2023 Virtual Princess Challenge Registration

This morning, I once again traded my glass slippers for sneakers while I signed up for the 2023 RunDisney Princess Half Marathon Weekend Virtual Race Registration.

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The princess themed race weekend is my favorite RunDisney event.  Eliot and I have attended it in person twice: just the two of us in 2017 and with his family in 2019.  I've always dreamed of doing another princess race in person, but between the pandemic and how much it costs, I'm happy to have an alternative.  Plus, next year Eliot and I are already signed up to do the 2023 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend in person.  I can't justify turning around and going back down to Florida a few weeks after that event takes place... especially if we have the puppies at that point!

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Thus, I happily opted to sign up for the virtual edition of the races.  Some people aren't a big fan of them, but I thought this was a great thing to come out of the pandemic.  I'm not sure if RunDisney will continue to offer virtual versions of their race weekends, but I'll probably sign up for princess weekend every year if they do keep it!  I will definitely miss being down there in person and experiencing everything that I love, but I'll still get to earn the bling and get the race shirts!  So it's a win-win in my book!

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Thankfully, this was smooth sailing like signing up for the virtual marathon.  I don't really know how registration went on Tuesday for the in person event, but the virtual side was quick and easy.  I was in the queue about 10 minutes before 10 am, and right at 10 I was switched over to the waiting room.  I only had to wait 2 minutes, and within that two minutes I was heading into register for Princess Half Marathon Weekend!

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I decided to register for the Challenge as well as the 5K.  I really like the artwork for this year's event, so I decided to just go for it and do all of them.  Plus, the princesses for each event are some of my favorites: Jasmine for the 5K, Belle for the 10K, Moana for the Half Marathon and Cinderella for the Challenge.  It's also the 15th anniversary of the half marathon and the 10th anniversary of the challenge.  Hopefully, they'll have really cool medals like they usually do for the anniversary events! 

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So, as of this morning, I am registered for the actual in-person 10K at Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, the virtual WDW marathon, and both the Princess 5k and Princess Challenge!  I think it's time I lace up those sneakers... someone has got some training to do to prepare for next year's RunDisney events!  °o°

Oops... I Did It Again

Two weeks ago, I registered for the 2019 Princess Half Marathon Weekend!!!  And that's not all.  Although, I swore I'd never do it again... I signed up for a half marathon.

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Long story short, I had every intention to sign up for the 5K and 10K.  Eliot and his sisters were going to do the challenge together.  Eliot's dad was going to do the half and his mother was going to do the 5K and 10K as well.  We all went into registration day with a solid plan of who was signing each person up, and what order to do it in.

When it came time to sign up for everything, I took on a monster load when Eliot couldn't get in.  I signed myself up for my 5K, then did Elissa's challenge, then Eliot's when he was still locked out.  By the time I went to get my 10K (which Eliot was supposed to do first) it had sold out and Eliot never got into the sign up.

I left the house to head into work devastated that I didn't get into my top choice.  After a very tearful car ride... I'd decided to dive in head first.  When I arrived at work, I sat out in the car long enough to complete insanity.  I signed up for the challenge.

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The event takes place at Walt Disney World February 21st to 24th.  The 5K is that Friday.  Then, the Fairy Tale Challenge (previously the Glass Slipper Challenge) consists of the Enchanted 10K Saturday and the Princess Half Marathon Sunday.  So for those of you counting, that's 22.4 miles total in three days.  (Again, I plead insanity.)

I haven't had much luck with runDisney events in the past.  But, I have finished two 10Ks at this point.  I've always dreamed of finishing a half marathon and of completing a challenge.  In fact, what finally tipped the scale to me deciding to do it, was looking at my 30 Things to do in my 30's list a few days before registration.  Knowing that I'd have more time after leaving my job, I recently went back through my list to gain some perspective on my future.  That's when I stumbled across #12 Complete a Disney Half Marathon and #18 Complete a Disney Race Challenge.

So, here I sit, signed up for the 5K, 10K and the half marathon.  Thankfully, I ended up roping Eliot into the 5K with me too.  We're both doing all three races together.  And I've officially hit the crazy level.  I don't even like running.  Not even a little bit.

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But, what's most crazy, is that I'm actually excited about it.  I decided that training would start as soon as I was done with work.  Since yesterday was my last day in the office with patients, training will start any day now.  I'm not sure how many hours I'll be at work tying up loose ends next week, but I'm hoping to get a few workouts in.  I have a goal to finalize my training plan this weekend.  Then, hello Mr. Treadmill!

Today marks exactly 26 weeks until the 5K.  It's 180 days- or about half a year.  That's plenty of time to properly train and prepare for this event.  Right?  I can do this.

Right now, I'm feeling optimistic about this one.  I've never truly taken the time to train for a race.  And I've never stuck to the training plan.  I haven't put in much effort in the past.  Now, I don't have time as an excuse.  I can make my own schedule and I can plan my day around my work outs.  My gut tells me it's now or never.  So, let's do this.

Here's to another runDisney adventure!!!  Hopefully this one has a happy ending!  °o°

Princess Half Marathon Weekend 2017

Well, it's official.  I'm registered for the 2017 Princess Half Marathon Weekend!!!

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The event takes place at Walt Disney World February 23rd to 26th.  I've signed up for the Glass Slipper Challenge- which consists of the Enchanted 10K Saturday and the Princess Half Marathon Sunday.  So that's 19.3 miles total in two days!

Early registration for Annual Passholders and Disney Vacation Club members opened earlier today at noon.  After a few tense minutes, Eliot declared that I'd successfully gotten in.  He wasn't able to register himself, but he's planning to sign up for the race challenge next Tuesday when registration opens up to everyone!

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I'm very excited about this.  I've already started to work on my training plan.  I haven't had the best luck with runDisney events in the past, but next year is my year.  Also, the registration email sent out to everyone had Belle on it!  I'm really hoping she's the featured princess this year!  She's Eliot's favorite princess and one of my favorites too!

In addition to my registration, I also pre-ordered my pins and the "runner bundle" which included a Tervis cup and an ornament.  After hearing horror stories about runners trying to get those items this year, I figured it was smart to order them ahead of time!

Here's to the start of another runDisney adventure!!!  °o°

I'm Leaving On A Jet Plane

We're leaving for Walt Disney World TOMORROW!!!  Woo-hoo!!!  

I really can't believe it.  This trip definitely snuck up on me between attempting to decorate the house, the holiday rush making all of my Happily Ever Hatter orders and then celebrating the holidays themselves!  I'm so excited to be going "home" again!!!

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If you see me in Florida- say hi!  If you see me running the 10K- say hi!  But please don't be offended if I don't say much back during the race.  (I'm sure I'll be in deep concentration those 6 miles... repeating "I Can Go The Distance" from Hercules!!!)

Photo Source: Walt Disney World Facebook Page

For those of you who aren't going to be visiting Mickey Mouse with me, you can always virtually visit and follow along with the fun from the comfort of your own home! I'll be posting updates on my Facebook page as well as my Instagram account.  Stay tuned for many Walt Disney World photos... See ya real soon friends!!!  °o°

WDW January 2015 Bucket List

I can't believe we're leaving for Disney World in two days!  This trip crept up on Eliot and me!  I think it's going to hit me when we're on the plane.  In the meantime, I've been trying to get a lot of stuff done last minute: making a packing list, finishing some new Happily Ever Hatter designs, and trying to tie up loose ends around the house.

Photo Source: Walt Disney World Facebook Page

As you may recall, I made a trip bucket list for my October 2014 KeyCon trip to Walt Disney World.  I really enjoyed having goals for my trip.  Not only did it help me branch out to try some new things, but it also was a good way to make sure I experienced some of my favorite Disney things as well!  So, without further ado, here's my Walt Disney World January 2015 Trip Bucket List for this upcoming trip!!!

Melissa's January 2015 Disney Trip Bucket List:

°o°  1.) Finish the Walt Disney World Minnie 10K
°o°  2.) Watch Eliot, Jeremy and Dad cross the finish line at the Half Marathon

°o°  3.) Watch Eliot during the full marathon

°o°  4.) Try LeFou's Brew in New Fantasyland

°o°  5.) Eat Favorite Sweets- ice cream, candy apple, Dole Whip, Mickey Bar, etc.

°o°  6.) Go to Chef Mickey's for Breakfast

°o°  7.) Have More Waffles from Sleepy Hollow

°o°  8.) Get drinks at the Contemporary Hotel (must have another glowy drink!!!)

°o°  9.) Go on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ride for the first time
°o° 10.) See the Frozen Sing Along

°o° 11.) See the Festival of Fantasy Parade with my Family
°o° 12.) Watch A Frozen Holiday Wish and See the Cinderella Castle Ice Lights

°o° 13.) Go back to the Animation Academy

°o° 14.) Go on the Characters In Flight hot air balloon ride in Downtown Disney

°o° 15.) Go to the Pool Bar at our Resort
°o° 16.) Go to Typhoon Lagoon
°o° 17.) Swim in the Pool at Pop Century Resort
°o° 18.) Wear New Ear Headband and Ear Hat Designs by Happily Ever Hatter

°o° 19.) Get Photos of Happily Ever Hatter Designs in Park

°o° 20.) Take my Family to Boardwalk area

Of course, the main purpose of this trip is to participate in the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend events so those goals are my top priority.  I also see this trip as a way to share some new experiences with Eliot and my family.  I did some of these on my trip in October, so now it's their turn to experience them!  I've also added a few things that I didn't get to try.  I still want to continue to experience new things!  

I'll check back after our trip to let you know how I did this time around!!!  °o°

We're All In!

Hey Everyone!  

This has been another busy week!  Lately, that seems to be the new normal around here. But I'm not complaining; I like to be busy.  It's a lot better than being bored. Nevertheless, I can't believe that it's already Friday!

My parents and brother came to visit over the weekend.  We had a great Easter Sunday. As I mentioned the other day, it was also my Mom's birthday on Sunday.  Usually she and Dad are away on their post tax season vacation over her birthday.  But this year, they decided to go away a little later than usual so Dad could do more work before his April 30th deadline.  Therefore, this was the first time in years that we were all together to celebrate Easter and Mom's birthday!

Mom didn't really want to do anything in particular.  Her only request was that we go somewhere new and enjoy the spring weather.  We ended up having brunch at IHOP before going over to the local beach.  Eliot and I had never been there, and we can get special parking passes since we live here.  It sounded like a good plan so off we went!

We enjoyed the sun, surf and relaxation.  We were some of the only people on the entire beach!  It was far too windy to play ball so we left the toys in the car.  However, we all got to blow bubbles.  Well, the wind blew the bubbles for us anyways!  Since we had large bubble wands, the bubbles were huge!  Each dip into the solution could easily yield 20+ bubbles when the wind blew.  It was a lot of fun.

Next, we decided to go exploring some more and we all went to find a campground we were interested in going to this summer.  It's still early in the season, so there wasn't much to see, but it was nice to know where it was.  After locating our destination, Mom requested that we have some ice cream at Dairy Queen.  It wasn't birthday cake, but it sure was yummy!

It was nice to see my parents and brother.  (I don't think we've all been in the same place at the same time since we went to Disney World!)  While we were together, we talked about the 2015 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend.  Eliot and I had been planning to participate in it again. We assumed my family would be joining us, but we'd never actually talked about it.  I took the opportunity to ask everyone what their thoughts were...

Tuesday a few minutes before noon, Eliot and I sat at our computers ready to register. Eliot was registering himself, while I had the daunting task of registering 4 people.  I had a plan in place, and I was poised and ready to go.  After probably a hundred refreshes, (enough to crash on the site multiple times anyways) we were finally able to register.

Photo Source: RunDisney Website

Thankfully, my pre-planning worked.  I successfully got my mother and myself registered before I less frantically registered my brother and father.  And Eliot was registered before I finished.  A few hours later, some of the races were already filling up and selling out!

Here are the results of our registration for WDW Marathon Weekend 2015:

Melissa- Minnie 10K (6.2 miles)
Mom- Minnie 10K (6.2 miles)
Jeremy- Donald Half Marathon (13.1 miles)
Dad- Donald Half Marathon (13.1 miles)
Eliot- Goofy Challenge (Donald Half Marathon + Mickey Full Marathon= 39.3 miles)

My Mom and I both signed up to do the 10K that we originally planned on doing this year (2014) before it sold out.  I'm happy with this choice since I didn't finish the half this year. I'm confident that Mom and I can do the 6 miles together.  It will be a fun mother/daughter activity.  I'm focusing on finishing this race before eventually working towards doing the Princess and Tinker Bell half marathons.

Jeremy and Dad both decided that if they could do the half marathon this year, they could probably do it again next year.  I actually thought they might do the 10K with Mom and I so they could get a different medal.  But I'm excited that we can watch them and cheer them on when they cross the finish line!  (And the guys will be able to see us cross the finish line of the 10K!)  Plus, Eliot will also be doing the half on his quest to complete the Goofy Challenge.  Since all three of them are in the half marathon, Mom and I might even do the ChEar Squad so we can get a good view of the finish line!

Photo Source: RunDisney Facebook Page

Finally, my husband was seduced by the shiny 10 year anniversary Goofy medal.  To be fair, he's been waffling back and forth between the full marathon and doing Goofy ever since we got back from Florida.  He was leaning towards the full marathon, and then runDisney released the photo of the anniversary medal on their Facebook page.  Yep, that was all he needed.  I am very proud of him for challenging himself.  I just hope that it all goes well for him!  That's a lot of running over 2 days!

I'm definitely looking forward to going to Walt Disney World again with my family!  Plus, experiencing the races together is an added bonus!  Hopefully we'll all have shiny medals to show off by the end of the trip!  I'm also thinking about designing different t-shirts to coordinate with each of our races.  It would make for some fun photos!  I'm excited!

We're officially "all in" for Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend 2015!!!  °o°