#tbt Springtime Surprise 2026 🏃🏻🌐🏃🏼‍♀️

I haven't had a chance to talk much about our RunDisney Springtime Surprise weekend back in April, so I thought I'd pop in to do a Throwback Thursday for it!  

It was actually a year ago yesterday that I came out of RunDisney race retirement when I was able to register for both the 2026 RunDisney Springtime Surprise 5K and 10K because Eliot and I couldn’t resist the Winnie the Pooh and Zootopia themes of the races.  The original plan was for him to sign up for the challenge, but I decided that if I could get into the 5K or 10K I would join him.  (Little did I know that would be the race weekend where we could actually get me into both races...) 

After my endometriosis surgery last September, I haven't exactly been super active.  And I definitely wasn't very active before surgery due to the baseball sized cyst inside my belly.  So even signing up to attempt something like this was a pretty big mental hurdle for me.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… doing events at the Disney parks is basically the only place you’d ever catch me even remotely attempting a race. 🏰 But the character meet & greets, entertainment and seeing the World Showcase and Spaceship Earth lit up always makes it worth it. ✨🌐✨ 

This year, we actually committed to costumes.  Eliot's sister Sara and his parents also signed up for races that weekend- so we coordinated costumes with them.  We bought character shirts and tried to find shorts/skirts that would match.  I even found these ridiculous character headbands online and they really sold it.

For the 5K, Eliot and I dressed up as Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde. 🐰🦊 Thankfully, Eliot and I were in the C corral, so we had a great head start on the other corrals.  I felt pretty good while waiting in the starting corrals.  I made sure to stretch out my muscles, I took some calming deep breaths and I felt very centered.  This was the first ever RunDisney event where I wasn't nervous... and dare I say that I felt confident?

Looking back now, I probably felt great because I knew that I had nothing to lose.  For me, just getting back to the start line was probably the biggest battle I faced.  No matter how these races went for me, I had dared to try to attempt them again... after being in incredible pain and having surgery.  So when our group's fireworks shot into the sky, I started my speed walk with a confidence that I haven't had in other races.

The 5K was a great way to get back in the game because it's a fun run and not timed.  Still, Eliot and I tried to stick to the 16 minute a mile pace as much as we could since we knew it would be a good practice for the 10K race the next day.  I really pushed myself during those three miles, and Eliot encouraged me the entire way, often reminding me that we were fine and doing great.  He and I basically speed walked through the World Showcase- only stopping to take a few quick photos and for one longer stop in the America Pavilion to use the restroom and take photos with Duffy!!!  

I was pretty emotional at the end of the race when the finish line was in view.  Eliot video taped me crossing the finish line and I got a little misty eyed.  I was so proud of myself after everything I've been through this past year.  Still, the 5K was a lot of strain and effort on my body.  And if there was ever a medal that I've earned, it was this one.

The rest of that day, I walked more steps... in fact I ended up clocking in at 22,000 steps according to my FitBit.  This past year, 10,000-12,000 steps is usually when my body hits a wall and it's had enough.  Then I walked another 10,000 steps past that point... so I knew that the 10K the following day was going to be an extra hard challenge.

Naturally, Eliot and I dressed up as Tigger and Eeyore for the 10K. 🐯🧡💙🎀  This time, we were in the D corral, so we didn't have as much of a head start.  Eliot tried to get us as close to the front of the corral as possible... and the nerves were starting to set in the closer we got to the start line.  I just had this bad feeling that I couldn't shake.

The 10K was a really rough one for me.  I had massive cramps less than a mile in and some really nice lady stopped to give me a salt tablet to suck on.  It was so hot out.  It might have been stupid early in the morning, but the humidity didn't get that memo because it felt like I was trying to speed walk in a hot sauna... and I was dying.

Eliot was doing the Springtime Surprise challenge (5K, 10K & 10 Miler), so he had to finish.  I didn't want to hold him back, and I couldn't shake that bad feeling no matter how hard I tried to.  Plus, my body was already at it's limit from the previous day.  But Eliot was right there next to me cheering me on until I couldn’t go any further. 

I didn’t quite make it into Epcot before my body had enough of the intense Florida humidity & heat.  It was only about 1.75 miles in, but it was longer than I thought I'd make it after crossing the start line.  I pulled myself at the medical tent right at the entrance to Epcot's World Showcase, and I felt really confident in that decision.  Eliot stopped to make sure that I was ok, then he kept going to finish the rest of the race.

I patiently waited for everyone else in the other corrals to finish running by me.  Then I hopped in a van with the other people who pulled themselves or those who got pulled because they got behind pace.  They drove us directly to the finish line and once there, they gave us our medals, food boxes, bananas, water, Powerade, and some medical attention if necessary.  By the time we got there, my legs had tightened up and it was all I could do to get myself back out of the van.  I ended up getting ice for my shin splints and I talked with some wonderful volunteers while I tried to stretch my legs back out. 

Eventually, Eliot was close to the finish line and I made my way over to the meeting area.  After talking with Eliot, Sara, Rick and Nori, we discovered that they had cut the course in multiple locations because Nori finished before anyone else, yet she started in the last corral.  If I had known that they were going to cut the course in multiple spots due to the extreme weather, I would have told Eliot to leave me and I would have kept slowly moving forward- but I’m happy with my decision to listen to my body.

The following day, Eliot and Sara were both doing the 10 Miler.  The theme for that race was Aladdin, so Eliot dressed up as Genie and Sara was Aladdin.  

I said goodbye and good luck to both of them at the car, and then I ended up staying there to get some more rest.  (Three early mornings and very little sleep had taken a massive toll on me.)  However, there was still quite a bit of excitement as I could hear them setting up a Muppets entertainment video loop nearby.  When the race started, I heard all of the fireworks signaling the release of each corral group.  Then the DJ set up not too far from my parking lot row and there was no more sleeping to be had.

This race course went through Epcot and Hollywood Studios, and there wasn't really a good place to see the runners.  I ended up meeting up with Nori over by the entrance back into Epcot.  There, we tracked Eliot and Sara through text messages.  Eliot came first and he stopped to take a photo with me.  (He was pretty emotional at this point since there was only a mile or so left for him to go.)  Then we waited for Sara to pass us before heading over to the finish line where Rick was standing.

Eliot and Sara collected their 10 Miler and challenge medals.  Then we all met back up in the meeting area and celebrated the end of another RunDisney weekend.

After these past two races, I think I’m headed back into RunDisney retirement.  I had a great time, but I'm definitely not signing up for another Springtime Surprise event ever again... because they always seem to be hot.  But I might be persuaded to do another 5K event if I can get into it... especially if it's Princess weekend.

Still, I'm really glad that I did this.  I’m so proud of myself for completing the Springtime Surprise 5K and attempting the 10K after everything I’ve been through this past year. 🙂

A Special Surprise

Happy Saturday Friends!  Today, I wanted to tell you about some magical mail that I received yesterday.  I have a blog follower, Joan from Portland, who is a frequent visitor here and she sent me a surprise package.  She's followed along with Magically Melissa for years now... back since the beginning when my blog was My Disney Life.

It kind of feels like I've known Joan forever, yet we have never met in real life until recently.  I actually finally met her in person at the Lego Fan Fest back at the end of April when we both happened to attend the same Saturday afternoon session at the show in Portland, Maine.  She recognized me and Eliot and came over to say hi!

This isn't the first time that Joan has sent me a package.  Back in 2015, she sent me some magical mail in the form of a Disney sign from Hallmark.  I absolutely love it and it means so much to me that someone would gift it to me.  I truly cherish it.

A few days ago, Joan reached out to me on Etsy and she told me she wanted to mail me something and that she needed my mailing address.  I responded back and before I knew it, the package arrived on our doorstep yesterday.

I won't lie, I was like a little kid on Christmas.  I love surprises and it's not often that Eliot or my family can truly surprise me with gifts.  Eliot's adorable, but he's terrible at keeping secrets from me.  I usually know what I'm opening before I even get handed the box.  So this was a real treat to be opening a true surprise.

I literally squealed when I opened the box.  Carefully tucked under some Shop Disney gift wrap, was a little NuiMO Eeyore and a bunch of NuiMO outfits.  Taped on the back of all the outfits was a little handwritten note about why she chose each piece.

Eeyore needed an outfit for spending time at camp during the summer in Maine.

She also found an outfit that reminded her of the little French sailor shirts and she wanted me to have it since she knows I've been working so hard to re-learn French!

Eeyore also needed an outfit to celebrate Walt Disney World's 50th Anniversary!

He also had to have a Spirit Jersey because every Disney fan needs at least one!

Finally, Eeyore has his own little Loungefly backpack... because you can't go to Disney without one!  Joan wouldn't know this, but the human sized Disney Snacks Loungefly backpack is one of the first ones that I ever bought way back when they were new to the parks.  Eliot and I must have picked up about 50 of them at MouseGears in Epcot before I found one with the perfect placement.  You can't find those anymore, and if you do see them online they're worth a lot of money.  (And it's one of my absolute favorites in my collection.)  Now, Eeyore can have one to match mine!

This gift meant so much to me... especially when I've been having a rough few weeks health wise.  I haven't said anything on here, but I've actually been having a lot of stomach problems the past 2-3 weeks.  You might have noticed how a lot of my posts are getting published later than the date they were "written" on.  I've had to do most of them in post dumps when I've felt good.  There have been a lot of days where I've been in bed or completely miserable lying on the couch from stomach pain.  Opening Eeyore and his accessories was definitely a bright spot in some cloudy days!

I love when blog readers and Etsy customers send us things.  Over the past few years, Eliot and I have received Christmas cards, stickers, thank you cards and other small gifts as tokens of appreciation.  We never set out to do any of this to "get stuff" or to "get praise" but it really means a lot every time someone reaches out to us.  This past weekend, we actually got a thank you card from a Make A Wish family that we recently made mouse ears for, and it also gave me the warm fuzzies.  

Here on my blog, it sometimes feels like I'm writing into the deep void of the internet, and I never know if what I'm doing is making a difference.  Some days, it can even feel like I'm wasting my time.  But then I always think of Joan and I know that she's tuning in.  And that means so much to me... especially when my own friends and family don't even read my blog anymore.  (Shout out to you guys if you are here, but most likely you aren't!)  At this point, my blog readers probably know more about what's actually going on in our life than some of our friends and family.  So please know that I am very thankful for all of you who do drop by to visit me here!

And thank you so much for your kindness Joan!!!  It means so much to me that you wanted to send me a special gift!  Eeyore will be a treasured and trusted little friend!  I can't wait to take him on adventures in all of his tiny outfits!!!  °o°

The Diseased Rodent

Hi friends!  I just wanted to check in really quick.  I had a few blog posts planned for yesterday and today, but I got a bit sidetracked.  Yesterday, I woke up with a lot of pressure in my right eye.  As the day progressed, it grew itchy and started to burn- along with my left eye.  I knew when I left work that the prognosis wasn't good.

When Eliot got home from work, we headed over to the local walk in clinic, and sure enough, I have conjunctivitis in both of my eyes.  I'm not sure how I got it, but after all the places we went over New Years, I could have picked it up anywhere.

Photo Source

Thankfully, I caught it early and I don't really have the awful gunk that comes along with it.  When I had pink eye as a kid it was awful.  Yesterday, you wouldn't have even known anything was wrong with me by looking at me.  Today, my eyes are a little pink, but not bad. However, they're a little sticky and they do itch occasionally.  Luckily, my eye drops seem to help as soon as I put them in!  Plus, the awful pressure is gone!

Eliot has dubbed me "the diseased rodent".  I reminded him that our beloved Mickey Mouse is also technically a rodent, but Eliot told me he's the cute kind.  I agreed, and stated that the only "disease" Mickey has is the "here take all my money" disease.

So, I've spent today home on the couch.  I'm super contagious for the first 24 hours, so we decided it was best that I stay home and not contaminate our patients and the office.  I had high hopes of being super productive, but in the end, a day on the couch was definitely what the doctor ordered.  I even took a two hour nap!

Hopefully, I'll be back in business soon!  After getting my New Years goals in order, I'm really motivated and the last thing I want is to sit around and do nothing.  I really just want to dive in.  I also need to recap our Christmas and New Year's adventures!  And I still have a few other posts I need to catch up on!  But, I also know my limitations.  For now, I rest.  I'll leave conquering the world for another day.  °o°

Post Disneyland Trip

Hey friends!  I'm sorry that I've been so quiet since I got back from Disneyland.  I've been really busy playing catch up with work, my emails, cleaning the house, laundry, etc.  You know the drill!  I was only away a few days but there's still so much to do!

This trip, there hasn't been any post Disney trip depression because I know our next trip to Disneyland is only days away!!!  (26 days to be exact!)  Instead, I'm kicking it in to overdrive to get a ton of things done for that trip!  I've also enjoyed a little bit of Disney magic that I brought home with me!

The other day, I indulged in the Minnie Mouse marshmallow pop I bought.  I had every intention of eating it as a mid-day snack on my last day at Disneyland, but I put that on pause to enjoy my Tigger tail.  The other day, I curled up on the couch in my Minnie pjs and enjoyed every single bite of my tasty treat.

Speaking of tasty treats, I've also enjoyed my Diamond Celebration Mickey and Minnie candy apples that I've brought home.  I just ate Mickey two nights ago and Minnie last night.  (They last about a week to ten days.)  I usually cut around the stick to be safe, but the apples were still delicious as always!  26 days until I can get another one... 

I've been busy at work the past two weeks.  I wasn't too far behind from missing one day, but I've stayed a bit extra this week to behind the scenes things done.  I've kept the Disney spirit alive.  Today, I was working with our IT guy (we weren't seeing patients) so I wore my Mickey iced latte shirt from Once Upon A Mickey Tee.  I've been wearing my Mickey key necklace (from WDW) all week.  Yesterday, my Paint the Night Mickey Lollipop Necklace from Enchanted Candy Carousel came and I had to wear it immediately!  I absolutely love it.  It's so fun and colorful!

I've also been busy at home getting a few more things put away.  This past weekend, I tackled my office.  Eliot surprised me by putting together my drawing desk while I was in California.  I've had it for about three years and we've never had enough space for it to bother putting it together.  I'm so excited to have a place to draw and paint!

I also unpacked the Wonderground postcards I bought at Disneyland.  I'm planning to make a huge collage wall above my drawing desk.  These are going to look great on it!

Ever since I got home, I've been really inspired to create things.  Thankfully, I've had a lot of ear inquiries for Happily Ever Hatter!  I'm so excited to start working on a few new designs!  I'm also hoping to get a few done for our trip to Disneyland!

I'm sure I'll definitely keep myself busy over the next few weeks.  Actually... I've gotta run now.  The San Jose Sharks hockey game seven is on and I'm going to go join Eliot in cheering them on!  Speaking of the Sharks, I registered our new car the other day and he was so happy to get his SJShrks license plate!  I had to bring the donkeys along with me so I could send Eliot this photo!

Hopefully I'll be back by the blog again soon!  In the meantime... Go Sharks!!!  °o°

Instagram Accounts

As I've mentioned before, I love Instagram.  Sure, it's got it's pluses and minuses, but overall, I'm a fan.  It's a great way to share photos and snippets of your life.  However, my favorite part is discovering new handmade shops and artists who I might not have found otherwise.  Since joining, I've followed many accounts and it's how I've found a few handmade sellers of some of my recent purchases!

About two weeks ago, Instagram finally updated their app so users are able to jump between accounts easily without having to log out and log back in.  I haven't been using my Happily Ever Hatter account that often since it was such a pain to access.  I usually stay in my "My Disney Life Blog" account.  I'd occasionally log out so I could access my "Happily Ever Hatter" account to post photos but it wasn't regular.

Now, I'm able to jump between accounts with ease.  I've been more active on all of my accounts.  Two weeks ago, I finally made Eliot a "Snowblade Creations" account for his shop.  I've only posted a few photos, but we're hoping to add some more soon!

I've also been more active on our "A Tail of Two Donkeys" account for Eeyore, Brother and Duffy.  I used to post some of their adventures on my blog, but now they have their own Instagram account for their shenanigans.  We love to dress them up and stage photos with them, so hopefully they'll have more photos soon!

If you're interested in following Eliot and me on our daily adventures, you can click the links above and it should take you to each of our different accounts!  If you have an Instagram account, give us a follow and say hello!  °o°

Something Awesome This Way Comes

Oie, it's been two weeks since I last wrote.  I'm off to a horrible start in keeping up with my blog this year.  However, I'm going to give myself a bit of a break.  We've had a lot going on around here lately!  I can't spill all of the secrets yet, but let's just say there are a lot of things in development here at Casa de Cady.

Over the past few weeks, Eliot and I have been busy making a business plan for a new line of products that we're collaborating on.  There's been a lot of number crunching and product development taking place.  It's definitely taken up a chunk of our "free" time.  It's an awesome idea though.  It's totally going to be worth all of the hard work!

In Happily Ever Hatter news... I've been working on a few custom orders (stay tuned for photos) as well as continuing progress with making new designs.  I have enough fabric and materials for about 15-20 designs that I haven't even started yet.  I also have a few half finished projects waiting patiently for their turn to be finalized.  I'm going to be very busy with those in the near future.

Eliot's been busy with his Snowblade Creations shop.  He's been working on a few soap orders for customers.  In his spare time, he's been busy trading Vinylmations with people on Facebook.  We have quite the collection of them growing in our living room! Apparently, he's even inquired about having a custom one made for me.  I have no idea what it'll be... I'm sure I'll be pleasantly surprised!  In the meantime, my little Vinylmation collection is chilling out on my desk.

We had a pretty quiet Easter.  The Easter Bunny spoiled us with lots of Frozen goodies.  We had two happy little donkeys with bunny ears and new outfits.  (We really need a frequent flyer card at Build-A-Bear...)  Eliot and I met up with my Mom, Nana and Jeremy for a Easter lunch at one of the local restaurants.

Winter is finally transitioning to spring here in Maine!  It's so nice to have the snow melted!  We had one of Eliot's Vinylmation friends pick us up a few items from Epcot's International Flower and Garden Festival since we aren't going this year.  We both fell in love with the Olaf garden statue.  I wanted to add Duffy to my collection and I couldn't say no to the Frozen Fever MagicBand.  (It's gorgeous!!!)  The guy was really nice and even sent us a free Flower and Garden Festival magnet!

Last weekend, we met up with Mom's family for my baby cousin Nadia's first birthday party!  Eliot and I got her a really cute Minnie Mouse shirt and little socks!  It was fun to see my cousins and to visit with them.  I'm so thankful that we're able to get together with them after these rough few months.

Finally, super sleuths might start to figure out what I've been up to by looking at my social media pages.  (That's the only hint you're getting!)  I've been busy with a lot of "behind the scenes" stuff laying the ground work for new things in store!  Blog followers will be happy to know I've also been preparing for more crafts and tutorials!  I feel like I've been at the craft stores as much as I've been home these past few weeks!  I love creating things and I've got quite the list of ideas.  So... I might not have been around here as often as planned, but it's because of all good things.  Promise.  °o°

Super Bowl XLIX Champions

"We are the Champions my friends!!!  And we'll keep on fighting 'til the end!!!"  Congrats to the New England Patriots for winning Super Bowl XLIX!!!

I am so excited!!!  The Pats are my team.  I'm a fan through and through.  I've watched them since middle school.  I remember spending Sundays with my Dad and brother watching the Pats games in our living room.  I'd ask Dad what calls meant and thus, I actually know quite a bit about football.  (I'm not one of those "bandwagon" fans.)

The Pats have gotten a bad rap lately.  I'm not getting into the whole "deflategate" thing.  As far as I'm concerned, you're supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. Nevertheless, that whole debacle makes this win taste that much sweeter.  After all, the Patriots seem to do better when it's them against the world.

Photo Source: No Idea I Saw This Shared on Facebook

I admit, we've gotten a bit spoiled up here in New England.  Over the past 15 years, we've brought home 9 championships between the Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics and Bruins.  We New Englanders like to think of Boston as "Title Town" or "Championship City."  We like to think of Tom Brady as the "Lord of the Rings" and now we have one more championship to add to the list.

Photo Source: Red Sox Maniac

Sunday, I spent the day preparing for the big game.  I wanted to make myself some Patriots ears to wear during the game.  I've been planning to make some for a while now, but the Super Bowl called for some special attire.  I love how they came out!

Eliot and I had the idea to dress Duffy up as a football to go with Eeyore's Patriots uniform.  He is small enough to be a football right?  The result is beyond adorable.

Throughout the day, (and the days leading up to the game) I found some funny things in my Facebook newsfeed.  This video and song was a favorite of mine.  I found myself humming it while working on Duffy's costume.  (Note: There is some inappropriate language in here both visually and verbally.  Please do not show this to your children.) 

"We gon' beat the Seahawks... don't believe us just watch..."  Sorry... anyways...

A few minutes before game time I put Duffy in his football costume.  I grabbed my Tom Brady jersey and my ear headband and prepared myself (aka psyched myself up) for the game.  I placed Eeyore and Duffy on the couch with me and was ready for kick off! I enjoyed Idina Menzel singing the National Anthem.  She totally killed it!

Watching the game was not as enjoyable.  I was on the edge of my seat most of the game.  By halftime, I was seriously starting to sweat it out since we were tied.  I did relax long enough to enjoy the halftime show with Katy Perry.  The dancing palm trees and sharks were pretty interesting... those beach balls certainly aren't deflated.

After the halftime show, I settled in for what would be a long second half.  There was a lot of me screaming at the television.  I probably said "I can't watch" about 50 times.  I started to give up somewhere during the 3rd quarter when the Seahawks started to pull away.  In the 4th quarter, I decided to drown my sorrows in a slice of chocolate cake and then we suddenly started to play better.  (Magic cake?)

By the time we scored another touchdown, I was so emotionally invested that I literally started to cry tears of joy.  (I think I completely shocked Eliot with my investment in the game.)  Those last few minutes dragged by like years.  I hid behind my hands on and off the entire time.  I was devastated when Seattle was only yards away from the end zone.  When Butler caught that interception I was in complete shock.  Before I could fully register all of the events of the last few minutes, we had won!!!

WE WON THE SUPER BOWL!!!  Ahh!!!  (I proceeded to walk around the house with a goofy stupid grin on my face for the rest of the evening.)  Of course, I had to watch the trophy ceremony.  The Pats filmed the obligatory "You've just won the Super Bowl, what are you going to do next?" commercial.

Once the Pats return home, they'll be hometown heroes as they ride throughout the streets of Boston in the traditional parade of Duckboats.  I'm thankful the parade has been postponed due to weather.  I'll be able to watch it Wednesday before work!!!

Photo Source: Boston.com Facebook Page

I have to admit that I'm relieved.  After all the naysayers saying crap about the Patriots being washed up, about Tom Brady being too old, they've done it again and proved them wrong.  The Patriots have another Super Bowl win.  Tom Brady has his 4th ring and holds many NFL records.  Bill Belichick and the coaching staff has brought another team to victory.  PatsNation is proud.  We never stopped believing.  "When you wish upon a star your dreams come true."

Go Pats!!! °o°