Party of Four, Please!

It's about time we added our newest addition to the blog! On March 28th, we welcomed Ryan to our little family. Another Disney baby has joined DRITF! 

The transition to a family of 4 has been smooth and crazy all at the same time. Robby is the most incredible big brother, most of the time, and Ryan even had a little stint of sleeping through the night (emphasis on little). 

So where do we go from here? To Disney, of course! We will be traveling to the World in January to introduce the boys to Marathon Weekend and introduce our west coast family to WDW for the first time!!! Yes, three exclamation points because I'm really that excited!

Of course that means it's time to get back in shape. Ryan is 5 months old today, so it's about time I stop making the "I just had a baby" excuse and get to it. Luckily I have been back to the gym since 6 weeks postpartum teaching classes, but running has been a lot harder to return to. I definitely am fighting the same injuries that I had prior to giving birth (yippee for undiagnosed knee and foot issues). I have toyed with C25K, but honestly didn't really love it. Ryan is still a bit too young to be in the running stroller, so my runs have been limited. Excuses--see--they even come out while typing.

So here I am, with just a tad more experience than all those first time runners, but feeling like I'm starting from square one. I wondering what January will bring with my running and fitness in general, but at least for now I can rest assured it will bring LOTS of magic!

My Favorite runDisney Race -- The Diaper Dash!

The last few months have been really busy. Alyson and Bill have relocated to the East Coast. We had 2 vacations in the past months before they even finished unpacking. And, I’m doing physical therapy for back pain and researching knee replacement.  

There are a lot of race recaps to catch up on, especially the ones from Paris. But I wanted to write about my favorite race of all time.

On Labor Day weekend, we went to Disneyland because Aly and Bill want to keep the Dumbo Double Dare as a legacy race. Even if I didn’t tag along to watch Robby as his parents raced, I would have gone to see Robby do his first runDisney race – the Diaper Dash. (Honestly, I don’t know why I never spectated this race before.)

The Diaper Dash is the most entertaining runDisney race that exists. It is for 12 month and under crawlers. Entries are limited so it’s just like signing up for any other runDisney race -- they sell out fast.  Robby was signed up before we knew if he would be crawling at the time of the race. 

You get a bib and race shirt just like the other races.  Robby also got the optional race ears.  You have to pick up your packet at the expo and you get your medal at the finish.

Robby at the Expo

It happens at the end of the kids races. They lay down gym type padding under the “kids races” finish line and then cover it with a “lane” mat.


















Before the race began, they gave an entertaining display of what to expect at a diaper dash. 

DDD (no. not Dumbo Double Dare
----Diaper Dash Demo!)

And, yes, there were cryers, crawlers and our favorite, “the sleeper”. The costumes abound with these little racers. One little girl was decked full out in a Disney Tour Guide outfit! Our little guy was Mickey. You are allowed 2 "helpers", one at each end of the mat.

The first “wave” of crawlers lined up. The little guy in the first lane took off with determination. About halfway up the mat, he made a severe right turn, crossed over all the lanes and almost went right off the edge of the mat! Parents brought cell phones, toys and one even had a tv remote to entice the little people to crawl to them.

Robby was taking a quick
nap before his race.

As each wave of crawlers lined up (I think there were about 5 sets), I kept looking for Robby and his parents. I saw them keep moving to the back. Later I learned that Robby was fast asleep.

The final group was lining up, and there was Robby (with his I just woke up, where am I? face). The last wave of little racers were ready to go.   Robby was on his hands and knees, looked around and then just sat up! (He wasn’t actually crawling at this point. However, while he was sitting he must have been watching all the other little guys and gals. That afternoon, when we returned to the Disneyland hotel, he started taking his first few crawling “steps”.)  

As the other little dashers were helped to the finish line, Robby still sat and looked around. Carissa (for those who don't know, she is one of the runDisney announcers) got down on the mat next to him and announced that Robert wasn’t interested in racing, he’d rather be an announcer. She handed him her microphone and Robby gladly took it.  

Maybe I do have a shot at being an announcer!

Coaxing Robby in Lane 2 to the Finish Line

Finally, the finish line!

So, at the 2016 Disneyland Half Weekend Diaper Dash, our Robby was the official last finisher!  But, as it goes in any other race, he finished and that’s what counts.  He happily chewed on his medal and we all were proud of him!

Have you ever watched a Diaper Dash (or any other of the Kids Races) at a runDisney event?  If you ever get the chance, you should check out the Diaper Dash.  It truly is fun race to watch.

Robby is now looking forward to his next race, the 100m Dash at the Tinkerbell Half Weekend in 2017.

Celebrating race weekend at Goofy's Kitchen

It's Time to Register for the Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend!

Tomorrow is the big day for all of you "regular" folks...me included...who do not have annual passes or DVC. It's time to warm up the credit cards, get all computers going, and register for the Disneyland Half Marathon weekend!

This year will be Bill's and my 4th Dumbo Double Dare and, of course, our newest addition will be joining in on the fun in his very first runDisney event: the Diaper Dash. This puts HUGE pressure on me to get all of us registered! I have enough anxiety registering just the two of us, heck, even just me, but 3? THREE registrations! I've got to be on my A-game. There's no doubt that Dumbo will continue to sell out fast. I would also expect the 10k and 5k to be quick sellouts, with kids races not far behind. The half--who knows? It seems as if the half marathons have been having some trouble selling out lately, so we'll see how it goes tomorrow.

2015 Disneyland Half Marathon

So how do you guarantee yourself a spot? Here are some great tips:
1. Have your Active.com account already pulled up and logged in on one tab.
2. Have runDisney open on another tab.
3. Be logged into Facebook and Twitter, following runDisney (in case the website crashes, which it always seems to do) and be on the lookout for a link.
4. Have your credit card ready to go.
5. Do this on a reliable computer--I find mobile devices too slow and unreliable!

You'll be put in a queue to register, so don't exit that queue or you risk losing your spot "in line". Finally, I also have some back up travel partners ready to go in case I can't get into the races I want. We've used a bunch of different travel partners in the past, and I can say with pretty good confidence that as long as they are listed on the runDisney site, you should be fine.

Dumbo is our legacy race, so the stress is always on to get registered for this one. Of course, this year, the pressure is also on for the Diaper Dash, since there's only a 6 month window when he can run. My mom was quick to point out that if we don't get in this time, we can always make another trip to WDW for either Wine and Dine or Marathon Weekend. Twist my arm, right?!?!

For now, though, my fingers are crossed and I will just follow my own advice, hoping to get all registered tomorrow! Any other tips to share? Will you be running this year?