Yes, I'm Dopey. Are you?

I’m just putting this out there now - I WILL run the Dopey Challenge at Disney World. Don’t worry about the fact that I’m planning a bit ahead. With all that we have going on raising our boys, I know it won’t happen right away. So my plan is to do this the year after Luke graduates - in January of 2027. Yeah, yeah, I know I’ll be a bit older then. So if you see me out running now, give me some encouragement - I’ll be in training for the next 7 years!

So for you non runDisney peeps, you may be asking what on earth is the Dopey Challenge?

Glad you asked - it’s running 48.6 Miles in 4 consecutive days! Day one is the 5k, day two is the 10k, day three is the half marathon and day four is the full marathon!

Complete all 4 Walt Disney World Weekend races and earn not only the 4 individual event medals, but both Goofy's Race and a Half Challenge Medal and Dopey Challenge Medal—for a grand total of 6!

You also will receive 6 participant shirts!

I don’t know about you, but 6 medals and 6 shirts is quite a bit of incentive for me to be in a little bit of pain for 4 days.

Look at all that bling!!

So who’s with me? Start running now!

When the time comes, you'll need to register for the Dopey Challenge, which includes all 4 races, in order to be eligible for the Challenge Medal. And shockingly there are a lot of weirdos like me that think this sounds like a good idea so it does sell out.

Are you interested in a runDisney event? Let me know and I’ll add you to my list to keep informed of the deadlines. And of course, I’ll plan and book your trip for you for free!!

runDisney 2019 Race Registrations Coming Up

Remember that one time that I lived out my dream of running a race at Disney World?  Best.  Day.  Ever!  Well it's your turn now!  

Race registrations for 2019 events have been on hold while runDisney implemented a new race registration system. But they are scheduled now!  Under the new system guests will be able to register for races using their Disney account. Guests will also be able to register multiple participants at the same time and use payment options such as Disney gift cards. Registration dates are as follows:

-- 2019 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend - January 9-13.
Registration begins at 11am CST on July 19, 2018.

-- 2019 Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend - February 21-24.
Registration begins at 11am CST on August 7, 2018.

-- 2019 Star Wars Rival Run Weekend - April 4-7.
Registration begins at 11am CST on August 28, 2018.

Take a look at my previous blog post about my experiences at a runDisney event by clicking here!  Remember that my planning services are completely FREE if you book your trip through me.  And having done a race here myself, I have lots of tips to help you.

Keep in mind that on my previous blog post, I mention to sign up for an active.com account to make registration day smoother - that's no longer the process.  Just use your Disney sign on!!  If you're thinking of registering and want to chat before you do or want me to be available if you need help that day, just give me a shout.  It's non-refundable so make sure you want to do it before signing up!

Let me help you make a bunch of wonderful memories with very few blisters...  Call me today and let's get you an awesome medal!!

runDisney Races - Should You Do One?

Yes, Yes and Yes!  I guess I might say no if you were opposed to running a race in general but you could walk one and still have a great time!  You should definitely sign up for the most magical race weekend on Earth at Walt Disney World® Resort where your favorite classic Disney characters are the hosts! With race distances for all skill levels, including Kids Races, a 5K, 10K, Half Marathon and Marathon, participants will enjoy special Disney entertainment on course and earn one-of-a-kind Disney finisher medals. Plus, runners can take on race challenges to earn even more bling. Whether you're a beginner or a veteran runner, everyone can experience the magic of running through Walt Disney World® Resort!

Registration for the 2019 Disney World Marathon Weekend opens up on April 17 at noon (ET) or 11am (CST).  You need to plan ahead and know what you want to do because it sells out QUICK and is non-refundable.  So only sign up if you're sure you want to do it but be sure to sign up that day!  

For Race Weekend:

The Expo - you must pick up your packet YOURSELF.  I know a lot of races allow you to pick up other people's packets but not this one.  So plan to be in Orlando the evening before the race with enough time to pick up your packet before the expo closes.  I heard the the expo was quite crowded the evenings before the 5K and 10K but on the evening before the Half, it was practically empty.  Here are some pics of the expo that evening:

The Expo is at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex on Disney property.

Packet Pickup - NO lines when we went!

T-shirt pickup - also no lines!

TRUE Story!!

Race Morning - We stayed at the Contemporary which was AMAZING for convenience.  Monorail resorts are perfect since the start line is at Epcot and you are taken right there.  Each Disney resort has buses dedicated that morning for the race so even if you don't stay on the monorail, you'll be good to go.

Plan on getting there EARLY.  Our race start time was 5:30am.  The latest they recommended being on the monorail was 3:30am.  I hate to cut things close so we headed out of the room by 3am.  It's a long walk from the monorail or bus drop-off to the corrals so you want to leave plenty of time!  Yes, we did have to stand in the corral for years it seemed before the race started but at least we didn't miss it!  We were in one of the last corrals so we didn't cross the start line until close to 6:30am.  You do have to be a little bit careful on food and drink that morning.  Don't drink so much that you have to leave the corral to use the restroom but of course don't let yourself become dehydrated!

The best parts of the race?  Running through the parks, of course!!  If you're like me, prepare for a few tears as you hit the parks.  The Half goes through Magic Kingdom and ends at Epcot.  The Full goes through all four parks (which is enough to make me plan to do this some day even though I had promised myself a few years ago to never run a full marathon again)!  I didn't stop for PhotoPass photographers but I tried to look like running is easy for every photographer that I saw! I also snapped some shots as we ran with my phone - wish I had done more of that.

Almost to the Magic Kingdom!

Running down MAIN STREET!! Yes, it's crowded...

Woody & Bullseye! Next time I'll stop for the actual pic!

THE Castle and a Cheeseball

My fav pic of my running buddies - Ryan and our cousin Muriel.

Geez - how did I miss the camera this bad? Too excited over running thru the Castle, I guess!

Murn's much better at smiling at the right camera!

Cheeseball Part 2. I really did have THE BEST TIME!

Costumes - you've really got to dress up!  But there are rules.  Check out runDisney's website for the full set but basically you can do whatever won't get in your way or anyone else's way and no masks.  We saw some great ones but it was an off year since it was so cold.  I think a lot of the best ones were covered up with layers!  The easiest is to dress as a character but still in running gear like Ryan (Yoda) and I (Rapunzel) did.

Finish line pic!

We did it!!

Medals - Wear them in the parks the following days!  You'll enjoy the glory as everyone congratulates you and makes you feel like the rock star that you are...

Yeah I was a bit proud of my medal.

Use your lanyard for character signatures!

My Best Pal Mickey adding his signature!

Post Race - I would recommend planning an easy day on race day.  I was pumped to go eat my favorite breakfast at Tusker House post race so had made reservations for our entire family.  We made it on time but it did put a bit of stress on me to make sure we got there.  The race takes longer than you think due to stopping for pics, crowds and busy transportation.  I skipped a lot of the set up photo ops with characters since I knew we were on a time crunch.  Next time I won't have a set schedule after the race and I'll stop for all of those pics!  

My only other advice is to be prepared for the unexpected.  Yeah, I know - how can you prepare for that?  Well for one, plan on any type of weather.  We FROZE before the race since we were expecting to have warmer temps.  Mid 30s is pretty miserable when you're wearing shorts and standing hours before you reach the start line.  I would wear layers that you can toss if you warm up.  Discarded clothing is collected and given to charity after the race so you can feel good about tossing it aside.  

For the best race possible...  Train!  Even though it's the most fun race I've ever run, it is still a long distance and you can get hurt if you're not ready.  Enjoy yourself - you most likely won't set a personal record on a Disney race.  But I can tell you that you won't care.  So. Much. Fun.  Just be forewarned that this race will ruin you for any other races you plan to run!!  Nothing compares.

Check out how much fun these people had when we watched the Full race at Epcot.  They had stopped for drinks near the finish line.  We saw a ton of people doing this - don't worry about finishing quickly and enjoy yourself!!  Also, be sure and wear your MagicBand so that you can just charge food/drinks without carrying money.  Of course, you'll have to wait until the parks open to be able to do this but on the Full race you'll be running well after the parks open.

Here are some tips to help you on registration day.  PLEASE give me a shout if you think you might want to register and I can be available that day for info or help...

Before registration day - sign up for an account on Active.com - the registration system that runDisney uses. This way, you will save time entering basic information.

Be at your computer a few minutes BEFORE registration opens and open your browser window to Active.com and make sure you’re logged in.

Once the time arrives, the registration link will appear on the runDisney page (may need to refresh a few times).  Click on it and you will be taken to Active.com. By having logged into your account earlier, you should already be logged in and ready to go. Select which race you are registering for. Here’s when a few different things could happen:

• You might be instantly directed to the registration page.
• You might be sent to a virtual waiting queue. If so, do not hit back or close your window! This is what I saw when I registered last year - the wait time was only a few minutes for me.
• You might see ON HOLD by the race you want to sign up for. If this happens, DON’T PANIC, just keep hitting refresh and trying again since there’s a good chance it will reopen.
• You might see SOLD OUT.  Don't let this happen to you!  Be on time to register!

I would love to visit with you about your personal situation and talk about the races in more depth.  Of course, along with race information, I can plan and book your entire trip for FREE!  Give me a call!!

Want to Know Where to Get the Best Pics at Disney World?

If you're anything like me, you have what you think of as an excellent memory.  But then you see a picture of something and realize you had forgotten all about that moment.

So to make sure you have a lasting memory of the fun you had on vacation, you'll want to have a lot of pics from your trip.  In this post, I'll let you know about some fun and new Photopass experiences and some pics you don't want to miss.

First, the pics you have to have...

In my book, if you don't get a family photo in front of the Castle and a family photo with Mickey, you've completely failed and will need to redo the whole trip!  It was almost a disaster this time as we weren't able to get the Mickey pic until OUR LAST DAY.  Trust me I was stressed about it.  The problem is that our usual plan of meeting Mickey first thing in the morning never panned out.  Both days that we started at Magic Kingdom didn't work - one was race day so we weren't there at rope drop and the other was the day that it was just Luke and I while the others played golf.  Now that Mickey has some cool technology that allows him to interact with the guests, the line gets crazy long.  So while I normally don't recommend a FastPass for a character meeting, if you're not going first thing, you might think about doing that.  I've heard rumors that they may discontinue the technology and just have standard photo ops which would speed up the line but that's not been verified yet.

Other pics that I love are those that you can only get if you purchase them through PhotoPass.  If you do Memory Maker (read more about that here), you can get all of these pics for one price.  If you don't think you'll want them all, you can purchase them individually from the website.  I love the Magic Shots and the in-ride photos.  Here are some of the new ones they offer since we were last there:

Hitchhiking Ghost at Haunted Mansion

Pirates of the Caribbean

Lanterns near Rapunzel's Tower

I love that each time we go, there is something new we haven't done or seen.  The Hitchhiking Ghost is one of my favorite pics from this trip!  And the addition of the in-ride photo at Pirates of the Caribbean is fun.  I'll admit that the Lantern pic is one of my most and least favorite pics.  The lighting makes me look 1,000 years old - yes, let's just say it's the lighting.  But you know how I love Tangled so the boys went and rode a couple rides while I waited in line for this.  Beware, the line is long since they only do this shot after dark and it seems to take people FOREVER to get together and smile, but I love it.  To get this pic, just head to the restrooms in Rapunzel's area (I still can't believe all she has are restrooms!!) sometime after dusk.  

Sadly one pic that I had heard rumors of before we went was a Magic Shot one with a Giant Dole Whip!  They are supposedly near Aloha Isle but I was never able to find a photographer there.  If you go, check for yourself and send me your pic if you get one!!

And lastly, don't forget to take lots of pics with your phone or personal camera.  As much as I love the PhotoPass pics, you can get a lot of really memorable ones yourself and they're free!  Also, don't underestimate your kids' photography skills.  Luke and Andrew took a lot of pics for me when I was on a ride or just not with them.  The first one in this group is one that will always remind me that Andrew had a broken finger and his cast REEKED of the nastiest odor ever! 

The next one is a really fun picture that you can ask the balloon vendor to help you with - they won't let go of the balloons, but they will move out of the shot so it looks like you've got the whole bunch.  

The next one is a benefit of early morning dining reservations.  A picture in front of the castle alone!  It's rare to get a pic without a throng of people in your shot.  And the last one is special to me since it's a pic of my race medal.  I love the castle in the background.  You can do this with anything you'd like - a new souvenir, a child's favorite stuffed animal...  I wish I'd had somebody's Flat Stanley with me on this trip!  

As much as I love being at Disney World, I know that memories fade.  These pictures won't and they'll bring me joy forever.  Let me help you plan a memorable trip so that you can get your own awesome pics!!

An Honest Account of the Amazing Highs (and a few lows) From Our Disney Vacation

I tend to only talk about the positive aspects of a Disney Vacation.  I am, after all, hoping you'll book a trip through me and have an amazing time!  But I know that no trip is ever perfect from beginning to end.  You'll hit some bumps along the way - but after reading this, I hope you'll see that the highs completely outweigh the lows.  

The HIGHS!

This kid.  This kid right here made my whole week with one amazing morning.  We ran the runDisney Half Marathon together.  It could have been a disaster.  He had a broken toe and a hurt arm in the weeks leading up to the race.  With that and his school/sports schedule, he didn't get in many long runs.  

And then the worst happened and 2 days prior to the trip, we all got the nastiest stomach bug I've ever encountered.  I wasn't sure he'd be able to stand up on Saturday, much less run 13.1 miles.  On the monorail to the race, I kept looking at him thinking he looked pale and tired and it was never going to happen.  

We hadn't slept much the night before (you have to be on the monorail by 3:30am) and then we had to walk 1.5 miles to get to the start line.  As if that wasn't enough, we stood in frigid temperatures (34 degrees) with shorts on (I'm Mom of the Year and didn't think we'd need tights) for a couple of hours waiting for the race to start.

Having also not eaten much for days, it's a wonder we made it to the race.  But when we crossed the start line, Ryan ran his heart out.  We only stopped for a restroom break once and we'd walk while we took a sip of water.  Other than that, we ran the entire race.  

I'm still amazed at him.  I KNOW he was tired and hurting but he never complained.  And with a half mile to go, he actually said, "Mom, I'll let you cross the finish line first if you want to beat me."  

I felt like crying - and you know I'd already gotten teary-eyed running through the castle!  I didn't let him let me win - how embarrassing for your 46-year-old mother to beat you.  But it was so sweet that he was willing to do that!  

There may have been a bit of complaining in the next couple of days about sore feet but that was a tiny little low compared to the high of him running his first half marathon with me!!  I'd had dreams of running a race at Disney and thanks to him, I did it. 

Kid #2!!

I always feel a little guilty taking Andrew to amusement parks.  He goes and he says he has a good time, but he just doesn't like to ride most of the rides.  So he stands in line for quite some time with us and then goes out the exit when we get on the rides. 

A lot of people - scratch that - MOST people would complain about the waits or about standing in line for a ride they're not interested in, but he really doesn't.  He willingly holds all of my stuff - my heavy backpack and camera.  And he'll even try to get a pic of us on the ride - like this awesome one here:

He was such a trooper this trip.  I wanted to hit 4 parks in one day and he was up for it.  I wanted to stop a take a picture with Peter Pan.  Fine by him.  I wanted to ride Small World one last time.  No complaints.  So thankful for the good attitude and sweet spirit in this boy!

Kid #3!

When we started planning this trip, I mentioned to the boys how much I'd like to go to eat in the Castle.  With all boys, I'd never considered eating a meal where 5 different princesses come by your table.  Luke went through the "Rapunzel love" phase when he was 2, but he's 10 now.  (Do yourself a favor and look at his Rapunzel phase here!)  I suggested they go play golf and I would just be that weirdo eating by myself in the castle. 

But Luke offered to go with me.  I know he wasn't a huge fan of it.  This pic of him with Cinderella is quite different than his past pics with Rapunzel.

When the princesses came around during breakfast, I told them he was my photographer so he took all of the pics of us.  I think he enjoyed that much more than being fawned on by pretty girls!  Again, there was no complaining!  He was happy to take the pictures and I'll forever appreciate his company on our Castle date!!

Kid #4!  Ok, so I don't have 4 kids.  But I do have to give credit to the guy who took us to Disney.  This may shock you but Don isn't the Disney fan that I am.  He really doesn't like crowds or standing in line or public transportation which doesn't help.  I know he'd rather go on a camping/fishing/skiiing/lake/anything else trip so I appreciate him going on this trip with us!  Not only did he pay for it, he had to take off work to go on his not-so-favorite trip.  And did I mention the stomach bug? Yep, he also got to fly on a very queasy stomach.  Maybe a bit of eye-rolling that he didn't think I saw, but there wasn't much outward complaining. 

I'm thankful to have a husband that gets that I'm a super Disney nerd and puts up with me!

The LOWS...

All-in-all, I don't have much to put here.  The crowds last week were much higher than historically encountered this time of year.  So lines were longer and people were just everywhere.  I think in the past, we had been lucky to be at off-peak times and were a bit spoiled.  One thing I learned this trip is that it's ok if we all aren't together all the time.  

A few times Don and one or two of the boys went back to the hotel for down-time.  Although I want to spend every second in the parks, I get that they needed to do that.  I think that made our time together ever better.  

We had sore feet for sure.  The day of the race, I got in more than 50,000 steps!  But if you go in knowing that you'll be walking and prepare for it, it's not such a big deal.  

Also with the crowds so high, it helped that I had planned ahead and made dining reservations and secured FastPasses.  You'll have plenty of Lows if you have to wait in line at each and every turn.  

The sore feet and eye-rolling will not be what I think of when I think back on this trip.  The fun memories and great pictures will be all that I remember - and I will remember it often!!

I'd love to help you plan a trip with a bunch of HIGHS and a few tiny LOWS.  Call me and let's talk about it!!