Princess Half Marathon Weekend

Friday morning began the Princess Half Marathon Weekend. The 5K started at 6:15 that morning. Mama, Nathan, Cindy, and Abby were all participating in the 5K and they had to be on a bus by 5am but they decided to be safe and go earlier. The busses didn't run between 5 and 7, so I had to catch the bus with them. The party started as soon as we got off the bus. There was music and people that were way too excited at 5 o'clock in the morning. I hung out with them for a while and then went and found a seat when they went to their corrals. Sitting there and waiting for the race to even start was awful for me. I'm not a morning person to begin with, and I was surrounded by crying children who clearly didn't want to be awake either. Within two minutes of sitting there I made a promise to myself that I would never wake my children up for a race. Haha. It was fun to watch people cross the finish line. I think the first male runner finished in 18:40 and the first female finished in around 20 minutes! After what I like to refer to as "the serious runners" had crossed the finish line, we were about thirty minutes into the race. I was looking at my phone and smelled something far too familiar. Without even looking up, I knew what it was: voban. Voban is what we use as custodial to clean code v's. I have never seen so many in one place. It was awful. Here are some pictures from the 5K to clear that nauseous feeling you have now. ;)

Even though it was early, I enjoyed watching the sunrise over Epcot.

Mary Poppins and Bert

After the race was over, we went back to the room for them to shower. They both fell asleep, so I decided to sleep for about thirty minutes. Then the three of us, along with Cindy and Abby, went to the parks. Later in the afternoon we met up with Krista and Maddy at Magic Kingdom. Logan met us that night after he got off work. We headed out before the fireworks, since we had to be up early again. 

The 10K was Saturday and it started at 5am. We had to be on a bus by 3:30. Two super early mornings in a row are rough! My running friends from home, Jennifer, Natalie, Dawn, Ashleigh, Caron, Erin, and Stacey had come down Thursday night for the run. I was excited to see them Saturday morning. I've missed running with them. The corrals were huge and the first minute of the race we were walking. It took us a really long time to get spread out and to set a pace. Stacey and I were always running buddies back home. We run about the same speed and she is motivates me to keep going. I was very afraid that I wouldn't be able to keep up with her since I hadn't trained, but somehow I was able to! We crossed the finish line together and I was very proud of our time (despite the fact that the half marathon winner's time was the same as ours)!

Before!

After crossing the finish line!

This picture makes me laugh!

After we finished we grabbed some breakfast at Chick-fil-a and then went to Magic Kingdom for a few hours before it got too crowded.

What we ran for: DOLE WHIPS!

Big Thunder Mountain!

After a few hours they went back to their hotel to shower and sleep for a little while. I went back to the room for a very quick shower (didn't even wash my hair; gross, I know) and then Mama, me, and Nathan went to Animal Kingdom. Jack and Colby had come down for the weekend with Krista and Maddy and they were both working Saturday. Unfortunately we barely missed getting to ride the safari with Colby, so we headed to Hollywood Studios to ride Great Movie Ride. That was the first time I had ridden it since Jack went back to school. I was so excited to see him and, of course, we had to take a picture!

Blessed by this friendship!

Random picture of Nathan and I at Animal Kingdom

After that, we met Krista, Maddy, and Logan as well as Cindy and Abby and rode a few things. Krista and Maddy decided to stay there, and the rest of us went to Epcot. There we met up with an old friend, Bill Murray. He was the drama teacher at the high school when I was in middle school, and he directed several plays that Nathan and I participated in. My freshman year of high school he moved, and he has moved again. Now he lives in Florida and had come to Disney for the day. It was nice to catch up with him!

After that, we had a dining reservation at Cape May Cafe at the Beach Club Resort. Unfortunately Logan had to work so he couldn't join us. It is a seafood buffet and is so good, especially the desserts! We ate until we were stuffed!

You can walk to Epcot from the Beach Club, so we walked back through the park. Nathan had been wanting to swim at the Polynesian, so he and Mama went over there. Cindy and Abby went to Magic Kingdom. My friend, Yetziel, was working at Epcot that night so I talked to him for a little while and then went back to Magic Kingdom to meet Cindy and Abby, as well as my running friends. I was able to hang out with them for a little while, but after a few hours I had to leave. I was exhausted! 

The next morning we got up and I took Mama, Nathan, Cindy, and Abby to the airport. Nathan and Mama flew back with them on their plane. I came home and slept for a little while and then had to go to work.

Although it was an exhausting week and weekend with little sleep, I really enjoyed spending time with everyone! People from home visiting is what keeps me going. I can't wait for more people to visit!

My time here is running out and, whether I want to or not, it's time for me to make some big decisions about my future. My prayer is that I will be able to follow God's plan for my life. Thank you for continuing to support, encourage, and pray for me!

Here are a few pictures I forgot to include in the first blog!

Gotta have the snowman picture