Run Disney

It's no secret I love Disney. Seriously, like if you didn't know that then you have been living under a very large rock in the middle of nowhere.
Anyway I used my love for Disney to my advantage and talked my parents into signing me up for a RunDisney. They've been wanting me to do this thing called "get active" and so like I said, I used this to my advantage. I told them I would start running if they let me do a race in Disney. I thought this was a long shot but to my surprise they went for it. Now my original purpose was for Disney World but they made me do Disneyland first to make sure I was serious before flying across the country. But if it gets me to Disney obviously i'm going to be serious about it.
My dad and 2 older sisters often run half marathons and I had to lay down the law right away and tell them there was no way that was going to happen. I tried to talk them into doing a simple 5K but that wasn't going to fly with them so we settled on a 10K. Now, for a girl who pretty much woke up one day and decided to become a runner this was a big deal. 6.2 miles seemed like some sort of fantasy. I instantly started training and luckily my sister Courtnie was a huge support as she would go to the gym with me in the mornings, which was a huge factor because if not I probably would have struggled to get my butt to the gym.
Before I knew it my race was here. Courtnie kept reassuring me she thought I was ready but I was a bit nervous.
My parents, Darci and I flew to California to let the fun begin. Now, my family has always been a Disney family but Darci and my Dad don't really do rides, but lucky for me my mom does. We flew on a Thursday evening and walked around Downtown Disney that night after eating at our favorite Mexican restaurant there. I was in absolute heaven. I was taking pictures of the WOD costumes to send to Barb and loved being back in that Disney atmostphere, and it was only Downtown Disney!
That night I could hardly sleep. I was like a four year old on Christmas Eve. Luckily morning finally came and we were one of the firsts in line for California Adventure. We went straight for Cars Land then hit all the other big rides without much of a wait time. Then we went over to Magic Kingdom. I was soaking in everything (and comparing every little thing to Florida. oops.) (MK for life.)
During lunch we went back to our room to take a nap. Well Dad and Darci napped, my mom and I rested for like half hour before I dragged her back to watch the parade. It was no Celebrate a Dream Come True parade but it was a Disney parade so obviously it was still cute. I then dragged my mom (Maybe not literally dragged but I was making all the decisions) back to Fantasyland so I could judge it. :)
Eventually Darci and Dad came back and we ate dinner, rode a couple of rides, then got some ice cream as I made sure we would have a good spot for the fireworks. Time for the REAL juding to come forth. The Firework show. I had seen these fireworks before but Wishes was so drilled into my mind I was looking forward to this. They definitely weren't as good as Wishes, as Wishes will probably always be one of my top 5 favorite things in the world but kind of like the parade, it was Disney so obviously I was impressed.
We then went back to the hotel to get some sleep for our EARLY wake up call the next morning.
4:30 the next morning we got up to get ready for our race. Over 10,000 people waited behind the starting line to begin the race. The race started at 6:00 but by the time we got to the starting line it was 6:25. We ran through backstage Disney (something I loved because I was used to the MK tunnels) and then all throughout the park, straight over to Califronia Adventure before headining out of the parks for the final 2 miles of the race. Characters were there along the way and Cast Members lined the streets to offer a high five.
It was nearly impossible to actually run fast with so many people and such narrow streets but I had a blast and loved every minute of it. Who knew someone could love running a race so much?
Mickey was there at the finish line to offer a high five (we all know how I love that guy!) and I was given my shiny medal. We went to the park after (like right after. Didn't even shower. oops. Aint got time to take care of our hygiene, we're in Disney!) and got there right as it opened, hitting up some of the big rides that have the usual long wait times.
We did our thing. Actually took a nap this day. then had to go play some more. Then later that night I got to be reunited with Kristen. The rest of my family left for bed so it was just me and Kristen tearing up Disneyland like the olden days. It was so great to catch up with her though and wish I lived so much closer to her.
My family heads back to Disneyland the beginning of May and I absolutely can not wait. I really need to A: Marry a Disney lover and B: Live closer to Disney. Like oh I dont know Vista Waaaaay? Just kidding. Not there, but still.