappy video.
Mile Marker 1.. yes, every mile is marked with these.. no I didn’t take pictures of every one of them. Just most.
The Princes’.. didn’t want to wait in that line.
Running through the toll area of the Magic Kingdom
The Nascar Experience- didn’t stop there either.
I’m proud to say, I ran up this hill.. but it was about the only one.
Beautiful sunrise!!!! This is also where I tripped up some girl by accident.. sorry lady. Yes, I did hear you complaining about me to your friend. Get over it.
Ahh… yes! This is was so crowded.. you couldn’t even run.
What up, Buzz???
Yes, I waited in a long line for Alice.. and I paused my Garmin while I did it.
Also waited in line for Jesse.. and look like I am doing the pee pee dance.
My Fairy Godmothers.. You better believe I stood in this line!
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Golf Course… took this just for Pa Bill!
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I would like to say, that the first half of this race was incredible. I was running, only walking to take a picture or wait in line. Coming through the Magic Kingdom was an amazing feeling to still feel so freaking good. It started to go downhill on the backside of the course. It was crowded and we were down to one lane of runners. It was difficult to pass people and I was pretty much at the mercy of the runner in front of me. My hips started feeling achy and I tried to stop and stretch them, but honestly couldn’t figure out a good stretch for them, as they don’t normally hurt.
Fire Fighters… just for me!
Twizzler.. also just for me. It happens to be my favorite candy.
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| I feel bad for the randoms in all my mile marker pictures.. but, what are you gonna do? |
Goofy!
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Not sure if you can see the sea of woman running down the two line. Just glad all those women are behind me!
Coming up the entrance ramp and the incline and curve really made my knee starting talking to me. It started cramping on the backside, not really hamstring or calf, but somewhere in between, and that minicus area started hurting pretty bad. Like, I was hobbling at points through the race.
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| Victories within the mile… |
John, Addison and Claire met me before the entrance of Epcot to give me a kiss and it was a great mental boost and what probably helped contribute to me not collapsing.
As we started out of Epcot, I honestly thought I was going to collapse. That my legs were just going to give out on me and I would end up on the ground. I just hoped that I wouldn’t break my phone if it happened. The band singing GaGa didn’t help me. Nor did the Gospel Choir, which I was looking forward to. I turned up my music to drown out all sounds and concentrated on the words. I found it very fitting that my last song was “Til I Collapse” by Eminem. As I rounded the last corner and saw the finish line, I gave it everything I had in me. I sprinted. Not a fast paced run. I was hauling a** across the finish line, weaving in and out of people. My chest started hurting but I didn’t care, the faster I ran, the sooner I could get to the medical tent. I was so out of it after I crossed the finish line, I almost forget my freaking medal.
Luckily, my MIL snapped some pics of me crossing… I am in some serious freaking pain and I think you can tell.
After getting my knees wrapped in ice and telling John I was headed to medical, which I think kind of freaked him out, I headed back to the Media tent… a nice Mimosa was what greeted me. Probably not the best first drink after 13.1 miles, but I definitely thought I deserved it.
I stopped and chatted with my fellow Princess Media runners, but split so I could head back to the room to lay down and try to rest my body. I was done. I could hardly celebrate with the fam. I was exhausted, mentally and physically.
I haven’t ever felt like I did Sunday after a race. Like I couldn’t have taken another step if my life depended on it. And, I was mad, people. I tried to conserve my energy for the back half of the course so I took it easy in the beginning. Which, hindsight- I would’ve pushed myself more in the beginning, because my body started falling apart on me on the back half and wouldn’t go any faster. I was slightly depressed Sunday afternoon. I couldn’t be happy about crossing the finish line. I had to analyze what I did and what I could do to improve it.
Anyway, I am better today. But I am looking at another half at the end of April.. I gotta get a redemption race in! This race just doesn’t settle with me and I have got to erase it. It ticks me off to have a horrible second half of a race in a magical place like Disney. I guess I have officially been sucked into competition with myself.
I cannot say enough about how organized and generally awesome Disney is with their races. This is my second one and they really pull out some stops. It didn’t hurt to be a part of the Media group and get some special treatment, but I will tell you more about that later– trust me, you will be jealous!
Disney Trivia- Ray Ray Style
Alright. I am a freak. I freaking love Disney. I am just as excited, if not more to be traveling to Disney today, and as you read this, I am currently en route. So, I thought I would lend you some of my Disney knowledge and tidbits and useless facts.
Did you know that Disney World recycles all the human wastes from the hotels and parks? They do! I won’t go into the details, but it’s used to either water the grass or fertilize the tree farms. If you see a sign that says, “This is not drinking water!”- believe it!
If someone is hurt in the park and needs medical attention, a cast member requests an Alpha Unit.
Did you know that vomit is called a protein spill in Disney?
When they were building the Tower of Terror, it was actually supposed to be much taller, but they would have had to add a blinking light on the top for planes, and Disney thought it would ruin the effect, so they built it under the height requirement.
Walt Disney World covers 47 square miles, which equals the size of two Manhattan Islands. Of the 30,000 acres, only one-fourth has been developed, with the rest designated as wilderness preserve.
WDW staffs more than 54,000 employees. Which makes Disney World Resort, the largest single-site employer in the US.
More than 50 million Cokes are consumed each year at WDW.
The Lost and Found is crazy busy. An average of 100 pairs of sunglasses are turned in every day at the Magic Kingdom alone.
If you wanted to stay in every guest room in every resort currently open at WDW, staying in one room per night, it would take more than 72 years.
Space Mountain and Thunder Mountain move at 26 mph, making the Monorail the fastest ride at Disney, until Test Track was installed at Epcot.
Cinderella’s castle is NOT made of stone. It’s actually fiberglass.
Children are never lost in Disney. It’s the parents who are lost!
For every 3 trees you see in the parks, there is one in a tree farm that is the exact same size in case they need to be replaced over night from a storm or any damage.
Every night, Cast Members spray the sidewalks with 120 degree water to melt away any gum.
Here is my Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella movie knowledge that I figured out by having watched them 100+ times.
Eleanor Audley did the voices for both Maleficent and Lady Tremaine. And Verna Felton did the voices for both the Fairy Godmother and Flora( the red fairy).
Hope y’all enjoyed!
Oh, and if you want to track my race, Click HERE and my name is Rachel McPhillips. They will send you text message updates on my progress.
I would also like to dedicate my race to my Dad.. since he will have to be there in spirit and there is nothing like a congratulatory hug from you Dad after you cross a finish line!
The Challenge is set…
Alright. I’ve gone and done it again. I have officially signed up for the Disney Princess Half Marathon at the end of February. I am so stoked. I truly love this race. To think about it, totally takes me off guard and almost brings tears to my eyes and the actuality of the accomplishment. My goal this year? To run the whole damn thing. Only stopping to pee, poop, or take a pictures with a princess. WALKING IS NOT ALLOWED.
That’s right. You heard it. Absolutely no walking. I am going to follow a training plan. It starts December 1st. By that time, I need to be able to comfortably run 3-6 miles on a regular basis.
I want to sub 2:45… I have hefty goals for this race. I do not want to have to tell people, “Oh, I didn’t run the whole thing.” I want to say, “Yeah, I ran the whole damn thing.”
I got up this morning, at 5 am… (YES, I FINALLY DID IT!!) I really didn’t want to, but I made myself. And I ran/walked 2 miles… I didn’t pick the best spot to run in the dark. I parked in the Warehouse District here and ran down around the high school and back. It was right at 2 miles. But, There aren’t a lot of sidewalks around there, and a lot of the ones that are, are all jacked up and with crazy overhanging trees that I had to duck under. Also? A good amount of people out! I saw numerous cars, several walkers, a couple of runners, and the CHS track team was getting ready for a run. Crazy.
I am trying my hardest to talk my best friend, Becca, into doing it with me. The feeling of accomplishment is like no other, when you do something that you thought you never could. I don’t want to do this by myself again. I really want a running buddy, but I’ll be okay without one.
Is anyone out there planning to do it??
Disney World 2010 with a half-marathon twist!
Disney World was a blast this year!! Now get ready for a long story and a LOT of pictures!
We had a pretty good flight… Addison was a little iffy at times, but overall did really well. That may or may not be due to the fact that she fell asleep. We were supposed to take the Disney Magical Express to the hotel since we were staying the resort and lots of wondering around the Orlando Airport later found us in about a line with about a two hour wait to sign in to get on the Magical Express. We quickly decided that a taxi ride was in our best interest. We got the hotel( we stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside). Went to the room, got our bags and headed to the Wide World of Sports where the Expo was for me to pick up my packet and get my race info.
This was right before Addison shook up her drink and it spewed all over the place.
The entrance for the Expo… this is where I will tell you that the hotels had no idea what was going on with the Expo and they told us that there weren’t any buses going from the host resorts to the Expo.. you had to go to other places and get on other buses to get there… not cool. But, we happened to ask a bus driver and he informed us, that YES there were buses going from our resort to the Expo…
The entrance to the Expo
Mom walking into the Magic Kingdom for the first time
Of course we walked into the park when a parade was going on… Don’t BoomPa, GiGi, and Nana look excited to be here?
John, Dad, and I went and rode Space Mountain first and Dad lost his sun glasses.. he was a little bitter about it. We went and ate at Tony’s Italian Restaurant for a lupper, and then went to see Princesses.
Waiting in line for Ariel
Me and Mom
BoomPa and Gigi
I’m not gonna lie.. this Ariel was a little scary looking.
Then we went to see the PhilharMagic which was awesome!
And rode the carousel
And then watched Wishes… can I talk about how cold it was? It was COLD.
P.S. This picture is so freaky I had to share it with you… Look at the ghost man!
Beautiful sunrise on Saturday Morning!
We went to Hollywood Studios on Saturday
Me and Minnie Mouse… Addison and Minnie’s pictures disappeared from this post…
Me and Mickey
Mom and Minnie
Addison watching the High School Musical parade
We ate lunch at the 50′s diner which was awesome! P.S. Order the pot roast.
Dad trying his hand at photography
Delicious onion rings!
We ate dinner at the Rainforest Cafe at Downtown Disney.. somehow Karen worked her magic and got us seated right away, I think wait was somewhere around an hour or longer… she wouldn’t share her secret. This was how we felt about Addison during dinner… She ended up not eating and passing out on John.
Sunday was race day. I had to wake up at 3:30 am and get ready to get on a bus at 4 am. EARLY. It was probably in the 30′s when I was waiting outside. It was COLD. I ended up taking John’s windpants from the 90′s to wear to the race and I was SO glad to have them. I wore those pants, a long sleeve t-shirt and a sweat shirt over my race outfit. We got dropped off around 4:15 or so and I waited in line for a port-a- potty for 20 minutes or so. I had to drop off my bag of crap and said goodbye to my sweatshirt and John’s windpants and was super sad about it. I kept the long sleeve t-shirt with me. We then had to walk another 20 minutes or so to our corrals. There were 5 different corrals which had different start times. There were over 13,000 people registered for the race. I was in corral D which meant I started around 6:18. My legs were so cold they were numb. My joints were numb. I don’t think I mentioned that I had almost completely lost my voice and sounded like a 12 year old boy going through puberty. Our fairy godmother was there to start the race and they did a fireworks start for every corral. It was a sea of people. I couldn’t really start running until mile 2 or so because there were SO many people, but I couldn’t feel my legs moving anyway. There were port-a-pottys about every 1/2 mile or so, and there was always a line! We ran the four lane headed into the Magic Kingdom. Between miles 3 and 4 I stopped and took off the long sleeve t-shirt and tied it around my waist. I didn’t want to just toss it if it wasn’t going to bother me. The family was at the Magic Kingdom waiting for me and I gotta tell you, it was so awesome running through there! I must say that they had characters about every mile and you could stop and get your picture taken with them. I didn’t take a camera and was super sad about it. I saw everyone you could imagine!
The guy with the spiky hair ran in a blue tutu. He passed me about mile 2 and John said he came through the Magic Kingdom a good 45 minutes before I did.
Hey look!!! Here I am!!!
I wanted to stop and talk, but there were too many people in my way to get over to the side.
I wasn’t able to run as fast as normal, A- because of all the people and B- my legs were so numb I couldn’t feel them . I hit the wall around mile 8. It was so weird. Mentally, I was fine through the whole race. I knew I could do it, because, I am going to honest, there were some women in there that looked like they hadn’t ever ran a day in their life. But, my legs wanted to run away from my body. My hips ached, my knees ached, my ankles ached. My neck muscles were so tight. I stopped and got some Bio-Freeze for my knees a couple of times and that seemed to help. I stopped and got a couple of Clif Shots and those seemed to help. I also stopped and stretched and that felt amazing!!! Mile 8-10 were on a 4 lane headed out of the park and there were TONS of people coming through the other way since the parks were opening. They would honk and stuff. Don’t you know there were thinking, “What the crap are all those women doing running in tiaras and tutus?” Mile 12 was through Epcot and it was the hardest one. There wasn’t a big running area and the park was open, so people where trying to get places, but also there were a lot of people cheering us on! It weaved a lot too. Knowing how close I was was always an inspiration. I was hurting all over, but tried to give myself that physical push. As I saw the finish line, I was looking for my family. I wanted to be able to see them. My dad and Karen were the first I saw of the group and I’m going to be honest, I teared up. I didn’t run the whole way, was way past the time I wanted to finish in, but I did it and not a lot of people can say that. I ran 13.1 miles and have lived to tell the tale. I missed the medical tent with the ice and I could have definitely used some. My mom was the first person I spotted after the finish line, when they were coming to see me. I was proud that she got to see me do it. I was surprised she actually came because she hasn’t been that supportive of the running. Karen has probably been my biggest cheerleader about it. The first thing Addison said was that I didn’t wear the shorts that she picked out. I guess you can’t please everybody!
Minnie and Mickey at the finish line!
How cute are these girls? Who’s with me for next year?
What about this guy? He passed me at some point. The back of his shirt said “Running 13.1 miles for a kiss from a Princess.”
Oh look! There’s me!
All in all, it was an awesome first half marathon. I would totally do it again. I am already thinking of my next one… maybe Nashville at the end of April?
I gotta tell you this awesome story. Before the race, they showed a girl would had broken her ankle and couldn’t run. They let her husband, who was in the Army, run for her. He ran in his Army fatigues with a sign on his back that said he was running for his injured Princess.
Also, something else I must share. There were 3 men to cross the finish line before any women did. I think that is super tacky, as it was a Princess race and no men got a medal of any kind. Most men were running with their wives. Stay with your wife and let a woman cross first!!!
After the race, we went back to the room and I showered and told my muscles and joints how sorry I was. Then we headed back to the Magic Kingdom. We headed to see TinkerBell.
Addison and Tink.
Addison was scared of Terrence, but I wasn’t!
Me and Addison in Minnie Mouse’s house.
John and I rode Splash Mountain, and the Big Thunder Railroad and I gotta say, that may have been my last Splash Mountain. The water was COLD and I got soaking wet. Not a fan.
John and Addison getting some candy before we left.
Monday, I felt and looked like an old lady walking around, but it was totally worth it. I’m ready to do it again. So, I think I can officially call myself a runner and say I am quite addicted. A BIG Thank You to all of you who supported me, tracked my progress online, and all of your well wishes. It is an accomplishment, but I think with running there is always a longer race or a faster time. I wanted to finish sub 2:45, but my official time was 3:04:58. I was 8237 out of like 11,000 finishers. A full hour ahead of dead last. I finished!!!
Nervous Energy…
NERVOUS.
Seriously. NERVOUS.
We leave for Disney on Friday. I know, I haven’t talked a LOT about this trip, because I am honestly scared. It’s my half marathon. IN 4 DAYS!!! I feel ready, but not. I am scared for how my body is going to react. Am I going to be able to finish? I KNOW it’s okay to walk, but I REALLY want to be able to keep those feetsies movin‘ to light jog, if I need to slow down. I ended up getting sick late last week and didn’t get in my 10 mile run and had to get a steroid shot to help get over my cold. So.. I am not 100%, but am getting there. My ears a still a little stopped up. My shins are bothering me a little bit, but lots of stretching and ice seem to help a LOT. How is my body going to react if I hit a wall? Should I carry a towel of some sort for sweat? Do I even want to mess with the Nike + system because the arm band makes my arm sweat and I hate that. Am I going to be too cold in a t-shirt and shorts? Should I try to get a running jacket or a long sleeve shirt? Am I even going to feel like being at Disney afterwards? Am I a crazy person? See.. lots of questions!! What do I need to do post race for myself?
So, since I have a TON of nervous energy, it means stuff around here is getting done. The stuff that no one else cares about. Like bow holders and hanging stuff up. Like, I want to repaint the hall to our bedroom.
So, I finally made the girls bow holders last night…
This is Claire’s…
I started with a blank canvas, since I always have those lying around, you could probably do some MDF board though.
I hot glued the edges around the back side of the canvas, but I would have rather done a staple gun, but was out of staples.
Folded the corners down and glued those.
Then I took coordinating ribbon and measured them out about 3 inches apart and hot glued those as well.
While I was at it, I hung up a bunch of stuff that I have had since before Claire was born. My friend Mal made the canvas for Claire.. How cute is that?? The picture frame and cross are from my sister. I know she will be happy to finally see something on Claire’s walls. P.S. I need a picture for the frame..
I also hung the coat rack that was from my sister in C’s closet.. oh look. The Duckie bag that was for Addison.. also from my sister. Do we think she loves my girls? I believe that answer is YES.
This is Addison’s bow holder.. she picked out the fabric herself… and she needs some stuff on the sides of it. Not sure what though…
Anyway… if any runner’s out there are reading and have some calming advice or answers to my questions, then feel free to leave it!
A Movie Date.
I realize that I have yet to blog about the holidays, but John was sick on Christmas, and I didn’t take a whole lot of pictures. BUT I wanted to share this with you. Since I am off from my job that pays bills( AKA the Pain Center) and Addison is out of school, I have wanted to soak up every little bit of cuddliness with the girls.
I have been wanting to take Addison to see The Princess and the Frog and was looking at show times yesterday. There was one at 2:50, but I worried that it would interrupt her nap time, so I didn’t say anything about it. As luck would have it, she woke up at 2:00 and was a MAJOR cranky pants, so I asked her if she wanted to go see it. We had a mini battle over clothing but she scooped up her drink and her Princess Tiana doll and was good. We dropped Claire-bear off at MeMac’s house and off the the “movie show” ( that’s what Addy calls it) we went. We got there right at 2:50, which was good b/c I didn’t want to try to wrestle her too much before the movie. She wanted to sit in my lap and was immediately entranced in the previews.( Which, by the way, Disney had way too many of. HELLO? Everyone seeing this movie is under the age of 10, so let’s keep the previews under 25 minutes.. Thank You!) There weren’t a lot of people in the theatre which was good b/c she kept screaming out, “It’s blue!” or “Look! Disney World!” but she was in good company, because so did the other little girls. The story was very good, but had some scary parts in it. At one point, she was kind of crying and hid her face in my shoulder. What do you DO when one of the characters dies?!!!? Hello, Disney?!!? What was that about?!!? A 3 year old doesn’t understand that the bug is going to Heaven to be with his Evangeline. The music was great, but I am so glad to have this memory with her. I sat there cuddling her, as she clutched her Princess Tiana doll and watched her very first Princess movie on the big screen. She kept turning around and kissing me on the cheek and rubbing my cheek. She is so sweet and loving, most of the time. Her innocence is so incredible to watch.
My Grandmother always talks about taking me to see my first Princess movie, The Little Mermaid and how I cried and I can’t help but think, “Aww… Addison cried at her first Princess movie, too!”
The music was fantastic too! I highly recommend taking any little girl that has a Disney Princess obsession. They will love it!
