What's a Princess to Wear?!

Picking out an outfit in the morning is hard enough. Partly because there's a small child usually asleep in my bed and I'm trying to get dressed without waking them up AND be sure my outfit is somewhat coordinated while still using the least amount possible. Getting dressed by flashlight AND you're not camping? Mini-adventure! Now...getting dressed for a race - somewhat easier. I typically go by the day's weather and try to somewhat coordinate my outfit but mostly go by comfort. Deciding you're not just getting dressed for a race but going in costume??? That presents a whole new series of challenges. Not to mention where there are TWO races and you want need costumes for both.

Prior to registering for the Glass Slipper Challenge, I had never wanted to nor felt comfortable wearing a costume during a race. Not to say I haven't seen my fair share of costumed runners: a turkey and pilgrim, the Super Mario Brothers and a personal favorite: Buddy the Elf, to name a few. In my "research" leading up to the event, I came across several blogs and Pinterest pins of costumes for various RunDisney races and knew I could NOT run Disney in my old capris and pull-over.  I had to dress up! But as who???  With so many characters and favorites to choose from, how could we narrow it down? I debated over Cinderella (my first princess), Vanellope Von Schweetz, Dory and countless others... I even looked at several of the Villians: Ursula, Cruella and Maleficent (who, coincidentally have teamed up on Once Upon a Time - but that's another story).  I didn't want to look like the thousands of other runners but also wanted a costume that was special to myself, my family and my running.

What Disney character could truly sum up all of this? What Disney character would I continually come back to in my Google searches and find inspiring without realizing it? Who did I often quote during the hardest moments of my long runs? That little voice that would tell me, "just keep running" in her most uplifting tune - "Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming." Face palm: Dory. She would be the inspiration for the Enchanted 10K.  A little fish with a big voice.  Not to mention one of preferred movies on rotation in our household. 

Our "Flat Dory" costumes side-by-side prepped the night before the 10K.

One costume down, one to go.  For the Princess Half Marathon, the question of what to wear may have begun as a difficult decision but was answered quickly.  Given that we would be running side by side and celebrating our journey as runners, we had been reflecting upon our experiences to date including our first costumed race, the Shape Diva Dash.  Veronica and I became friends during our freshman year of college at the University of Maryland, born and raised in the land of blue crabs and Old Bay.  For the Shape Diva Dash, we crafted tutus in red, yellow, black and white - the colors of our home state.  Since the Diva Dash, our tutus had been hanging in our closets begging to be worn again.  Over several text messages and I'm fairly certain, a conversation no longer than five minutes, we knew we'd be dusting our skirts off and creating our own princess ensemble.

Our "Flat Maryland Princess"

Ideas in hand, sketching and crafting was underway - we continued working on our costumes up until the very week of the races.  With the help of my mother and her sewing machine, a colleague/friend of Veronica's who does embroidery and some of our own handiwork, I think we managed to create costumes that were meaningful and truly unique.  

Post-Enchanted 10K - We just kept swimming!

Maryland Pride - Pre-Half Marathon (3:15 AM)

Processing in Progress

I should have started posting about my experience with the Glass Slipper Challenge at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida weeks ago. The fact is, I’ve really been struggling to process the time leading up to the race series, the races themselves, and the aftermath. You wouldn’t think it would be that difficult to write about an amazing adventure that was nearly 3 years in the making, but when things don’t turn out exactly as you imagined them, it changes everything. I can say, with confidence, that pretty much nothing turned out the way I thought would and in some ways, that has been a very good thing.

Let’s go back in time to this past Christmas Eve, I was preparing for our first worship service of the night and explaining how the candles needed to be lit to one of the youth. He would also be carrying in a large brass processional cross. Unfortunately, at some point during the explanation, my left foot got underneath the six foot tall wooden post that holds the cross. Long story short, I broke my third metatarsal right before our 4PM worship service and didn’t tell anyone until I showed my husband my bloody, bruised, and swollen foot about an hour before our 10PM service. He tried to convince me to stay off it, but I had a service to lead and it was Christmas after all, so needless to say, I didn’t rest my foot.

A few days later, as I continued to limp, I wanted to get in some more training miles for Disney, but my foot hurt so much I couldn’t bear to run on it. Riku got me a membership to the YMCA and we used swimming indoors as an alternative to keep up my cardio. Flash forward another week and I’ve got influenza (this year’s vaccine wasn’t super effective and the virus raged through my congregation, so of course I got it and Riku did too - wasn’t it nice of us to share?). About the time I’m better from the flu, I notice that my lungs don’t seem to be rebounding from it and the cough lingers. Long story short, to the doctor I go, and I am diagnosed with asthma. Just two weeks later the lingering flu cough in my asthmatic lungs turns into bronchitis and when I finally get to the doctor (again), it’s started to turn into pneumonia. When I left the doctor’s office with my antibiotic prescription and a refill on my inhaler it was less than 2 weeks until Disney.

The time from Christmas Eve until leaving for the Glass Slipper Challenge was about eight weeks. During those two months I broke a bone in my foot, contracted a strain of influenza, was diagnosed with asthma, and had severe bronchitis that was becoming pneumonia. This, of course, did not include dealing with family, home, or work.

Halfway through this two month period one of my church members suffered a major accident that would, eventually, lead to her death following several weeks of advanced medical care. I felt awful for being upset about not running. I felt guilty for complaining about a broken bone, two weeks with the flu, manageable asthma, etc. My heart ached for her family and friends. This woman was someone I had a unique relationship with - it started rough, but grew into something unexpected. I worried about leaving for Florida when we all knew her time was coming to an end. I wanted to be there as she took her last breaths, but both she, and her family, encouraged me to go, not knowing for sure when things would happen.

The day before I left for Florida was Ash Wednesday. I went to the hospital and made sure my church member got communion, ashes on her forehead, anointing with oil on her body, and as many blessings and prayers as I could give. I wanted to spend as much time as I could because I wasn’t sure if she’d make it until I got back. She smiled as I reminded her what I would be up to for the next few days and when I’d be back. She mouthed, “thank you,” as she drifted off to sleep. I hugged her daughter and let her know that even though I’d be away, I wanted to know what was going on. She agreed, we hugged again, and I returned to church.

A few days later, as I turned off my alarm at the Art of Animation resort in preparation for the Princess Half Marathon, I saw a message on my phone: Mom went to be with Jesus tonight.

And all I could think was: I should have been there.

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes...

...and Disney makes possible.
We know it's been awhile since our last posting and we apologize - upon our return from Disney our schedules were disrupted by matters at home and at work. Thank you for being patient as we catch up and re-cap our experiences with the Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend. We'll be looking back on our trip from beginning to end. For starters, how did we get here?! 

With all of our recent snow days, I'm wishing I lived where it was warmer.  Okay, confession: I wish I was back at Walt Disney World.  It's been almost two weeks since Veronica and I completed the Glass Slipper Challenge.  One moment, it was a frantic afternoon in mid-July trying to get through the registration process and the next, we're home again, medals in hand.  Princess Half Marathon weekend has come and gone, leaving me begging for more.  So much went into preparing for this event - physically, mentally and costume-y!

I often say, "who is this girl" and "I can't believe I did this," when reflecting back on my running journey.  It's true - comparing myself to my pre-running self, you would not have seen me running except in case of an emergency.  You would not have seen me consider forking over any amount of money to run (Who pays to do that?!), purchasing inordinate amounts of confetti dot fabric and glitter for running costumes, or simply scrolling though fellow blogs looking for exciting races to join.  But.. "Runner" Laura, does just that.

Shortly after completing our series of back-to-back 5K races and Veronica moving across the country, I was excited to tackle more, but didn't know where to begin.  I googled fellow runners' blogs, looked online and scoured Pinterest.  It was there that I stumbled across a pin for Disney Princess Half Marathon. What?! Disney does races?! This I had to see.  A slightly wasted lunch-hour later, I was hooked.  I knew I needed to get to Florida and run among fellow princesses.  I talked it over with Veronica and we set a goal - we would run in 2015.  She had her upcoming wedding in March plus moving to adjust to and there was also the nitty-gritty of training to be done.  We marked July 15th on our calendars for registration and we waited...

Well, sort of. The whole idea of running through Epcot and the Magic Kingdom overwhelmed me so much that I had to find out more. Following reviews and re-caps of fellow princess runners, I discovered the Glass Slipper Challenge: run the Enchanted 10K on Saturday and the Princess Half-Marathon on Sunday. Your reward? Not one, not two, but THREE shiny medals, including one emblazoned with a glass slipper.  As a girl who was nicknamed Cinderella at a young age (I protested about some chores), I HAD to have it. It took a little (barely any) convincing to get Veronica excited, and we decided we'd "go big or go home!"

Fast-forward to July 15th and we found ourselves counting down to registration opening at 12:00 noon (9:00 AM Pacific Time).  I was teaching summer school and had just sent my students home for the day.  Armed with our phones and the registration page loaded, we were ready.  Disney and Active, however, were not.  For anyone who is familiar with registering for a RunDisney race -- they sell out. FAST.  Right from the start, we encountered difficulty with the Active website and struggled to get through for over 45 minutes.  After several emails with RunDisney, who assured us they were working on the issue, I bit the bullet and hurried home to try registering from my own computer and hoping the glitch would be fixed.  By the time I arrived and logged in, the Glass Slipper Challenge was sold out and the Princess Half Marathon was 95% full.  Frustrated and beyond upset, we registered for the half marathon, feeling half-defeated.

However, we decided not to give up. Having already been in communication with RunDisney regarding the registration, we both followed up separately asking for any consideration to be allowed to complete the Glass Slipper Challenge.  As the day passed, we continued to hope and several hours later, an email response came through.  RunDisney apologized for the technical issues and our inability to register for the Glass Slipper Challenge as planned.  True to the magic that is Disney, they granted our wish: we were going to be able to participate in the Glass Slipper Challenge! Ecstatic beyond belief, I called Veronica and shared the good news.  In less than a year, we would be running together again surrounded by thousands of other princesses in the most magical place on Earth.

Now - costumes?!