So, over a year has passed since my last post. I have no idea where
the time has gone, but I really wanted to do a recap of my second year
serving as the runDisney mom on the
Disney Parks Moms Panel. I have no words to say what being on the panel has done for me. The friendships, opportunities, and overall fun cannot be described. So, I am going to try to SHOW you!
2013
was an awesome year! It started out with the Walt Disney World
Marathon in January. It was my first marathon, and it was so much fun!
My friend Allison and my husband Heath also ran it for their first
marathons. Here is a great video runDisney made about it for their blog:
2013 MARATHON WEEKEND:
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| Ready for our 1st marathon! Who will win? Hint: not me:) |
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| It was Nancy and Jodie's 1st marathon, too! Love my Moms Panel Pals! |
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| 5 miles in! Beautiful sight |
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| Give me that medal! |
One month later, it's time for the Princess Half Marathon! This time, I was going with a great group of girlfriends from Kentucky.
2013 PRINCESS HALF MARATHON
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| We found a Prince Charming (or two) at the expo |
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| For some, it was their first time at Disney World! We had to take in some rides:) |
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| LOL |
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| Showing some love for Gaston during the race |
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| Go Cats! | | | | | |
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2013 TOWER OF TERROR 10-MILER and Mini Moms Panel Reunion
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| Moms Panel Cruise Mom, Nancy, and I practicing our selfies as we head to the Magic Kingdom for the Halloween Party! |
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| Made it just in time:) |
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| Met up with some other 2012 Moms Panelists:) |
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| Moms Panel lunch |
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| Having some fun with Jodie, Nancy, and Angie at the runDisney expo |
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| We did it...we pushed floor 13! Oh no... |
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| Ready for the night race and post-race party. |
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| I made it out of the 5th dimension |
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| THIS ride was not a great idea after the race! |
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| My roomies for the weekend. |
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| Adam used to work in marketing for runDisney but has now created his own company. More on that soon! |
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| Moms Panelists running the race:) |
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| My friend and SnapChat buddy, Kristin Long! |
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| We all made it! Yay! |
2013 WINE AND DINE HALF MARATHON
(My Favorite Race!)
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| Packet pick-up with another great group of friends |
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| Carb-loading done right! |
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| Where's Dave?? |
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| We stood in line and just missed Mickey Mouse:( But, still a cute pic! |
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| My favorite part of the race. I love the lights and music on the Streets of America |
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| To Infinity and Beyond! We'd settle for the finish line by this point:) |
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| Mary Poppins and Bert were there to congratulate us at the Finish Line Party! |
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| Mexican at 2 a.m. right after a half marathon? Why not? |
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| Minnie Mouse loved our shoes! |
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| It was Brandi's first trip to Disney! She LOVED it!!! | | |
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This is where 2013 ended, and also my "run" as the runDisney mom on the Disney Parks Panel. All of the pixie dust from the year, though, must have overpowered me and led me to sign up for the Inaugural Dopey Challenge in January 2014. The Dopey Challenge consisted of running a 5K, 10K, Half Marathon, and Marathon over the period of 4 days. Dopey? Yes! Fun? Heck, Yeah!!!
2014 INAUGURAL DOPEY CHALLENGE
The Bling:
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| 3.1 + 6.2 + 13.1 + 26.2 = 48.6 |
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| I got a new camera for Christmas, so Heath and I were practicing our "pro skils" with the 1/3 picture pose:) |
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| Heath joined me on the weekend for the "Goofy Challenge", the half and full marathon |
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| Obviously, I win this one...more medals means a win:) |
The Friends:
No doubt, the best part about running at Disney is the friendships you make. These wonderful people don't live near me, but with Facebook, Twitter, SnapChat, texting, etc., it really does not matter. You will find a friendly face at every event. And, more than likely, you will find a friend forever.
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| First, some shopping at the expo! |
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| Kristin:) | | |
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| It's B DisneyTravelPlanner Smith! A friend in real life as well as the awesome planner for my upcoming, first Disney cruise. |
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| Online and Real Life friends, Carrie, Mary Jo, and Kristin |
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| I would probably run every single day if I could go through here:) |
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| Heath didn't believe me that I was walking around the Boardwalk in my pajama pants. You can take the girl out of Kentucky... |
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| The Boardwalk. One of my favorite spots on Disney property |
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| Moms Panel Buddy Stacy at the inaugural Minnie Mouse 10K |
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| More friends:) |
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| Yep! Dave is Dopey, too! |
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| A precious Disney friend, DiDi! |
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| Narcoosee's with Nancy, Chris, Heath, Jodie and Steven |
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| We didn't just eat! We ran... |
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| ...and we laughed |
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| ...and we posed, a lot! |
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| And, we laughed some more! I truly adore these two:) |
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| 4th day of getting up at 2:30 a.m. I am double fisting a Diet Coke and coffee! |
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| The views in the parks make 48.6 miles worth it! There's my Diet Coke! Thanks Marc:) |
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| Dave getting some panoramic shots on the Disney Speedway. You can tell we take our running seriously:) |
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| My half marathon and (half of the) marathon buddy, Adam in all of his "Flashdance" glory! I don't know how he ran the whole thing in a sweatshirt, but I'm so proud of him for completing the Goofy Challenge and his first marathon! |
A MARATHON OF EMOTIONS:
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| Mile 5 Woo Hoo!! This is so much FUN! |
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| Mile 15 (ish) I am SO over this |
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| Mile 24 Yeah BABY! I got this! |
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| Mile 25.5 I am Just. So. Happy. I love Epcot. I love Frozen. I love Disney World. I love everything!!! |
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| Total Happiness and Relief:) |
If you made it this far, thanks for sharing my year with me! I look forward to making many more magical memories in 2014 and beyond!
