a dash and a dopey idea

What a month!  It's almost Easter and I'm wondering how I missed most of April!  Back in the beginning of this month I think I had Scot's birthday, Sun N Fun airshow in Lakeland, the Riverside Dash 15K, and our Magic Behind the Steam Trains tour at the Magic Kingdom to look forward to in the first 7 days of the month, but after all that was over the time just flew by. 

The Riverside Dash was put on by EA Sports, which has headquarters here in Maitland.  The 15K was in Sanford, along the riverfront (AKA Lake Monroe), from the hospital, down to the zoo, turned back down 17-92 and through historic downtown before ending back at the hospital.  It was an easy course and I actually blew away my previous time with a PR of 1:21:31! I was surprised when my Map My Run kept telling me my pace was around 8:44/mi, because I'm usually comfortable at around a 9:30/mi.  I was feeling good though, so aside from a 30 second porta potty break, I was able to hold that pace throughout and finished with a jumping heel kick across the finish line!  Scot had even managed to find a spot on the side of the road around mile 5 to cheer me on.  

Shiny new bling

For the 3 Disney races I've now run, I can admit I'm race-spoiled.  Although an easy route, the RD15K was boooooooooring!  No music, no entertainment, no nothing along the course.  I was left to my own thoughts and Pandora.  I can't imagine running a marathon.

More on that in a minute.

Switching gears...or tracks, I can say... I do highly recommend the Steam Trains tour at the MK.  It was an insanely early wake-up call for us (5am!), and I had to get us to the Contemporary Resort by 7 to park so we could walk to the Magic Kingdom, as Disney transportation wasn't running that early in the morning.  Scot likes his trains so we enjoyed it very much.  We got to ride backstage and see the Roundhouse where they keep the trains and monorails and learned so much about the history of trains in the parks and at Walt Disney's own home.  A lot of it I couldn't follow, the technical stuff and all, but it was still fun.  I got some good photos.

The #1 engine, the Walter E Disney, at the roundhouse

After the birthday and race stuff was over, the next thing looming on my horizon was the Passholder registration for the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend.  I'd always when I started training that I'd wanted to run a half marathon, and no was in hell was I ever interested in running a full one.  Then, watching those fools cross the finish line back in January, I started wondering if it was something even I could do.  I mean, there were waaaaay less fit people than me doing these races, surely...?

And then I decided if I were to run a marathon, I'd go all the way.

Dopey Challenge.

I've actually been downright anxious about registration day!  I knew that when I clicked that "Pay" button on active.com that there was no going back.  I was at work just finishing up a flight when registration opened.  When I clicked the link to take me to the page and it popped up, my stomach literally sank.  I took a deep breath and filled out the information.  I took many, many deep breaths and I typed in my credit card number for the $540 registration fee.  And then, in an instant, I was signed up for the Dopey Challenge.  

What is it?  Well, it's this-

I done lost my damn mind.  

I was feeling all inspired and shit after I signed up so I got up the next morning and did 13.1 on my own.  I'd run 6.2, or 10K, the previous morning so it was like re-doing my Princess Glass Slipper Challenge again.  Good news, my butt and legs were a lot less sore afterward this time.  Since I'm doing the same deal at Disneyland in August- they call it the Dumbo Double Dare, I figure I better get more comfortable with that combination so I don't, you know, DIE when I have to run a marathon the next morning.  

On that note, I think I'll go make myself a mojito.  I'm growing mint in a pot in my herb garden for EXACTLY that purpose.  True story.  

mickey ears and finery

Time for more crafts!

I found a Mickey Mouse wreath on Pintrest that I wanted to make- it was 3 grapevine wreaths tied together in your classic mouse-ear shape and decorated with white flowers and leaves. 

I set out to find my supplies- tried Hobby Lobby Holy Grail first.  Believe it or not, they didn't have anything I wanted.  The wreaths were awkward sizes and I wasn't impressed with their offerings of white flowers.  Next stop was Jo-Ann Fabrics, where I found what I needed.  I bought what was basically a reel of twisty tie wire and fashioned my ears like so:

And then it sat on the pool table/ craft table for a couple days until I found flowers I liked.  

I ended up back at Jo-Ann (after another unsuccessful Hobby Lobby attempt) and wandered around their floral section for the better part of an hour.  I didn't see anything I loved and eventually just grabbed some white carnation-looking things.  As I stood in front of a wall of white ribbon looking for the perfect accent, the realization hit me like a brick to the head.  

White is boring!

I moved down to the yellows and reds and grabbed the first roll that caught my eye- a wired glittery orange ribbon wide enough to hide the twisty ties.  I then speed-walked back to the floral section, dumped the blah white nothings and immediately grabbed some giant red and orange flowers.  I went from starting to dread this project to hardly being able to wait to get home to put it together!  Pintrest is just for inspiration, ya'll.  It doesn't have to be a copy.

When I finished, this is what I'd come up with:

All my favorite colors!  Lord help me if I ever have to work with white again.  I have so so so much love for this piece!

Here are the costs:

Jo-Ann Fabrics

Wreaths: $9 for all 3 after coupon

Twisty tie stuff: $3 

Wire ribbon: $4

Flowers: $14 after coupon

Glue gun, etc: already owned

TOTAL: $30

I probably could have done a little better with cheaper flowers and ribbon, but I bought what I loved.  If this was for sale at a Disney-related store I'm guessing it would be twice that amount so I think I done good!

Side note

We Scot and I went down to the Magic Kingdom on Sunday for Dapper Day and to see the premiere of the Festival of Fantasy Parade.  Dapper Day is a fan event for the California and Florida Parks where guest dress up in their (modern or vintage) finest, in homage to the original drawings and renderings of the first ideas for Disneyland Park.  The drawings were done back in the 50s so the people in the sketches were dressed to the nines, not like the trashy ho look people wear out in public today.  So, a fan even was started to allow people to dress up and enjoy the parks the way things would have been back in the day.  Here we are:

  

I think we look quite dapper!

if you're curious, it's www.dapperday.com for future events

running the princess half marathon: part 2 (the 13.1 mile part!)

This is Part 2 of my Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend recap.  

The training schedule I was following for this particular race had be doing a 14 mile run a couple weeks before the big weekend.  I felt like it would be silly to run 14 miles when I'm only going to run 13, so I didn't go that far.  However, to reassure myself that I actually COULD handle this thing, I did a 10K practice run, and then a 13.1 the morning after.  The 13.1 practice run took me 2 hr 7 min and I was pretty happy with that.  With that experience behind me, I was super pumped for the real race day!

After another terrible night of tossing and turning, I was relieved to get up to my 3am alarm.  Peanut butter and bread, vitamins for breakfast.  Sparkles woke up for a few foggy minutes to say goodbye and to wish me luck.  I put my kleenex, sports beans, and the free mini luna bar from the Expo in my zip belt over my Cinderella outfit, and headed down to the bus stop.

Holy cow, ya'll.  The line for the buses was ridiculous!  I eventually found the end and got in it.  2 buses were filling up, but I didn't get on either one of those.  A third bus pulled up, but I didn't make that one either.  After about a 15 minute additional wait, another bus pulled up and finally I was on my way to Epcot again!  I started talking to a gal on the bus dressed as Ariel (she had a red visor on with a crab sewed on top of her head- it was hilarious.)  Her name was Karen and as we chatted I learned this was her first Disney race- she'd come in from Maryland with her family.  We decided to stick together until corral time.  When we got off the bus, the crowd and gathering space was noticeably larger than the morning before- 24,000 people!  It was so packed we could barely move!  We inched through the crowd looking for a water station.  I could hear the warm-up DJ but never saw him.  People were all over the place!  Sitting on the ground, standing in groups, wandering, stretching, looking bewildered...oh wait, that one was me.  Finally, we passed through the bag check area and found the water station near the porta potties.  As we sipped, we discovered we were unintentionally in line for the bathroom as well.  We decided to stay put because the lines were huge!   It was 30 minutes before we got done with the bathroom line, so we started the long walk to the corrals.  The trek there was close to a 20 minute walk!  We headed down the road and parted ways at a traffic light- she was in a rear corral, I was in F.  

Side note- I was so happy to be up front- the corrals were A through P...16 total!  I didn't want to wait that long to start!  

I finally made it to my corral and worked my way up to the front.  I struck up a conversation with another Cinderella near by and enjoyed the people-watching in my new group.  A couple dressed and Olaf the Snowman and Anna from "Frozen" were right in front of us.  Pretty much every guy I saw was wearing a tutu.  Or a dress.  Come 5:30, the Fairy Godmother did a countdown and a huge burst of pink and white fireworks popped over the start zone.  There was one wheelchair racer, and he was off!  3 minutes later, Corral A started with the same firework fanfare.  My F corral moved forward quickly, and I was about to bounce of my shoes with excitement.  And I needed to find the bathroom again!  Before I knew it, we were up front!  The announcers pumped up our group, and POP BOOM!  Off we went!  I had some trouble with the Map My Run this time- it wasn't picking up the GPS signal.  I speed-walked a bit to start while screwing around with my phone.  Finally!  I started the music after I got my app working, and off I went!

Less than a mile in, there was a school band playing- horns blaring, drums beating, kids cheering.  This race had many sponsors and benefitters so there were lots of supporters from different groups cheering us on alongside the road.  About a mile in, I had to pop into one of the bathrooms, but there was no line so it was a quick stop.  After a mile or so on Epcot Center Drive, I made the turn to World Drive- the route to the Magic Kingdom!  After the turn, there were more characters with lines waaaaaay to long for me to even think about bothering with, but they did have a giant, parade-float sized pirate ship complete with Jack Sparrow and crew!  I could hear the theme music and the whole assembly was enhanced with fog and lights.  It was pretty cool looking.  Not long after that, I saw what would turn out to be one of my favorite roadside diversions- a group of about 6 people with flowy, floaty bird shaped kites on poles.  They were swirling them around in the air while the song "Go Fly A Kite" from Mary Poppins played from somewhere.  In the misty darkness it was absolutely magical!  

Mile 3 wound around the Speedway that the (formerly Richard Petty but now) Exotic Driving Experience uses.  No special effects for mist and fog here- it was starting to really get thick out there!  There were some race cars and a couple drivers on the side in the parking lot- you could hear engines revving and the music switched to variations of "Life is A Highway."  The cars from, well "Cars" were there too- Mater and whoever that red one's name is.  

I continued through the parking lot of the Ticket & Transportation center, and then followed everyone along a side access road towards the Magic Kingdom.  The entrance to Main Street USA was through a backstage area- I popped out from a gate and was greeted with a roar from the crowds!  OH MY LORD I CAN'T BELIEVE ALL THESE PEOPLE!!!  It was probably 6:30 in the morning and the sidewalks were packed!  So many people were there to watch, to cheer, to wave signs and blow noisemakers.  My hand flew over my gaping open mouth as I came in.  I turned the corner onto the main part of Main Street and had to catch my breath and will myself not to tear up as I saw Cinderella Castle, lit up with pink lights, the top obscured by the graying mist.  As I ran, I held my hand out to every high-5 and waved back to everyone's shouted words of encouragement.  The running crowd had definitely thinned, as I'd managed to make it closer to the front-runners.  I was able to comfortable navigate through Tomorrowland and around the backside of the castle.  

And then I got to run through Cinderella's Castle.

This was the part I'd been waiting for!  It wasn't crowded like I'd read in other people's accounts of this race- in fact, I felt like I was the only person on the path.  I didn't notice any of the other women.  I sailed through the tunnel and popped out to a mob of spectators and photographers.  I smiled for the cameras and then turned to watch the crowd in amazement.  I know because the photo they got of me, my mouth is open and my eyes are are big as dinner plates.  

And just like that, I was through the castle and out the backside of the park through Frontierland.

I was looking forward to the approaching Mile 7 because I'd voted for the winning "halfway" song on Facebook- "Let It Go" from Frozen.  God I love that song!  I passed a DJ in a booth and over some rail road tracks with the train sitting at the intersection, bell clanging and steam shooting out all around.  Then as I moved along Floridian Way, I heard it.  Probably 10 gigantic speakers blasting out Idina Menzel's amazing voice!  I sang along softly and smiled at the encouraging signs spaced out along the side of the road.  The sky was getting to a brighter shade of gray and I could really see the mist and low clouds now.  I was glad for the dreary weather though- I didn't have sunglasses and was glad to not be in the heat.

The Clif Bar people were handing out goo gel packs but I decided to pass on that.  I'd popped a couple of my sports beans a couple miles ago and was feeling pretty good.  I started checking for Anita, who works for the airport, at the water stations.  She was volunteering and I knew seeing her around mile 10 would be a perfect pick-me-up.

I decided around mile 9 to give the Pandora a rest- there was plenty going on on the course what with music and characters and people watching.  I saw a guy dressed as Princess Leia complete with hair buns and a super soaker gun.  

I found Anita at the water stop and posed for a quick picture.  I didn't feel sweaty but lordy when I saw the photo she took I look like I'd jumped in the pool.  My hair was wet and my shirt was disgusting.  I mostly blame the misty foggy air!

As I continued on, I saw the end of the race on the other side of the highway!  There were 3 people carrying white balloons with scary sad faces on them, and a couple people shuffling along barely ahead of them.  There were also several people behind them, followed by a bus, some police cars, and lots of service vehicles and garbage trucks.  I looked up ahead of me and saw.... oh!  The 2 hr, 15 min pace balloon!  Must.  Pass.  It.  Must.... of course this had to happen while going up hill.  I kept my steady pace and managed to pull ahead!  The hill was tough, and up on the left once we got to the top, a Green Army Man from "Toy Story" was shouting encouragement and high-fiving everyone.  Of course I stuck my hand out, who wouldn't high-5 the Green Army Guy?

Mile 11 felt good, but I was starting to feel it in my legs a bit.  The Mile 11 medical station was giving out bio-freeze or something on sticks but I decided to pass.  Not much longer now!

 Mile 12 came just outside a backstage entrance to Epcot!  Just before entering, I passed a gospel choir that was singing praises and clapping.  So fun!   I came in near Spaceship Earth to a group of cheering cast members and moved along through Future World.  The route headed down that central area towards the World Showcase, but made a little u-turn and went right back toward Space Mountain.  The top of the ball was obscured in the low overcast.  I moved along and turned out back into the parking lot.  

And then I heard him.  

"MAGGIE!!!!!"

I turned in the direction of the voice and saw him with holding up the camera and waving.  I was 100 yards from the finish line and my boyfriend had been waiting there for an hour and a half to see me at the end.  I waved my arms and blew a big kiss as I ran by.  With a big grin, I headed toward that big pink and purple banner, the photographers, the cheering crowds in the surrounding grandstands, the medals, the tables of PowerAde that surely await me, and the FINISH LINE!  I crossed it with my hands on my head, eyes welling up with tears, and a shocked and relieved expression on my face.  I held the sides of my face, running them over my head, mouth open in shock, hardly believing it was over- that I'd done it.  My legs were barely hanging on.  I wobbled over to the medal stand and a volunteer hung one around my neck.  Another volunteer guided me over to another area to claim my Glass Slipper Challenge medal.  The two clanged together nicely as I walked.  

Almost as if in a dream, I stopped at the photo wall where a lady took my picture.  I was given a mesh bag to hold my snack box and banana.  I took a bottle of blue PowerAde off the table but was took exhausted to open it.  I weakly handed it to the lady running the table and asked her to open it for me.  "Of course, Princess.  Here you go" she said sweetly.  I wanted to hug her.  I made my way to the family reunion area where I found Scot and Sparkles.  I gave him a huge hug and stayed in his arms because, well, I was afraid I'd fall over if I let go!  

Sparkles got us champagne mimosas- it was really the last thing I wanted but I managed to sip on it between gulps of PowerAde.  The three of us hung out while I decompressed and cooled down.  We decided to head back to Riverside so I could clean up and we could check out, then planned on spending the rest of the day at the Magic Kingdom.  

Best.  Shower.  Ever.  

And when we got to the park?

Best.  Bacon cheeseburger topped with fried onion rings.  Ever

Here are my medals!

 And here is my new Christmas ornament that I got personalized!  

Here's how I did!  Not too shabby considering I took a bathroom break:

Bib # 21886

Gender Place: 1,206/19,294 (top 6%- only women's times were counted, no men's time was taken)

Chip Time: 2:09:57

Next races: Riverside Dash 15K in Sanford, followed by the Expedition Everest Challenge, Disneyland Dumbo Double Dare, Tower of Terror 10 Miler, and the Epcot Wine & Dine Half Marathon

running the princess half marathon part 1 (the enchanted 10k)

I DID IT!!!!!!!

That idea that wandered into my brain as I was huffing and puffing and thisclose to passing out on a 4 mile run- I followed through and did it.  I finished the Disney Princess Half Marathon, and kicked ass at it.

I picked up Sparkles from the airport on Friday afternoon- her flight got in just before some nasty weather hit.  The forecast for the weekend looked sketchy- 50% chance of rain, but highs in the 80s.  We headed over to the Wide World of Sports to the Expo to pick up our packets, shirts, and check out the vendors.  This was my third venture into a RunDisney expo and went significantly better than my first one for the Tower of Terror run, where I wanted to go hide in the bathroom away from the crowds and craziness.  We got our picture taken with Princess Minnie Mouse, but only because I led us into the wrong line- I was wondering why we were waiting 20 minutes to pick up our t-shirts!  After the expo, we headed over to Port Orleans Riverside to check in, get our Magic Bands squared away; Sparkles bought her park tickets, and we set off on the hike to find our room.

Which happened about a half hour later.

Because we got lost.

Between room 2763 and the parking lot.

If you've ever seen a map of Riverside, you'd understand.

Anyway, we unpacked and then took the bus over to Downtown Disney for dinner at the Earl of Sandwich and a free chocolate from Ghirardeli.  After wandering around down there for a couple hours, we headed back to the hotel, set out on the expedition to locate our room again, and went to bed around 8pm in preparation for the Enchanted 10K the next morning.  I slept like total crap.  I mean, our Princess & The Frog themed room was adorable, but the bed was so uncomfortable and combined with the Christmas Eve-like excitement I had, I got MAYBE 2 hours total of in-and-out dozing.

At 2:50, my alarm went off (ringtone is "I LIKE TO MOVE IT MOVE IT, I LIKE TO MOVE IT MOVE IT!" from Madagascar) and I jumped right up to get dressed in my Cheshire Cat costume, complete with tutu.  I prepared my usual peanut butter and bread with provisions brought from home and after Sparkles got into her Snow White costume, we headed down to the bus stop around 3:30.  It was a fairly quick trip to the Epcot parking lot where we took time to hit up the porto toilet then hung out and soaked up the energy of the crowd.

I was prepared this time- I was looking forward to the warm-up dances with the DJ ("WHAT DOES THE FOX SAY?  YI YI YI YI YI YI YIH!"  twice) and the people-watching.  Of course the costumes were crazy, the music was loud, and the cameras were rolling.  We got a chance to wave at the videographer before breaking away for some quiet time after working up a sweat dancing.  We hung out for the next half hour by the water coolers before being herded into our corral around 5am.  I had been assigned B but got into D with Sparkles.  There were only 5 corrals for this race-I'm not sure exactly how many people were there but there were under 10,000 finishers.  At 5:30, the Fairy Godmother counted us down, a small burst of fireworks  popped over the start banner, and corral A was off.  I didn't have a watch but I estimated probably 10 minutes between corral starts- it took forever to finally get moving!  I was pretty sure by the time the last person from corral E crossed the start line, someone from A would be finishing.  

At the start line, the announcer pumped up our group a bit over the mic, we all screamed and cheered, the Fairy Godmother counted 3-2-1 and boom!  We were off!  I learned from running the Tower of Terror to be in the front instead of the back of the corral if I wanted to move faster than a crawl.  I pushed Start on my running app and Play on the Pandora and we were moving.  

Now, Sparkles runs over a 12 minute mile, while I'm very comfortable at a 9.5.  I was pretty much speed-walking next to her, between short spurts of light jogging.  Still, because she'd not been feeling 100% earlier in the morning, I wasn't going to leave my friend in the dust.  As we headed out, we passed under an overpass and Elsa from the movie "Frozen" was up top, waving and talking to everyone.  (Soap) snowflakes fluttered down from above as we got established on the course.  Sparkles and I stuck together for almost the first 2 miles before she told me- for the 15th time- to go on ahead of her.  I felt bad, I really did.  I stopped to hit the restroom, and then I did pick up my pace and we waved goodbye.  I did feel better running at the faster clip, but told her to call or text me if she had any problems at all.  

I started passing people quickly, often hopping off into the grass.  The route was going away from Epcot, making a u-turn, then headed back to the park, backstage, then popping out in the World Showcase, winding around to the rear entry.  It then left the park and wound back through the Boardwalk hotel area, around that lake where the Yacht & Beach Club hotels are.  As I got to the backstage area of Epcot, just before entering the WS at about 3.5 miles, dawn started breaking.  Un-dramatically.  I really could start to tell how nasty the weather was!  Everything just turned sort of gray, with a misty, low overcast.  As expected the lines forming for the characters all along the route were ridiculously long.  I enjoyed looking and seeing the characters, but hey I'm a Passholder.  I don't really care about getting my picture taken.  I want to do the best job I can on the run and enjoy the sights.  As we all hit the boardwalk at mile 4.5, there were lots of spectators up- some in their pajamas- watching this crazy parade and cheering with posters, signs, and noise horns.  That part always makes me smile, I have to really try to hold it together, especially after seeing an elderly couple in a set of chairs holding a poster that read "Random Stranger- you're doing awesome!"  So many people show so much support and it's amazing to witness.  As I rounded the Boardwalk after the 5 mile mark, I saw what was pretty much the coolest characters ever- the Genie from Aladdin and Lumiere from Beauty & the Beast, but they were gigantic, lit up puppets!  They had people controlling them from underneath, but I'd guess they were at least 15 feet tall!  The Genie glowed a bright, L-E-D blue and the music from the movie blared over a loudspeaker.  I'd turned off my Pandora radio long ago, finding the on course entertainment to be a lot more saturated than the Tower of Terror was.  

I headed backstage again before popping out next to the Imagination Pavilion and moving along toward Spaceship Earth.  Mile 6 was right alongside the big ball, and .2 miles later I was back in the parking lot and across the finish line!  Usually I do 10K in under an hour, but because of my slower initial pace, I finished this race later.  Not that I minded.  I got my medal and my Glass Slipper Challenge wristband, headed out of the finishing area to grab a banana and my snack box, and waited for Sparkles.  She arrived about 30 minutes after me.  We caught up, then headed back onto the bus to go back to the hotel.  I took a shower and she took a 2 hour nap!  We headed to Hollywood Studios that afternoon, enjoyed lunch and some rides, then dodged the rainstorms to get back to the hotel and were ready for bed by 6:30!  Tomorrow I'll detail the Half Marathon, so for now, enjoy some pics and our stats!

(sorry this is a phone screenshot because I don't plan ahead)

the route

10K Times:

Me: 

Bib # 21866

Age division place- 168th

Gender place- 930/7,928

Overall place- 1,178/8,967 (top 13%)

Chip Time- 1:06:07

Sparkles:

Bib # 32659

Age division place- 854th

Gender place- 5,100/7,928

Overall place- 5,872/8,967 (top 65%)

Chip Time- 1:34:04

I think we both did a great job!  I'm not sure how many people did not finish- I'm guessing a few thousand.  That always happens, I guess people either don't train at all, or they get so caught up in the lines for character pictures, that they fall behind the required 16 min/mile pace.  We had great time, Sparkles was glad when it was over, and I was super-pumped for the half marathon the next morning.  More to come!

latest and greatest

When Scot got home from work last night, the following exchange occurred- 

Him: How was your night?
Me:  Okay.
Him: Do anything?
Me: I think I gave the cat the Heimlich because she's a dumbass.
Him: WHAT.
Me: Well, she was licking on a piece of a salsa-flavored rice cracker that I dropped, then she decided to try to eat it but didn't chew it, and then she was hacking like this (this is where I mimed silent dry hacking, dramatic neck movements, and stepped backward across the kitchen floor) so I picked her up, tipped her forward and patted her stomach til she spat it up on the living room rug.
Him: Hm.
Me: It was covered in cat slobber so I picked it up and threw it away.  I saved her life, you know.
Him: You two really are something else...

And now more excitement!  

I GOT IN TO THE DISNEYLAND DUMBO DOUBLE DARE!!!!!!!
Last year, it sold out in record time so at exactly noon on Tuesday, I had 3 computers running in the office and refreshing the overloaded runDisney website for close to 20 minutes before I finally got a good link to the registration page.  I paid my dues and got my confirmation so now I'm super-excited!  I've never been to Disneyland before!  After I went to lunch and came back less than 2 hours later, I checked again online to see that the entire race was sold out already.  I'm so glad I didn't waste a second!  This race is important to me because, well, our summer vacation kind of hinged me getting in.  After the weekend in Anaheim, we're driving up to Yosemite for a few days to tour the national park.  I know we'd need more time than we're taking to see and do everything worth doing, but holy crap it's expensive.  Also, after Sparkles and I complete the Princess Half Marathon in 3 weeks (yipeeeee I can't wait!), I'll be halfway to earning my Coast To Coast medal.  That one requires you to run a race in both parks in the same year. 

It's been raining for what feels like 3 years here in FL now, so I haven't been able to get much done at work.  I've had a couple free mornings so we've booked our next cruise and this morning, we put together and booked a travel package to California for the race.  Between that and renewing our Disney World annual passes this week, I think my Visa card is about to catch fire. But we're good for now.  We're still thinking about going to Finland in October, but haven't really talked about the details of that trip yet.  

I did a run this morning in the rain, which wasn't terrible since it was a drizzly type of rain.  Same thing on Wednesday morning, too.  It's not bad once you get going, but I don't think I'd like to stand around in the rain waiting for a race to start.  The Princess run weather could go either way- hot and humid or freezing.  It's a weird time of February.  Last year, we planted some stuff in the garden around that time and it all froze 2 weeks later.  

Next project- there's a wine rack table that I bought from the second-hand shop in the garage that's just taunting me.  I need to add a shelf to it and make it a bit taller so until I figure out how and when to bother with that, there it shall sit.  

Below is a picture of my Cinderella running costume- all I need to do it fashion up the black choker she wears around her neck and it'll be complete.  Sparkles is dressing up as Snow White and we're going to be gorgeous!

pinning winning

I have, shall we say, a bordering-on-obsessive interest in Pinterest.  That time suck app, you know, for all of us who wish we were as crafty as we lead people to perceive we are, judging by the 500 pins on DIY home decor and holiday projects?

I'd gotten in my head that I'd wanted to make a new jewelry display...thing.  And I had no words to describe exactly what I wanted (good luck trying to explain THAT one to your boyfriend when you're trying to convince him you won't cut off your fingers with the hand saw so could he please not hide the tools from you anymore?) so I'd gone onto Pinterest to try to find something.  I didn't find exactly what was floating around in my head so I drew it up on a scrap of paper and presented it to my still-confused loved one.  Here's what I wanted- I'd find a big picture frame, paint it, put a pretty fabric in the open area and attach some way to hang earrings onto it.  I wanted a small shelf underneath with a dish on it to hold stud earrings and rings, and room to set bracelets and watches, and also hooks underneath to hang necklaces from.  Easy, right?

Spoiler Alert- it came together beautifully!  Take a look-

After wandering around Home Depot for like an hour, we located some "hobby boards," which were about 18 inch long pre-sanded pieces of wood that were exactly what I was looking for to use for the shelf.  I got some quarter-round to use as a trim design along the front and sides

 See, those aren't MY hands using the hand saw!  I actually did try it for a while but found hacking away on the quarter-round quite tedious.  

 Had to use wood glue to attach quarter-round to the hobby board.  The board was so thin and the quarter-round so awkwardly curved that even tiny finishing nails would have split it.  This sat in the clamp after being glued for about a week because I have poor time-management skills.

 I haggled this picture frame down from $10 to $5 at the second-hand shop- it's big, 16x24, but had no glass and no hanger and was pretty ugly.  But- solid wood!  I painted it with some leftover white paint I'd used to do the corner hutch.  Again, this took a few days and several coats.

 I bought a half yard of fabric from the crafter's crack dealer- AKA Hobby Lobby.  It was expensive fabric but come on, when can you not find a sale or coupon for the Lobby?  I also ended up buying some gold cord from the discount Christmas bin to stretch across a piece of white foam board I cut to fit the frame opening.  I had to cut little nicks into the sides for the cord to slip in because the whole thing was a veeeeery tight fit!  The big crafty secret there is scotch tape holding the cord in place.  Tape and fabric glue hold the fabric down to the foam board.  

 Underneath the hobby board shelf, I attached 12 Command hooks!  I'd looked into the little hooks that screwed in but again, the board wasn't thick enough.  Command hooks are pretty tough and worked out just fine.  Cheapie metal brackets with teeny tiny screws underneath attach to the board.  When Scot hung it on the wall for me he used larger, reinforced screws with that plastic sleeve that pops into the wall first.  

 I LOVE IT!!!!  The fabric has some sort of swirly French script on it that's the perfect background for dangly earrings.  Have a closer look at the shelf-

I found an empty picture frame, took the back off, and used it flat down as a holder for the stud earrings- see it on the left.  The glass sits low enough in the frame without the back that stuff won't roll out.  

I'm thrilled with the outcome and feel justified in saying that I look like one of those really creative Pinterest people.  Here's a price breakdown for my showpiece:

Hobby Lobby

Gold cord- $2 on clearance

Foam board- $1.85 on clearance

Fabric- $3.59 with coupon

Home Depot

Command hooks- $12 for 12

Hobby board- $4

Brackets- $1.76 for 2

Quarter-round- $1.50, cut by the foot

Second hand antique store

Frame- $5

Already owned- paint, clamp, brushes, screws, glue, and handy boyfriend

TOTAL- around $32!

running disney's tower of terror 10 miler 2013!

I registered for the RunDisney Tower of Terror 10 Miler on a whim last July.  I'd gone online to sign up for the Princess Half Marathon but registration wasn't open yet so I threw my name in the ring for this one.  I'd never run more than 3 miles in my life so I printed out the training schedule, followed (and tried to exceed) it the best I could.  

2 weeks before the race I came down with something that felt akin to the plague.  Couldn't breathe, couldn't talk, couldn't detach myself from the kleenex box.  This led to several panic-y episodes and nightmares and loss of sleep pretty much up until the day of the race.  Medically I was feeling pretty good by the 5th, so here's how it all went!

The Friday before the run, I had to go down to the Wide World of Sports to the RunDisney Expo to pick up my race number and packet.  That experience was an overwhelming nightmare- I arrived around noon when it first opened, stood in line in the hot sun to get in, then was swamped by crowds worse than Black Friday at Target!  I tried to wander around a little bit and look at thee vendors and booths and merchandise but it was so insane that all I really wanted to do was go hide in the bathroom.  So I left.  Maybe when I go back for the Princess Half Expo I'll be a little more prepared.  Not today though.

I had work the day of the race, so my day started at 7am.  After a day of flying, I headed down to check into the Caribbean Beach Resort at WDW around 4pm.  My parents were already there so after I took a quick catnap in my room, we met up and went to the food court for dinner.  I was starting to get really nervous so I wasn't sure what to eat.  I ended up with some chicken and mashed potatoes, which I tried eating but mostly just picked at.   I had to force myself to choke it down.  Scot showed up after getting off work early after 7, I got my Maleficent costume put together, took some pics, and was on the bus just before 8.

The bus took all us runners to the Film parking lot of Hollywood Studios.  I started talking to the lady sitting next to me- her name was Annie and she was for Montreal.  She'd run half marathons before but this was her first Disney race.  She'd been placed 2 corrals behind me, so we decided we'd hang out til line-up time.  When we arrived at the parking lot, the energy there was crazy!  There were thousands of people-many in costume, a DJ on a stage, water stations, probably 100 porta-pottys, and photo ops and laser lights.  We worked our way over to the stage where the music was playing and the DJ was teaching everyone dance moves- we decided to join in, laughing and dancing to everything from Gangnam Style to the Time Warp.  It was a great time, until we looked at each other laughing and realized we were starting to sweat and didn't want to get worn out before running 10 miles!  

It was great to have someone to hang with and talk to, since we had almost 2 hours to kill before race start.  We spent that time just sitting on the ground near the water tables and people-watching.  Around 9:00, race officials started herding us into our corrals.  Annie and I said our goodbyes and good lucks, and I went over to Corral G.  After we were all grouped up, we had to walk to the finish line about 45 min prior to race start.  The corrals were separated by officials with ribbons stretched across the fronts.  The walk was probably a good half mile, but the race officials were talking over the speakers and were entertaining us and playing music the whole time.  At 9:55, the wheelchair participants started- I heard the Twilight Zone theme music and saw a burst of fireworks over the trees.  After that, Group A went, then B a couple minutes later, and so on.  Our start time for G was 10:15.  I saw my parents and Scot on the other side of the fence as my group passed closer to the start!  Each group that started got the music and fireworks, then we'd all inch forward.  I thought I heard group F go, then it was our turn next.  I heard wrong, I guess, because as we were moving up, I crossed the start line!  Crap!  I scrambled to hit the GO button on my Map My Run app, hit PLAY on my Pandora, and started off.

Not that I was running.  The crowd was so much that it was a medium-paced walk.  Laser lights and fog machines above added to the craziness.  Music was pumping.  And we were going nowhere fast.  I wasn't worried though- there'd be plenty of running time later!  Right at the first turn, literally less than a half mile in, there was a Character Stop- the Wicked Queen from Snow White was doing photos and there were probably 100 people in the line.  Uh, sorry Queen, I've gotta run...  

It took over a mile for the crowd to thin into something I could work a run into.  There were Disney Villain characters at LEAST every mile, and water and Powerade stops every mile as well.  Even though I had my Pandora, there was music and entertainment playing all along the route.  We ran down Osceola Parkway to Animal Kingdom, made the turn after the entrance, and started back.  There were stilt walkers and characters and music and lights all themed around AK, and a inflatable giant spider hanging over the overpass with a laser light web shining on the wall.  That was by mile 3.  As I got to mile 4, more characters and a water stop-I actually saw a volunteer at the water stop that I knew!  Anita, who is in my Women in Aviation group handed me my water!  I shrieked in surprise, said a quick hi, and moved along with a bit more energy.  A little ways down further, there was a tent with people handing out goo on popsicle sticks.  I didn't know what it was- food?  Medicine?  I didn't take any of it and made a mental note to look it up later.  Mile 5 took us down a dirt service road towards the Wide World of Sports.  My phone had started giving me a low battery beep, so I was wondering how long I'd have my run tracker.  I wasn't worried about losing the music because of all the en-route entertainment.  The dirt road was darker, with fog machines, hazy lighting, more characters, and lots of trees.  It was much more crowded because it was thinner, so I stuck to the edge.  The road spat us out near some baseball fields- we wound around the race track and down the main walkway towards the baseball stadium.  All along the way, volunteers were holding support signs and clapping and cheering us on!  It was great, I don't think I stopped smiling the whole race, actually.  I turned into the baseball stadium and ran around the outside dirt area- the stands were filled with spectators and people cheering support!  The 6.2 mile (10K) marker was there, too.  I sailed out of the stadium with plenty of energy, ran through the parking lot filled with more cheering crowds, then hit the road back to the studios.  

Just after mile 7, my phone died.  I was really bummed to lose my Map My Run, because it was recording the route for me!  Also, Scot and my parents were using the live tracking feature to watch where I was.  As I approached mile 8, a HUUUUUUGE section of people who were walking were just approaching the dirt road area, which I could see across the median.  Probably 1/3 of the original crowd was just walking- I couldn't see the end of the group before I made the turn off the exit and headed through the Hollywood Studios entranceway, past more villain characters doing photos.  The lake (retention pond?) at the exit had a thing in the middle that was shooting giant hot fireballs a couple hundred feet in the air every 15 seconds or so.  And laser lights.  And music.  

Side note- I did talk to people who have done Disney races before and say there's absolutely no comparison.  Any non-Disney race you do after one of these is boring as hell.  I believe it.

As I moved into Mile 8, my legs started hurting.  My feet were already a little sore, now my legs were feeling a little crampy.  I kept going though- it hurt but was not debilitating.  Plus, I was really excited to see what was around the next corner!  More staff and volunteers cheering, more crowds, more lights, more characters, more music!  Curiosity kept me moving!  We ran past the front stage at Lights Motors Action, around and out and up the Streets of America area towards the big Mickey Hat.  After the hat, I turned a corner and saw Scot and my parents again just after mile 9!  I waved and screamed, and kept going.  The route took us back behind a parking lot area, through a tunnel filled with chasing lights and music, then one more corner (I remember Hades from the movie "Hercules") was the character there because around that corner was the FINISH!!!  Cheering crowds, photographers, a race official somewhere was announcing everyone's name as the hit the finish line- I crossed with a big grin on my face, and finally slowed to a walk.  Yep- I RAN, without stopping, the entire 10 miles.  

A lady hung a medal around my neck, a photographer took some photos, I took a chill towel and a banana and started walking through the cool-down route.  There were tables of water and Powerade, snack boxes, a bathroom (oh yes, good idea!), medical tents with the people  with the goo sticks again.  I thought to myself that I was glad I didn't take one earlier and try to eat it.  As I kept walking, there were people resting on the curbs, waiting for the rest of their parties maybe.  

There was an official photo area on the way out, but I passed it up and found myself deposited out right inside the entrance of the Studios.  It was a bit quieter and a bit surreal.  No people in costume.  No one in my immediate view with a number safety-pinned to their shirt or a medal around their neck.  It was just after midnight, and I felt like Cinderella dumped back into the real world!  I made my way to the Sorcerer Mickey hat to meet up with Scot and my parents.  It was over.  I'd made it.  

Hugs all around, we took some pics, rode some rides, I nibbled on my snack box.  Overall, I felt good.  Not too hurty, not too starving.  I did go on the Tower of Terror Ride and, because this is my life, I got conked in the head by my heavy medal around my neck when we went Zero G.  Of course.

Final stats:
My Bib #5916

1,762nd out of 9,478 total finishers (top 18%)
778th out of 6,132 women (top 12%)
Chip time- 1:47:39

Finally fell into bed a little after 5am after probably the Best. Shower. Ever.  I'm happy with everything, considering the slow-moving crowds.  I can't imagine running a race without all the entertainment and support I had on this one- I'm so spoiled.  And I think I'm addicted.  And so excited for the next one!