Ten 10Ks that might be worth Running

This week's Tuesdays on the Run theme is Our Favorite Race Distance.  Believe it or not, we both actually agree that the 10K is our favorite distance and here's why.


*Training for a 10K is not a huge commitment like a half or full marathon.

* It's a smaller distance yet most races will still give you a nice sized medal and a tech shirt. ( We've only ever got cotton t-shirts for 5Ks)

* For some half marathons ( like Disney ones) you need to submit a proof of time from a 10K distance or longer.

The one bad thing about having the 10K as our favorite race distance is that 10K's are not very plentiful. Most races are either 5Ks or Half marathons. It can be hard to find a 10K to run. This can be quite frustrating if you are looking for a 10K to get a time to submit for a bigger race ( like Disney).

We've helped you out though. Here are  several 10Ks that just might be worth running. We say it MIGHT be worth running because we haven't run all of these. Some are still on our list.

1. Wicked 10K, VA Beach

 ( We've talked about this race so many times so by now you probably know it is one of our favorites. It's a great course to PR at)

2. Runner's World 10K, Bethlehem PA
 ( This was another great race to run in the fall, very scenic ( with a few hills).

3. Disney Races (several of the Disney races have now include a 10K race)

4. The Hershey 10K, Hershey PA 
( This one is on our bucket list for sure. This 10K is a Spring race so I'm not sure we are going to be able to do it this spring since our schedule is already full)

5. Rock n Roll Series - Some cities only ( Denver, Las Vegas, Montreal, Vancouver, San Antonio, Portland OR,  and San Jose),  The cities that offer the 10K distance may change for the next race season.

6. The Rocky Run 10K, Philadelphia PA
( This is a new one we recently found. Too bad it's the same weekend we are going to Vegas.)

7. Bolder Boulder 10K, Boulder Co
 ( If you want to be challenged by the elevation in Co, this might be a good one for you. Runner's World named this race as America's All Time Best 10K

8. Cooper River Bridge Run, Charleston SC
( My BFF lives in South Carolina. This looks like something we might want to do some Spring! This is claimed to be one of the largest 10K races in America.)

9.Ukropts Avenue Monument 1OK, Richmond VA
 ( Richmond is full of great races. I recently learned about this 10K. It' a part of a bigger race series they have there. USA Today claimed this among their 10 Great American Road Races.)

10.  MCM Events, Washington DC
 ( There is a 10K associated with the Marine Corps Marathon in October and then there is also a 10K turkey trot in November)

If you've ever  run a 10K, which one was your favorite?

                                             

 

 

Why I am fearing my next Disney Race

I will be heading to Disney VERY Soon but there are just a few things that I want to be upfront and honest about. I am actually fearful about running my next Disney race. Ironically enough this race is called The Tower of Terror 10 Miler, so maybe I'm suppose to be terrified? Probably not. This will be my 8th Disney race that I've run so I know how this works, but it will be the first time I'm running Tower of Terror.

Okay, since I'm being honest, I  will lay it all out here why I'm a little fearful of this race.

1. It's in the dark. This will be my first night time race. I've never even practiced running at night. Last year at this time I read a race recap that my friend wrote about her first night time race and how she fell ill during the race. Being in the dark with those bright lights made her so sick that she couldn't finish the race.  I have this incident in the back of my mind. I hope this doesn't happen to me.

2. Not only am I fearful of running in the dark, I am concerned about how to handle my day up until the race? What should I eat? How much rest should I get? What things do I need to do differently for a night race than a morning race? Also, will I be making a mistake running the 5K in the morning and then the 10 miler at night?

3. I'll be standing in the corral by myself and running all ten miles by myself. Well technically I'll be with thousands of other runners, but I won't have my best runner friends by my side. I know I can do this though!

4. Probably the BIGGEST reason I am nervous/fearful of running this race is that I have set a goal time and I am afraid to fail.  THIS is the only race that I planned to run for time this year. I took it easy on both of my half marathons this year and I know for sure that I did not run them to my full potential. I feel that I'm feeling good enough that I won't have to hold back as much for the 10 Miler ( I hope).  The reason I want to get a good time is because this is the time I want to submit for corral placement for marathon weekend.  As you might know, My sister and I are running the Disney Marathon together. Lacey is always a Corral "A" runner but I'm more of the middle of the pack runner.  I need a decent time so I don't have to make her move too many corrals back. Not that it should matter because we all start and finish at the same spot but #runnersguilt has set in.


But in all, I am very excited about this Disney trip and the race ( kind of). I know the 5K will be fun and I'm not even stressed over getting to the expo because there is no merchandise that I just HAVE to have.  I'm going to get a massage today, so hopefully I will be feeling refreshed when I get to Disney.

So there you have it folks! I can't wait to come back and tell you all how it went! Hopefully it will be a positive report!   ~M

Have you ever felt nervous/ fearful of a race?

A Peek in our Week and what we've been loving lately

This is the part of the week where we share what we've been up to during the week.

After running The Rock N Roll in Philly on Sunday I felt pretty good so I decided to do an easy 3 mile run on Monday. I didn't really do any runs the rest of the week though. -L

 



This weekend I went to the Neptune Festival in Virginia Beach to celebrate my friend's birthday.  The Neptune festival is full of music, food, and sand sculptures. My friend rented hotel rooms right along the Ocean front so we could experience it all. -L

I continued with my Goofy Training plan and had two really good runs this week. The training plan only called for a 3 mile run on Friday which I did miss, but walked 3 miles on both Friday and Saturday. -M

                                 What We are Loving this Week

 



I've used my old foam roller so much that it had started to get a permanent curve in it. I just received my new foam roller in the mail this week so I have been using often! -L

I also got this bath spa this week. I can tell I'll be getting my use out of this. Especially after those long runs! -L

I've been feeling so exhausted lately ( headaches and dehydration) so my sister suggested that I start drinking some of my sports drinks after my run. I looked in my basket for packets of drink mixes and I found this BLOX mix in Watermelon. It is DELICIOUS!  -M

I am so glad that the Wednesday night shows are back on. Modern Family, The Middle, and Nashville are all my favorites. I've recently discovered this show on GSN called "Idiotest" ( Idiot test). It is SO silly that it's intriguing. They show a series of puzzles and you are suppose to choose the most obvious answer. For example: This puzzle asks "Which building has the most stories?" If you picked the tallest building you would be wrong. If you picked the Library, you would be right.

I am also excited that Amazing Race is back on. My BFF is from Columbia, SC and she is friends with, (or use to be), with the Dentist couple ( and she is a patient of the wife).  I have heard SO much stuff about this couple ( and not all good), that I am very intrigued to see how they are portrayed on National Television...lol   -M


So tell us, what are you loving lately?  Do you watch Amazing Race? If so, what do you think of the couples so far?

5 Favorites you'll want to make this fall

This week's theme for the Friday 5 is Five Fall Favorites! When I think of fall, I think of all the fun fall flavors that come out this time of year. Of course my favorite is Pumpkin, but I can't forget some other fall favorites like Apples and Pears.

 

We've put together some recipes that might become your fall favorites. We've compiled these from some of our other blogger friends with their permission of course. If you are interested in the recipe, please click on the link below the picture. It will take you to the full recipe from the blogger who shared it with us.

 

Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream Pie from The Kim Six Fix

 

If this doesn't say fall, I don't know what does.

 

 

 

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread from Ivy & Co.

 

 

Gluten Free Pumpkin Cakies from Real Food Simple.

That's right, its a "cakie". Lighter than a cake but thicker than a cookie!

 

But I am also aware that not all of you love pumpkin, so you might want to try this next recipe.

 

 

Luscious Pear Pie from Over Stuffed Life

 

 

And my personal favorite is this Chicken Sausage & Apple Pizza. You may have remembered I made this  earlier and it is fabulous!

 

 

 

Don't forget, you have a few days left to enter our Fall Giveaway. Make sure to enter if you haven't already.  You can enter the giveaway HERE. While you are there, be sure to check out the other bloggers listed who are giving cool stuff away.

 

 

Disney Magic Runs : Brazil, Spain, and where else?

Welcome to another edition of Thursday Thoughts.  Today we are thinking about Disney races overseas. If you are at all interested in Disney races like we are, then you probably have seen on social media that Disney plans to do a running event in Paris.

From what I have heard, September 2015 is the date for this event, although I haven't heard the official announcement from Disney yet.  Unlike Disney world, we can't just go to Paris for a weekend trip. I suspect people will want to plan an overseas vacation with more than a few months notice. So I am wondering why Disney has not released any details of this event yet. I know I'd want to know about a trip like this 11 months in advance. Well. I don't think we have to worry about that any way. Lacey has already been to Disneyland Paris and you all know how much I HATE to fly long distances ( and flying over seas anytime soon does NOT appeal to me at all). So, I guess this is one Run Disney event we wont be signing up for.  But anyway, this is not the reason for this post.



Source

The real reason for this post is to tell you that 2015 will not be the first time that a Disney running event has been put on overseas!  Did you know that Disney races have been going on in Brazil for the past few years. It is not called Run Disney, instead it is called Disney Magic Run.  When I heard about this I had to find out more information. Of course everything I found was in a different language (perhaps Spanish?). I was able to translate some of the information and this is what I found.

*The Disney Magic Run is offered in a 10K or 3K option.

* You get a goodie bag called your "Kit". It consist of a t-shirt, a bag ( which is actually pretty nice) and a few other goodies.

* You do get a medal.

*Disney Characters are at the start of the race and then interact with the runners throughout the course.

*The winner of the 10K wins a trip to Disney World and free entry into one of the Run Disney events.

*It does sound like they offer post race entertainment such as a concert or something of that sort.

Source

The last year that I could find information on this Disney Magic Run was 2013. However I did find some 2014 information that said the Disney Magic Run was held in Madrid, Spain this year (in June).

*Looks like for this race there was only a 5K option.

*There is no expo, instead, you pick up your race essentials at the Disney Store. ( this race even gave out gift certificates to the Disney Store!)

If you want to catch a glimpse at what this Disney Magic Run is all about, take a look at this brief video by the Disney Channel ( the Spanish Version). Even if you don't speak Spanish, it's still fun to see what everything looks like.


So it appears that these Magic races are not the Run Disney Brand, but they are the Disney brand. That leave me wondering, do you think the upcoming Disney race in Paris will be similar to the ones that have been put on in Brazil and Spain?  Or do you think it will for sure be a Run Disney Race?

What are your thoughts? Are you planning on going to Paris for a Disney race in 2015?

Comparing Rock n Roll Races ( not all are considered equal)

After running the Rock n Roll Virginia Beach race for the past three years, I wondered if all the Rock n Roll races were just as fabulous. As you know from yesterday's post, I got to run the Rock n Roll Philadelphia race last weekend.  Now I can see what the difference is between the same race series in a different city.

 

I will say I am partial to Virginia Beach since I used to live there for several years. My friends would always say "Nothing like paying to run in your own city where you run everyday". 

 So lets compare Apples to Apples, shall we....?

The Rock n Roll series is all about the bands and the concerts.
 

In Virginia Beach your race bib gets you in to all the concerts throughout the weekend. What is so special about Rock n Roll Virginia beach is that the race weekend is held in conjunction with the American Music Festival. The Music Festival Starts with bands on the Main Stage ( on the beach) Friday evening, Saturday evening, and Sunday evening and then the Headlining Act on Sunday Night after the race. Throughout the weekend there are other bands that play on the other stages along the ocean front then of course on race days there are some smaller bands that play along the course. Even if you are not running any of the races that weekend, you can still buy a ticket to any of the concerts that take place on the main stage. That is what our friend did this year when we went to see Train play.

 I like that the main concert after the half marathon is later that evening.  This gives you time to go back and relax before returning refreshed and ready to enjoy the show. Others may disagree. Depending where you are staying it may be too much to come all the way back to enjoy the concert. But personally for me, I don't like sticking around after the race. I want to eat more than a post race banana, take a hot Epson salt bath, and get off my feet.

In Philadelphia there is no Music festival going on. There are several small bands along the course and then the main concert is right after the race on Sunday. I did not stick around to watch the show.

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Parking
 

In Virginia Beach, I don't believe finding parking is an issue. I have always been fortunate enough to be able to ride my bike though.  Even if you do have to pay for parking it usually is a set rate for the day, not hourly. There is always free parking at the Convention Center. If you park here, you are right at the start line but are a few blocks from the finish line. In the past there has been a shuttle to drive people from the ocean front back to the convention center if you didn't want to walk. 

Philadelphia is another story. Parking will always be an issue. I can understand having to pay to park race morning ( which we did have to do) but to have to pay to park just to walk in to the expo to pick up your race packet  is ridiculous.  Especially for those people who plan to go right in and right out!
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Corrals
 

I think the starting line was a bit more congested at Virginia Beach. I think it was a bit smaller of an area than in Philadelphia. The lines for the port o potties at VA Beach race start are always SO long.

There was more room in Philly for all the corrals. I think there were 21 of them. The issue was getting into your corral for those who waited until the last minute. I saw people crawling in between the gates just to get to their corrals.  On the other hand, there was no problem getting to a port o potty. Maybe they had more potties in Philly then they did in VA Beach?

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The Course

Throughout both races I felt the bands didn't disappoint. There were bands every few miles in Virginia Beach and in Philadelphia. There was even a band there with saxophones singing the Philly anthem "Fly Eagles Fly". Other than that, I didn't hear much of the other bands just because I zone out listening to my own music. 

Both courses were fairly flat, which was nice.
In Philly, it was pretty neat to run pass historical sites such as Independence Hall, Benjamin Franklin's grave, Franklin Institute, and the Liberty Bell.

And How about finishing the race in front of the iconic Rocky stairs? pretty Cool!

 

 

But then again, there is nothing like a Boardwalk finish at Virginia Beach and enjoying a refreshing dip in the ocean after the race.
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Weather

Obviously weather is something that we can't control, but when we sign up for RnR VA Beach, we know it's always going to be hot. VA Beach is always over Labor day weekend, so hot and humid is just part of the race.
RnR Philadelphia is three weeks after VA Beach so I thought it would be cooler, but it was actually a bit warmer than what I thought it would be. I wore a tank top and didn't even need to have a long sleeve in the beginning. When I woke up it was already in the high 60's. By the time the race started it was in the 70's. A bit humid, but it was overcast with a slight breeze which was prefect for me.
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Challenges and Bling
 

Both of these races offered the Remix Challenge.
In Virginia Beach the Challenge was to run the mile in the sand on Saturday ( which was a lot harder than it sounds) and then the half on Sunday.  If you ran both, you walked away with three new medals.

In Philly the remix challenge was a 5K on Saturday and the Half on Sunday. Again, if you did the challenge you got three medals.

Mile on the beach, Remix, and 1/2marathon medals for VA Beach. Bell to Beach and 1/2 marathon medals for Philly

There was a bonus this year. If you ran both VA beach and Philly, You got the Beach to Bell Medal!
All the medals I've earned from these races are fabulous! Rock n roll gives out some great medals.

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In 52 days I will be participating in yet another Rock n Roll Re-mix challenge when I run RnR Las Vegas!  Have you seen the super cool medals?

They glow in the dark. RnR medals never disappoint, no matter what city you get them in!

Have you ever ran the same race series in multiple cities? ~L

How to Navigate the Confusion that is Rock n Roll Philly

Today's Tuesday on The Run Topic is "What do we do besides Road Races?"  Well, I got to tell you, we don't do obstacle races, zombie runs, mud runs, or tri-athalons. The closest thing we've done to an "off road" race was the mile on the beach we did last month at Virginia beach. I know it was only a mile, but it was a challenge

So with that being said, we are going to stick with what we know, which is road racing.

Last weekend I participated in the Rock n Roll Philly and here's how it went.

 

Maria and Lacey

 

 

Maria was nice enough to drive me to the expo on Friday. Parking at the Convention Center was $6 every half hour (which I think is ridiculous). But because Mazda was one of the race sponsors and Maria drives a Mazda, we got free parking, score! I don't think the expo was that much bigger than Virginia Beach's expo. However, they had some different booths, such as Altra and Hoka shoes. We thought we arrived in time to hear Kara Goucher speak, but we just missed her. I was proud of myself for not buying anything at the expo. I almost splurged on a trigger point foam roller but I had just bought a high density one the night before on Amazon for half the prize.

After receiving a ride to the expo on Friday, I was a bit stressed about how I was going to get into the city on Sunday for the race. I was planning on taking the train in. However, when I looked up the schedule, the first one wasn't leaving until the time I needed to be there, due to the weekend schedule. Luckily I was able to get a ride into the city.  I was not exactly sure where the start was because there wasn't an exact address. I had asked someone at the information booth at the expo where exactly it was and she was no help. She told me to look for the pointy building. Really a pointy building? That narrows it down. She told me to just pull it up my Google map and I could find it. She said you would be able to walk to the start from the convention center. So needless to say she was no help. 

The morning of the race I got up extra early because I didn't want to feel rushed. I drank my coffee and had my bagel. I even got on the treadmill and did a warm up mile. I wanted to leave in plenty of time as well, because even though it is not far from my house (20 mins or so) I didn't know how traffic would be, or if we would have trouble finding parking. We parked in the same parking garage that we did for the Convention Center, even though it was going to be expensive. we thought it was better to do that then to wonder around. After spending a half hour in the car we looked up where the start was from where we parked, and it was several miles away. There was no way we were going to walk from there. We finally found where the start line was so I just hopped out of the car there, so my friend could go find a parking spot. After waiting in line for a porta potty, I found myself getting hungry again. I realized it was already three and half hours since I had my breakfast. I was glad to have packed those sports bean to eat while waiting in line(or as my friend calls them, magic beans).  Then it was time to make my way over to find my corral. I'm glad I got there early enough because there were people in my corral that couldn't even get in to their corrals.

Before the race started, I just told myself to do my best (which I always try to do obviously) and it is what it is. I did have higher hopes for this race since I knew it was going to be cooler than Virginia Beach a few weeks ago but still a flat course. You couldn't ask for a more beautiful day (in my opinion). Yes it was a bit humid (which I don't mind) but it evened out by being overcast with a slight breeze. I usually don't take a GU until at least 3-4 miles into it, but I could still tell I was hungry and had a side stitch so I thought it would help having one at mile 2. Well that didn't help that much either. It wasn't until mile 6 when I took another GU that I felt better. Even with having a side stitch for half the race, I was proud of myself  for keeping a good pace.  In the back of my mind I knew that the person who drove me to the race had a possibility of being called in to work that morning, so I was kind of worried about not having a ride home. I think that may have given me a little incentive to keep pushing so I would finish in a certain time.   I felt much better during the second half of the race and I finished strong.

 

 

 I received my medal for completing the Half Marathon then I went to the other booth to receive my Beach to Bell medal. This medal is for completing both Virginia Beach and Philadelphia.

 

In addition to those medals, I will receive my Heavy Medal one in the mail in a few weeks for completing two Rock n Roll Race Series so far this year. Even though I did not stick around to enjoy the festivities, I still enjoyed the day and celebrated when I got home.

Some tips to remember if you are running Philly:

 

1. If you are staying downtown in one of the hotels, you will luck out with not having to pay for parking for the Convention Center or at the race or deal with the traffic. However, the hotel may charge for parking.

2. If you are driving be prepared to pay for parking everywhere you go and deal with the city traffic and having all the roads be one way.

 

3. Allow yourself plenty of time to get to where you need to be. Make sure you have a plan for race morning and know where you need to get to. I felt the directions were very vague that were on the website and can be a bit confusing.

 

Have you ever run a race where it was difficult to get to the start line?

 

 

 

 

A friend with a Pumpkin Smoothie Recipe!

I think all our facebook friends and blogging friends know by now that we love Pumpkin flavored stuff. Have you seen the Pumpkin Oreos? I haven't been able to find them in my local stores yet but that's okay, I really want to taste just ONE but I don't want to have the whole carton of Oreos laying around. So if you purchase the Pumpkin Oreos can you please stop by and give me one?

Today we have one of our Facebook friends, Lois who is going to share her recipe for her yummy Pumpkin Smoothies!

The rest of this post is courtesy of Lois!

 Fall is in the air.  The mornings are cool and crisp, the days are getting shorter, the leaves are starting to change, and trips to the pumpkin patch are right around the corner. That means finding yummy things to do with pumpkin.

 I stopped in to Jamba Juice the other day and they have a wonderful pumpkin smoothie.  But a small is nearly $5 and I would rather put my money into race registrations and cute things to wear.  So I have been on a quest to make a great pumpkin smoothie and think I have finally figured it out.  I have my own pumpkin puree from the garden pumpkins, as well as a couple cans of pumpkin from the store.  The pumpkin puree from the garden doesn’t have as strong a flavor as the canned, but both are awesome.  

Here is what I used to make this yummy treat........

* ½ cup of vanilla Greek yogurt
*a little more than ½ cup pumpkin (canned)
* 1 or 2 teaspoons of honey
*a little more than ½ cup of 1% milk, (yep, straight cow’s milk, I am not sure how the flavor would  be with almond milk, but I think it would be kind of nutty)
*some ginger, cloves and cinnamon.  Cinnamon gets the most, and cloves get the least, but it was just *a few shakes of each.

 I used 6 or 8 ice cubes, blended it, and voila, my own pumpkin smoothie that makes the perfect fall pick me up after running.  It’s almost like a pumpkin pie in a glass, and nothing says hello fall more than some wonderful pumpkin goodies. 

 I am hoping these tasty pumpkin smoothies will be just the right treat for me as I dig deep and get serious with my Dopey training.  Sometimes the thought of doing 48.6 miles in 4 days is overwhelming, but if I can reward myself with some good for me, post run recovery drinks that are full of pumpkin, I think I might just be able to make it through the training.

Lois is currently training for Disney's Dopey Challenge. She runs a facebook page called Running to Disney . If you like to Run Disney then you should go "Like" her page!

Do you still make smoothies in the fall?  What's your favorite flavor?

A Peek in our Week and a new product!

 Greetings Folks! We hope you all had a restful weekend. Today is the day we highlight some of the things we've done and some new products we've tried throughout the week!

 

Here goes.....

 

This week was a taper week for me since my half was on Sunday. ~L

 

Tuesday I had an overnight in Nashville.  My cousin lives in Nashville, so I was excited to have been able to meet up with her.We were planning to go for a run, when I realized I didn't pack running socks, I only had my dress socks for work. Luckily I was able to borrow a pair from her. We went on a 5 mile run on a beautiful trail near where she lives. Later, we went back to her house and made tacos for dinner. ~L

 

Wednesday I had an overnight in Memphis.  We stay closed to this Brikham Yoga studio so I thought I would try that since you didn't need to wear socks for that. However, the time the class was didn't work for me, so I just went to the gym and used the elliptical for a half hour then lifted some weights. ~L

 

Thursday I was excited to host some house guests. Maria from lilmysninja and her boyfriend were coming into town to run the  Rock n Roll Philadelphia half as well. ~L

 

Friday I went to the Race expo, Saturday ran an easy 3 miles, and ran the race on Sunday. ~L

 

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I'm continuing with the Goofy Training plan and this week started to add some back to back runs.  I did 3 shorter runs on Mon, Wed, and Thurs, and then did 13.1 miles on Friday.  The plan called for a 13.1 mile run/walk so this is how I broke it down.......
I ran 3 minutes and walked one minute. I did this for 6.5 miles up the trail.
On the way back down the trail (6.6 miles) I walked 3 minutes and ran one minute.  I have to say, that even though I did all that walking during the second half, I still finished in 2:33 which I was pleased with. I'm thinking this might be a good plan to use for the half marathon during the Goofy Challenge. This way I am still taking it nice and slow and not risking injury for the marathon the next day. If I was only training for a half marathon I would want to finish in less time, but with doing two back to back, this works for me!  ~M

I tried this Vanilla Chai Tea from Bolthouse Farms this week after my long run. Oh, this is SO yummy and the perfect beverage for fall. They had this and many other flavors on sale at Walmart this week for only $1. ( regularly $3.89). As much as I hate shopping at Walmart, I keeping finding such good deals there...lol. ~L


What new things did you try this week?

 

Creative Costume Ideas for Halloween and Beyond

This picture was taken at Disney's Wine and Dine Pre-Race Party last year.

Happy Friday folks! Today's Friday 5 is quick and to the point today. I know you're probably thinking "Thank Goodness", because we often tend to ramble on and on!

The theme this week is  5 of our favorites!  Since fall is approaching and I have been putting together my own costumes for upcoming Halloween events, I thought others would be starting to think about what they wanted to wear for their own Halloween event, whether it be a Halloween themed race, a Halloween party, or just out trick or treating ( with your kiddos of course)!

We've helped make things a little easier for your by sharing 5 of our FAVORITE costumes that we've seen on the web this past year! The best part is that most of these are easy, put together yourself costumes!

1. This is our friend Karen dressed up as Snow White for this year's Princess Half Marathon. Isn't she beautiful? This isn't the first time Karen has dressed up as a princess. For more princess costume inspiration, check out her blog at Just me and my Running Shoes.

 

 

 

2. Our friend Lauren, who blogs at Lauren's Glass Slipper, took a different spin on her princess costume. Isn't she lovely? Can you believe she ran 13.1 miles in that wig? Very creative!

 

Are Princesses not your thing? Maybe you are more of an animal person?

 

3. Check out this dynamic duo Pam and Christine as they dress up as Tigger and Piglet. They are just too cute! These ladies are no strangers to dressing in costume. You can see more of their creations at We Run Disney.

 

 

 

 

4. The first time I saw Julie from Run Walk Fast Pass Repeat in her Bavarian outfit I was  blown away! Isn't this a great costume? She wore this for Disney's Wine n Dine race that is centered around the Countries in Disney's Epcot. Did she really run 13.1 miles with that Mickey pretzel and beer mug? Visit her blog and I bet she'll tell you!

 

 

 

5. Jennifer, from The Final Forty, is literally the queen of costumes. She has SO MANY great costumes that it was hard for me to pick one! I really wanted to showcase them all but how about you just visit her blog so you can see them for yourself. She has dressed as Jasmine, Pooh, Elsa, Minnie Mouse, Ariel, Dopey, Goofy, and many more. She most recently dressed as Lilo and as Stitch for the Dumbo Double Dare last month! I love how she gets her boyfriend and sister to dress up with her!

 

 

Whether you are looking for a race costume or something just to have fun in, we hope that you may have received a little inspiration from these folks. All it takes is a little imagination. Now go create some costumes!

 

 

*We gained permission from each of these bloggers to use their personal photographs.

 

 

 

 

 

Today was a Fairytale.......

Today's Thursday Thoughts are about weddings! Today is my wedding anniversary! For those of you who are new readers to our blog, I was married at Disney's Wedding pavilion located at The Grand Floridian Resort. It was about 98 degrees that day! We had a simple wedding of just family and close friends but it included many magical Disney touches that I will never forget.

                                  Here is a very brief peek into what our day was like!

                                            
                                  (click the image to see the picture video of our wedding day)



Scott is traveling for work this week so we won't be able to do anything to celebrate, but we will be leaving for Disney again REAL SOON......So I think that is a great way to celebrate.

As for me, I had been asked to take some engagement photographs today for a very dear friend who will be getting married later this year. So maybe that's a little symbolic that I get to participate in some wedding related stuff on my anniversary?



Are you married? What are some ways you've celebrated you anniversary?

The War is On........

I 'm sorry that this post today has nothing to do with running, or Disney, or traveling, or fashion, and it's not even a random Thursday thoughts post. What's going on?   I had a little funny/not so funny story to tell. I know it's kind of random, but maybe it will help somebody else one day.

Here goes........

This past Monday was our dad's birthday. Before I could call or text him "Happy birthday", I got an alarming text from him.  ( I would take screen shots of my phone, but I don't know how)

Dad: Someone stole all my fish in the pond. Seriously, All of them.

Me: What????

Dad Yes, no fish in pond.

Me: Could there have been a bear or other wild animal in the yard?

Dad: No, they took them all


So here is a little background on this pond. My dad has built a decorative pond with a waterfall in their backyard. He's had koi and gold fish in this pond for about 20 years. Just this summer he had a professional landscaper come in and redesign this pond. He kept all the same fish though. One fish we knew for sure was 18 years old. It was a big one. My dad cleaned this pond and fed these fish every day for 20 years. You could say that he is quite attached to the fish pond. So this of course was devastating! Certainly not a way to start a birthday.



This is Belle sneaking a drink out of the pond before it was re-designed

So by the time Scott and I arrived at my parent's house, my dad had already gone to work. We walked outback and looked in the pond and just like he said, there were no fish!  We thought someone was playing a cruel joke on my dad for his birthday. But why would someone do this? Where they stolen? What happened to them?

Of course we couldn't let my dad come home to an empty pond, so Scott and I bought him a few new Koi and some gold fish. It doesn't come close to the 60 plus fish he had but it's a start. Did you know that some Koi are $249????

There was a LOT of investigation that went on that day, and to make a long story short, we have determined that the culprit was a blue heron. Blue heron are really tall birds. In the 30 some years my parents have lived in that house, they have never seen a blue heron in their yard.

The next morning, my mom just happened to look out the window, and there he was, the fish bandit.
My parents made noise and hollered at the blue heron and it flew away. After my dad left for work, it came back again!  So yesterday my mom researched how to get rid of blue herons, and we spent all afternoon boobie trapping the yard and pond area.  We certainly did not want these new fish to end up missing too! We put nets up over the pond, and apparently these birds don't like shiny things. So of course we put some silver garland around the pond too.

We later found out that this bird has visited a another family in our neighborhood and ate 14 of their fish and most recently visited a family down the street from my parents and ate their fish too. I guess this blue heron is making his way through the neighborhood snatching fish along the way.  Not only do we fear the fish being ate, but these birds can do damage. They have very pointed beaks and can very easily poke holes in the liner of the pond. Hopefully what my parents are doing will deter him and he will move on.  But until then, my parents will be keeping a watch out for this blue heron!

Have you ever had a wild animal damage anything at your home? Has it bothered your animals or ate your crops?

Building up confidence AFTER signing up for a race challange: AKA Goofy Challenge

 

Today's Tuesdays on the Run is about hitting that wall. As far as distance running goes, I've run several 10K's, an 11K, and a few half marathons and so far, I have never hit that "wall" that everyone talks about. However, I think I am about to hit that "mental Wall".

 

As you know, my sister and I have both signed up for the Goofy Challenge at Disney World in 2015. For those who don't know, the Goofy Challenge is a half marathon on Saturday and the full marathon on Sunday. This is something that I would expect Lacey to do ( and to be honest it probably wouldn't even be much of a challenge for her). But for me, competing a half marathon is a big deal, so of course completing a full marathon is a much BIGGER deal, and doing that after already running a half marathon the day before makes me wonder what I was thinking when I signed up for this!

 

I'm pretty certain that as far as Full Marathons are concerned, this is a one and done deal for me ( I know never say never, but I'm pretty sure).   I know this sounds silly, but I worry that in someway doing the "challenge" will reduce the excitement I feel about completing the Marathon on its own.

Although I've signed up for the challenge, I have been contemplating forfeiting the half and just running a strong race on marathon day. Of course this would mean not getting those two extra medals.

 

I'm glad I have my sister here to always talk things through with me. After quickly telling me to " Suck it up buttercup and just do it," some other sisterly advice came from this marathon runner.

 

* You spent a lot of money to enter this race. You are going to finish regardless of what obstacles come along your way. You didn't spend that much  money to not get what you wanted out of it in the end. ( do the challenge)

 

*Remember, you have done a challenge before ( on a smaller scale), when you completed the Glass Slipper Challenge and you were even injured during that race weekend.

 

*Just go at a nice and easy pace and feel comfortable. You want to finish feeling good, not like you never want to do this again. 

 

*Run when you can, walk when you need to, crawl if you have to but never give up.

 

As you know, I ran the RNR VA Beach last month. That was kind of like a redeeming run for me since I ran the Princess half injured. Even though I took it slow due to fear ( fear of bringing back an injury), I still finished strong and I was not completely sore afterwards. This was a big confidence booster to me! And to think I wasn't even planning on running VA Beach. I am now glad that I ran that race so I could prove to myself that I can do at least that much!

 

Another thing that keeps me going is the fact that this race is at DISNEY. It will be a fun 26.2 miles, even if I have to walk half of them. I was prepared to run one of the most difficult marathon courses in the country last Spring ( Big Sur Marathon), before I got injured. For sure I can hobble my way through Lake Buena Vista if I had to, right?

 

 

Do I think it was a smart idea to do my first marathon in conjunction with the half marathon? Probably not.  But on the other hand, my training has been going very well. I took off a few days to rest after running VA Beach, but I picked right back up in the training schedule. In fact, my speed has even increased on some of my shorter runs.

 

So tell me, Are you doing your first marathon as part of a challenge? What advice would you give me for when I start being fearful for what I am about to do?

 

                           Thank you to April, Patty, and Erika for hosting Tuesdays on the Run.

 

Welcoming Fall with a GIVEAWAY

 

Happy Monday Folks! This weekend kicked off our community's Harvest Festival. For two weeks our community hosts craft and food vendors in town, a bike race, a road race, a football game, a pet parade, multiple concerts, and other harvest events.

I try to put off Fall for as long as possible, but I think it may be time to close up the swimming pool and get those fall decorations out!

With that being said, I have been working on my costumes for my upcoming fall races. I thought maybe some of you have started working on yours too.  So I figured this giveaway might be helpful to those of you dressing up for Tower of Terror, Wicked, Wine-n-Dine, or any other fall race!

The winner will be given one  (Brand New) Bondi Band with the phrase Will Run For Beer on it.



Please enter using the Rafflecopter below. We love all our International readers but this prize can only be shipped to US addresses at this time.



We are co-hosting this giveaway with Kristy from Runaway Bridal Planner. Be sure to visit all the other great bloggers who are participating in the hop!

 

What are you doing to prepare for fall?

Being a guest at the Miss America Pageant

It's that time of year again when folks flock to the Atlantic City boardwalk to take part in the pageantry of the Miss America Contest.

We wrote a little about this event last year, but thought we would mention it again.......

This is the second year that the Miss America pageant is back in Atlantic City again!  I can’t help but wonder if they brought it back  last year in an effort to help boost the economy since hurricane Sandy’s visit. Regardless of why they brought it back to the East Coast, I'm glad they did.  Atlantic City is such an Iconic backdrop for the Miss America Pageant.

My sister and I had the opportunity to sit in the audience of the Miss America Pageant when it was previously held in Atlantic City.  The competition was held inside Boardwalk Hall.  Although the venue looks all glitzy and glamorous on TV, I assure you, it is not that way in person.  I was shocked when we walked in to Boardwalk Hall and the atmosphere was like a ware house!

Here is a zoomed out picture so you can see the whole area.

 

Regardless of what “our end” looked like, it was amazing getting to watch something “in person” that we’ve only ever got to watch on television.

The pageant began back in the 1920's in Atlantic City. It was always held the week after Labor Day in an effort to extended the tourist season and build more revenue for the city.  2004 was the last time the pageant was held here. It has since moved to Las Vegas and instead of holding it in September, it was held in January.

There is a whole weekend of pageant activities that take place along the boardwalk. Yesterday was the annual "Show us your shoes parade".  The parade is a full fledge parade that includes floats, and of course all of the Miss America Contestants!  Last year it was hosted by Chris Harrison ( The Bachelor) and Lara Spenser ( Good Morning America).

I hope we can make it to the Parade next time we visit Atlantic City for the Pageant!

The Miss America Pageant  will be broadcast lived tonight, starting at 8:00 pm Eastern time.

Will you be watching the Pageant?  Have you ever seen a live production of a TV Show?

 

Bye Bye Maelstrom, Hello Frozen!

 Looks like Florida just Froze over! The Frozen event at Hollywood Studios was such a big hit that Disney decided to keep the Frozen party going longer and to extend it to the other theme parks.

A brand new "Frozen" attraction  and character greeting area will be constructed at the Norway Pavilion at Epcot. The sad news is that the new attraction, will replace the  Maelstrom! That kind of makes me sad because that was a great ride! It was a great "go to" ride when you needed to get out of the heat and stand in an air conditioned line!

But anyway, the new ride will be a journey through Arendelle and you will be able to experience moments and music from the film. The attraction will also host a greeting location for Anna and Elsa!

The last day to ride the Maelstrom will be October 5th! That stinks for me because I wasn't planning on visiting Epcot until the 6th :(

The project is anticipated to be complete by early 2016, but the Norway pavilion will remain open through construction.

"Frozen" fever will also continue into the Magic Kingdom during the Holiday season .

Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, and Olaf  will be participating in  "Mickey's Once Upon a Christmastime Parade," along with"ice" skaters, skiiers, and ice cutters from the Kingdom of Arendelle. This parade will only be offered during Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party!

But don't worry, you will still be able to see Anna and Else when they appear in a new show on the castle stage each evening beginning on November 5th.  Elsa will be using her powers to transform Cinderella's castle into a glimmering ice palace!

Who's excited about this?