Run HOW FAR?! Disney 1/2 & Solo fun! Jan '10 PTR..leaving for shuttle launch! 11/13

[disneygirlinnj]

First off...thank you to the mods who put up with me! Way back when I started this, it was originally in the pre-trip reports. Then I asked to move it to the WISH Journals because it was just going to be a training journal for me. Then umm... planning of the trip started and I decided it should be back in the pre-trip section! SORRY! :confused3


Table of Contents

**note to readers...if you get bored easily reading about mileage/time/pace/etc... you can skip most of the Training links. I'm using this to record how far I run and stuff too so it's all going to be mixed in! :)

Planning 1: I've officially lost my mind and registered for the Disney Half! (this post)
Planning 2:All About Yours Truly and my Running Escapade (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=29769688&postcount=3)
Training 1: Short Update...5 mile Run (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=29782159&postcount=4)
Training 2: Small 4mi Run, new sneaks and...I have another victim signed up for the Half...my BFF! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=30352017&postcount=5)
Training 3: Change of sneaks, little training...and yet ANOTHER victim registers! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=30785099&postcount=8)
Training 4: 40 min run and I'm in LOVE with my Garmin! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=31119166&postcount=12)
Training 5: We survived the Jersey Shore Marathon Relay! (and met another Disney runner! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=31449426&postcount=17)
Training 6: Broke my 5k time..happy dance! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=32100009&postcount=19)
Training 7: My first official 10k...and I didn't die! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=32182868&postcount=20)
Training 8: Slacking in training..boo! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=32820865&postcount=24)
Training 9: Survived 8 miles on my own! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33077406&postcount=27)
Planning 3: Extending my stay so I can do a little solo touring! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33101915&postcount=31)
Planning 4: Flight is BOOKED! :) (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33138735&postcount=39)
Planning 5: A little about the others coming along for the fun, a fellow Disney-holic and a Disney newbie! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33139204&postcount=40)
Planning 6: Our VERY tentative itinerary (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33144879&postcount=43)
Planning 7: Take me backstage!!! (http://disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33151542&postcount=46)
Training 10: Quick 6 mile morning run (http://disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33179449&postcount=49)
Training 11: 9 Miles...slowly but surely! (http://disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33268408&postcount=59)
Training 12: One fast mile down...a lot more to go! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33310977&postcount=65)
Planning 8: Tweet Tweet! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33326066&postcount=72)
Training 13: 10 Miles Completed! (http://disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33491680&postcount=75)
Planning 9: Hmm...DVC Rental? (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33494328&postcount=76)
Planning 10: Boardwalk Villas Here I Come!! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33524542&postcount=86)
Planning 11: ADRs, Itinerary, change in hotel? (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33873711&postcount=96)
Training 14: My happy 10k time, not must other training though..boo! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33873802&postcount=97)
Planning 12: ADR Fiasco (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33889063&postcount=101)
Planning 13: Adding in a new PTR here!!!! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34094789&postcount=110)
Training 15: Unsuccessfull 10 mile run and I want to rip my knee off :( (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=34094869&postcount=111)



Now back to the show...

*Back in January*
So yup... I've got a new Disney trip hiding up my sleeve. Well..in my running shoes I guess you could say. A little background story...*que the cheesy music please!*

A week or so ago my friends and I decided to make Bucket Lists..you know...the List of things you wanna do before you..kick the bucket. Just like in the movie. Most of mine includes traveling to far off lands. It also included 'Running in a Half Marathon'. Hmm... ok. Maybe one day.

Fast forward to about a week ago. I get an email from a crazy runner friend and he says 'I remember you saying something about a marathon? half marathon? Remember when I did the Disney full marathon 2 years ago? Well the Disney marathon registration opens up tomorrow. and the half fills up within like a month a lot of times. So um... do it. I'm doing the Goofy Challenge. We'll meet up down there and it'll be fun!' I write back saying he's nuts. Then sit and think... hmmm... I'm almost 30... I have nothing holding me back. No fam to approve this with or raise..hm. If I'm ever to run in a half marathon, I guess this would be the time to do it, right?

So I toy with the idea for a bit. Put on my Facebook that I'm thinking about running the half. The response was pretty overwhelming. Some 'you're CRAZY!' and others 'omg..awesome... and if you do it, I'll do it!'

The other day...I took the plunge. Went to the site, threw my credit card info in there and voila! I'm registered for the half!

I figure I have a year to train, right?

Now I can get started on planning my trip too!!!

I definitely need to stay down at Disney for a few days before and after. So I've decided on Jan 7-13th. Race is on Saturday. Probably won't be doing tooo much prior to the race. Arrive Thursday, pick up my race packet, wander either MK or Epcot, have a yummy meal and call it a night. Friday pretty much still the same thing. Nothing crazy. Have a yummy carb filled dinner and get to bed EARLY! Race is on Saturday morning... then try to hobble around the parks after I recover a little.

I called yesterday and booked just a room at Pop. Only me so far but I know for a fact I will have either more racers with me or a cheering section. Didn't buy park passes or anything yet, just wanted to reserve the room! And when I was on the phone...did you guys know that they can tell you how many days you've actually stayed on Disney property? She didn't tell me exact but said 'wow! you've been here over 100 days!' I would LOVE to get a detailed print out of that! haha! too funny!

So that's it for now! I've already started running...ran 4 miles last week. Knee hurt a little bit but not sure if it's just cause I've been wearing heels every day to work lately. We'll see how it goes!

I still can't believe I'm doing this.... lol

[Twingle]

Wanted to let you know that I'm following you from the pre-trippes down here to the WISH Journals.

Good luck with everything! Glad to follow you on your way to the half:thumbsup2

[disneygirlinnj]

Thanks Twingle! Glad to see you're over here too!


So I guess I should tell a little bit about me? :)

I'm 28 years old...and have hated running for quite some time now. I had never run a mile and hated the treadmill with a passion. I had joined a gym about 3 years ago and the owner was big into getting people to all run together and run small races. So he convinced me to run the local 5k in town and helped a lot of us get in running shape for it.

3 years later I've run that 5k 3 times, run another 5k in NJ, as well as participated in the Jersey Shore relay twice and did the 4mile leg both times (teams of 5 run a total of 26 miles from Seaside Heights to Asbury Park...for all you NJians).

I'm still not a huge fan of running but I enjoy the small dose of competition. By NO means am I a speed racer though....I just take my time and want to finish! It's a tiny competition against myself to try to beat my last time, even by a few seconds. I know it's good for me (I seriously tell myself that when I start to hate running!) so I keep doing it to try to stay in shape and lose a few extra pounds. I'm still waiting to hit that 'euphoria' that some runners talk about.. you guys are crazy!

Running on the treadmill is pretty boring for me so I try to run outside as much as possible. Sadly there's a deep freeze here in NJ and I haven't even gone outside in the past few months to run at all. I'm hoping it warms up soon though and in Feb I'll definitely get out.

I also ordered 'Marathons for Mortals' based on reviews on here, hoping to gain some knowledge about training for this. When I set my mind to something, I try to jump completely in! haha! :thumbsup2

I'm hoping to do some running today at the gym...we'll see! :)

[disneygirlinnj]

Just a quick update so i can remember :)

Went to the gym today and ran... in 64 mins I ran 5 miles. Walked a little bit here and there. I was just bored I think. My knees didn't really hurt...it just kinda felt like pressure was building around my knee cap? Hard to explain!

[disneygirlinnj]

another update!

Just finished reading "Marathons for Mortals" and thought it was really informative. Now I just have to write down my training plans and get to running some more. I'm probably going to mix and match the half-marathon and full marathon training plans since there's SO much time from now until January.

Also bought new sneakers. My knees started getting more sore then usual in my old ones and it was time for a new pair anyways.

Ran 4 miles yesterday and I feel pretty good today. Knees slightly sore but nothing bad. No pain.

My friend Christina also officially signed up for the Donald as well. So I at least have one running partner for my training. :)

[tinkerbell of winter]

Keep up the good work! I was going to do the full next year but now I am doing the half, I don't think my knees will agree with me to train for the full and lose the weight that I need (about 85 lbs to lose altogether). You will be able to do the half, you have plenty of time to train for it. I'm going with my 2007 plan, the 5 mile shamrock run on March 14th, the Boilermaker 15K in July, the Race for the Taste 10K at Epcot in October and then the half marathon in Jan 2010 :) Hoping to do the full in 2011. Once you get into running you really do get a runner's "high" after so many miles. I don't run fast but I just keep on plugging. And there is always someone slower than me. Besides if you finish dead last they usually put your picture in the paper or something :) The important thing is FINISHING! My other thing is that the first two miles I run in a distance run feel horrible but once I get those out of the way I am cruising.

[disneygirlinnj]

Keep up the good work! I was going to do the full next year but now I am doing the half, I don't think my knees will agree with me to train for the full and lose the weight that I need (about 85 lbs to lose altogether). You will be able to do the half, you have plenty of time to train for it. I'm going with my 2007 plan, the 5 mile shamrock run on March 14th, the Boilermaker 15K in July, the Race for the Taste 10K at Epcot in October and then the half marathon in Jan 2010 :) Hoping to do the full in 2011. Once you get into running you really do get a runner's "high" after so many miles. I don't run fast but I just keep on plugging. And there is always someone slower than me. Besides if you finish dead last they usually put your picture in the paper or something :) The important thing is FINISHING! My other thing is that the first two miles I run in a distance run feel horrible but once I get those out of the way I am cruising.

thanks tinkerbell! :) I'm by NO means fast! I'm completely ok with just plugging along. My goal is just to finish. I was looking online yesterday to find some races to run in throughout the year. Found a million 5ks, a few 10k's here and there, etc. I have to start planning these all out!

[disneygirlinnj]

Haven't updated in awhile so here's a little info..

I finally got a chance to run outside a week ago. Did 3 miles and sadly my knees started hurting REALLY bad. I realllly hope it's the sneakers throwing me off...so I went and I exchanged them for my old trusty Nike's that haven't hurt my knees. Ran on the treadmill in them and no pain but the true test will be outside. Hopefully this weekend I can test them out but it's supposed to be COLD!!!!

I also got my triaining schedule somewhat set up. I only have it filled out until the end of april. Baby steps! signed up for the Jersey Shore Relay Marathon for a 6 mile leg mid april. :) Kinda scared! EEEK!

Also recruited a new half marathoner with us! Our friend from the gym we go to is going to be joining us. :)

ANDDDD a little off topic...I booked another Disney trip! Sept I want to go for my birthday so keep an eye out for a pre-trippie starting for that one...link willl eventually be in my sig.

[momof2minnies]

Hi There,
I am doing the 1/2 in WDW as well.Last year did the full and as you know being from the Northeast winters are not fun.Training and doing LRs in the sleet was not a blast.Next winter at least the LR are no more than 13.

You were thinking about signing up for other races.In September the Applefest is in Hollis,NH.Some Disboard people went last year.It was a great and beautiful course.It is a 1/2 as well.I believe I will be doing it again.

Oh I just saw that you were going to Disney in September- oh well given the choice so would I.

Hope the knees are getting better.I suffer from plantar faciitis- ouch!Keep going is what I say.

Have a good one,

Linda

[disneygirlinnj]

Hi Linda!

I swear I had written back to you... :( I'm not sure where the post when! Yikes!

A lot of people I know keep telling me to do the full as well and the thought of running those distances in NJ winters is NOT fun! And I can't even imagine up by you...BRRRRR!

An update on the knees... they are actually doing much better! I was running 4 miles with my best friend (who is also running the 1/2) and my knees started hurting after about 3 miles. I was complaining and she mentioned that I should really focus on my form and foot strikes and see if that helps..maybe I was just getting tired and careless.

Well...i did it... I reeeallllyy concentrated.. and it worked! I was definitely just getting lazy picking up and placing my feet correctly. Instantly when I fixed that, the pain went away. Yes, they were sore again afterwards but no pain.

A week after that I went to DC for work and a co-worker and I ran 5miles. NO pain in my knees! Sore... oh definitely but I have never run 5 miles outside before.

I also ran a 5k this past weekend (wow...I defintiely have NO updated here in a long time!) and ran my best time ever!!! And I felt great after it. No pain, not tired, etc. I was trying to pace myself but now that I know I can do it, I'll push myself even harder next 5k.

2 more weeks until my 10k! yikes! :)

[momof2minnies]

Great job on the 5k and good luck on the 10k!

Gald to hear about the knees.When you want to get in shape and pain holds you back it stinks.

Linda

[disneygirlinnj]

Got a pretty good run in yesterday...ran with the gang that I'm doing the Jersey Shore Relay with so we ran for 40 mins...got in 3.75 miles. Ran faster than normal so my knees are just a little sore today but not horrible.

Also, I am LOVING my Garmin 405!!! I love downloading the runs and checking them out online. Since I run with usually one other person, I send them the links and it's fun to compare past runs. Plus I don't ever need a set course with a specific distance already mapped out. We just weave in and out of streets and when we hit our goal distance or time, we're done! :)

I think I might start posting the links of each run as I do them in here too... I'm going to send my friend who's doing the 1/2 with me the link to the boards so now she can keep track too..

40 Min Run on March 31 (http://connect.garmin.com/activity/2877022)

[disneygirlinnj]

oops...double post...

[momof2minnies]

I love that about my Garmin too, no set route. It gets boring after a while.

[TennHokies]

disneygirlinnj, first off good luck with your training - I think it takes a ton of courage to sign up for your first half marathon. In addition to my new found WDW obsession, I'm already obsessed with the sport of Triathalon. I've only done sprint races so far, which require only a 5K run, so I'm in awe of your 13 mile race!

When you mentioned your knee pain while training I thought about a book I've found helpful on running technique. It's called Chi Running in case you want to check it out. When someone first recommended it to me I thought, that's crazy I don't need someone to teach me how to run, but it actually have some great tips.

Now I need to go research that Garim 405 - sounds like a great new toy!

[disneygirlinnj]

I love that about my Garmin too, no set route. It gets boring after a while.

I really can't stress enough how much I LOVE not having a set route! :thumbsup2

disneygirlinnj, first off good luck with your training - I think it takes a ton of courage to sign up for your first half marathon. In addition to my new found WDW obsession, I'm already obsessed with the sport of Triathalon. I've only done sprint races so far, which require only a 5K run, so I'm in awe of your 13 mile race!

When you mentioned your knee pain while training I thought about a book I've found helpful on running technique. It's called Chi Running in case you want to check it out. When someone first recommended it to me I thought, that's crazy I don't need someone to teach me how to run, but it actually have some great tips.

Now I need to go research that Garim 405 - sounds like a great new toy!

Thank you so much! The whole idea of a Tri scares me... I'm NOT a huge swimmer (although I do know how). After I accomplish this lovely half though who knows what my crazy mind will tell me to do!

I'll definitely check out Chi Running. My knee has been kinda iffy more often then usual lately so I'll take any help I can get! My friends trainer said it sounds like it's my IT Band and gave me stretches for it but it hasn't really helped yet.

Tomorrow I'm running in the Jersey Shore Relay, teams of 5 runs a marathon...I'm running the 6.2 mile leg..my longest run ever!! Yikes! The most I've run so far is 6 miles a week ago and it wasn't that bad! I'll come back with a full report!

[disneygirlinnj]

This past Saturday I ran in the Jersey Shore Relay Marathon...A 26.2 Mile Relay Race rom Seaside Heights, NJ to Asbury Park, NJ along the scenic Atlantic Ocean held the third Saturday in April. Teams of 5, 4, 3, 2 or individuals run the marathon distance mostly on world famous boardwalks. (we had a team of 5)

We had a great time and it was SUCH a beautiful day out! It did get hot towards the end of the run so I'm secretly happy that I ran the 2nd leg and missed the 75-80 degree weather during my run.

I joined with my old gym and we actually had 9 or 12 teams registered for the race so the support we had throughout the whole day was amazing. Everywhere we turned we'd see at least a few of our race shirts wandering around. I was our team captain since I was the only one on my individual team that had run this race before. And... small world... I found out a few weeks ago that one of the ladies on my team is a disney nut and ran the last two halfs and is registered for the full this year. Can't wait to cheer her on down in Disney!

So I had originally signed up for one of the 6.1 or 6.2 mile legs and on the way down there when I was looking at the race info, I realized it was changed to 6.5 miles! I've never run more than 6 miles in one shot. Didn't have a problem with that but luckily I found out before I started running or I would have been so confused looking at my Garmin.

Overall I'm very very happy with my time and how my portion went. I finished the 6.5 mi (6.57 according to Garmin but whos counting..lol) in 1:11:43. One of my best times yet! I was worried about my knee though and it did of course start acting up. Almost right after the first mile it started hurting but I kept trying to adjust my form and make improvements and by about mile 2.5 I didn't feel any pain, just a tightness. Don't remember much pain from miles 2.5 to 6.5 so that's a good thing! However my knees are NOT liking me today. I've been icing them all night and this morning and will have another big stretch session in a little bit. I really think thats part of my problem...I don't stretch and warm up as much as I should. I do the 'normal' but I'm thinking my knees need more than that!

I believe our whole team finished the marathon in just barely over 4hrs30min and I couldn't be happier! Now I just need to find an 'official' 10k and start improving.

[disneygirlinnj]

OK So I've been a complete slacker in terms of running. The relay was the last big run I've had. I did do a 4 miler I think in the park about two weeks ago but that's it. I need to get back into it but I've been lazy!

[disneygirlinnj]

Small little update.... I've barely been running but did get a chance to run my fasted 5k time ever on Saturday in the park! :) happy dance! I also registered for a 10k this Sunday coming up so hopefully my horrible back ache will go away by then. I have NO idea why my back hurts :( Ugh!

[disneygirlinnj]

Hello!! So I tried to start off June with a bang and worked out fabulously June 1st. Apparently something I did though didn't agree with my back AT ALL so I was gym-less from then until this past Sunday when I ran my first official 10k. I didn't want to stress my back too much beforehand so I took it easy and just tried to stretch as much as possible.

We couldn't have asked for better weather for the Montclair YMCA 10k. It was slightly hotter than I'm used to but I didn't mind it too much. I ran it with my two friends and had a great day. One of my friends (Jaime) is Speedy Gonzalez and finished it in 57 minutes, I think. I finished it in my personal best of 1:05:and change and my best friend Christina also finished in her personal best of 1:10 possibly? I actually forgot to stop my watch when I ran through the finish line and didn't realize it until a minute later.

The actual run for me went well for the most part. Christina and I started out together and kept under a 10min mile for mile1. Slowed down a bit after that and then I believe I lost Christina after about mile 3.5-ish. Luckily there were water stops at every mile for me to grab a few sips and douse my arms and neck to cool down. At around mile 4.75 I found a new running partner and finished the race with a nice guy from Peru. I couldn't really chit-chat but it was nice to have someone running next to you and giving small words of wisdom and encouragement.

My knee held up pretty well. Slight tightness and discomfort on and off but it wasn't bad. At around mile 5.75 though I got a HORRIBLE pain on the outer side of my right foot (same side as my knee). I honestly even thought of stopping and walking for the remainder but my new friend kept telling me to dig on. I have no idea where the pain came from, I've never had pain like that before. I thought maybe it was due to running on only one side of the road but this race was fairly mixed and I didn't stick to one side. It's still pretty painful to walk today at work and hobbling into the building today was no fun. Anyone else have experience with this? So annoying!

So that was my fun day. Even with the pain I still had a great time and really hope I can run again in a day or two.

After all my aches and pains I'm thinking of making an appointment with an Orthopedic and Sports Medicine practice that I found right by my house. It's three doctors that only specialize in sports injuries and rehab. I want to get to the bottom of this knee discomfort (and now my lovely new foot pain! ).

Ok...I've babbled enough... :)

[disneygirlinnj]

Hmm...double post.. lol

[MyMuse]

I'm in!

I wish I could train/run in a marathon, but I know I will not be able or want to do it. So, I'll live vicariously through you.

I did have inspiration enough to start my WISH journal in early June, but nothing much to report. :rolleyes: Ah, well, I'm trying.

I hope your training is going well and your back is okay!

[disneygirlinnj]

I'm in!

I wish I could train/run in a marathon, but I know I will not be able or want to do it. So, I'll live vicariously through you.

I did have inspiration enough to start my WISH journal in early June, but nothing much to report. :rolleyes: Ah, well, I'm trying.

I hope your training is going well and your back is okay!

Hey! Thanks for joining in... :)

Yeah..I haven't had too much to report as of late either but I'll probably post a small update some time today since you reminded me! :thumbsup2

I started small when i first started running... like realllll small. Half mile... then slowly worked up to a mile...etc. It took me a good year or 2 years to just run my first 5k. now I look back and its hard to imagine not being able to do it, ya know? i used to complain about running the smallest distances!

[disneygirlinnj]

Thanks to MyMuse, I finally remembered to come over here and report!! :)


There really isn't too much to mention about training... slowly getting there. I ran 7 miles a few weeks ago and that went well, but very slow. Not that I was trying to beat any records! I just wanted to get it over with! Sadly I haven't really ran that much or that distance since. :( I ran 5 miles this past weekend. Hopefully going to run 8 miles this weekend.

And as for the back and knees, so far so good. lets hope it stays that way! :)

[dismagiclover]

Hey there. I'm registered to run the Donald too. It sounds like you are getting there! The longest I've run this year is 5.5. I'm planning on going 6 miles this Saturday so we are about in the same place. (Though you are faster than me. My 5.5 mile run took me 65 minutes.) Anyway, I like hearing your progress. I think I'll do a Hal Higdon plan starting in October. Training in the cold is going to be a bummer though. I'm not quite sure how that is going to go because I can't imagine a long run on the treadmill.:eek: Keep training:goodvibes

[disneygirlinnj]

Hey there. I'm registered to run the Donald too. It sounds like you are getting there! The longest I've run this year is 5.5. I'm planning on going 6 miles this Saturday so we are about in the same place. (Though you are faster than me. My 5.5 mile run took me 65 minutes.) Anyway, I like hearing your progress. I think I'll do a Hal Higdon plan starting in October. Training in the cold is going to be a bummer though. I'm not quite sure how that is going to go because I can't imagine a long run on the treadmill.:eek: Keep training:goodvibes

welcome! good luck on your training as well! :) So far I've gotten up to 7.5miles and that was a killer. I really need to start keeping up with this journal more! This weekend I'm going to attempt 8 miles. Just the though of it kinda bums me out! :rotfl:

[disneygirlinnj]

so today I ran my first 8 miles ever! I actually felt really good and am really happy about it. woke up early and tried to figure out the best meal to eat before a long run. I've been playing around with things and I think I found a winner. Had 1/2 a cup of oatmeal made with water with raisins, cinnamon, and a tsp or tbsp of natural peanut butter. YUMMY and filling and apparently did the trick.

I also had a 20oz water bottle that I filled with half water and half gatorade. Also brought some Gu Chomps with me for about halfway through the run to give me a little extra kick. Took a few sips every half mile or so of the drink.

Started out at a 12:30 pace (about 2:30 below my normal pace for short runs). Then I thought might crash so starting at mile 2 I dropped down to a 13:00 pace. About 5 miles in I realized that I had a bit more energy then expected and decided to up the pace again to see how I did. Kept miles 6 and 7 around 12 mins and then my last mile finished in 11:45. YAYYY!! If I had kept a slower pace I'm sure I could have kept on going.

Knees are slightly sore, as are my feet but nothing horrible. Next week I'll probably try for 9 miles! yayyy!

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/10734937

[MyMuse]

Congrats!! :cheer2:

The garmin thngy looked cool!

[dismagiclover]

:woohoo::yay::dance3::banana: That is awesome! You should be more than ready by the time January rolls around:cool1:

[disneygirlinnj]

Congrats!! :cheer2:

The garmin thngy looked cool!

thank you! i love my garmin...i'm so addicted to it :)

:woohoo::yay::dance3::banana: That is awesome! You should be more than ready by the time January rolls around:cool1:

thank you! :cool1: i'm hoping I can keep up with the gradual increase in mileage.

[disneygirlinnj]

So I just called Disney and added a few extra days to my reservation at Pop for that week!

Originally I had booked just Thursday (Jan 7th) to Wednesday the 13th. Well I REALLLY want to do a few solo days and my friends are NOT making it easy on me! :)

My one friend Nate has to be back at work that next Monday so he's only staying 4 nights...Thurs-Sun. My friend Christina thinks she can take off most of the week so she's coming down Thurs-Wed most likely. Well I wanted to add a few days on for myself so I extended the hotel reservation from Thurs-Fri (7th-15th). Then I'll have roughly 2 and a half days to myself. :)

I'm looking at flights and they're $230 if I go those dates with JetBlue. Not too bad. Continental is about $258 right now. Hmmmm!

[scoot241]

I'm looking at flights and they're $230 if I go those dates with JetBlue. Not too bad. Continental is about $258 right now. Hmmmm!

JetBlue won't charge you for your first checked bag, though. Continental will. It's $15 if you tell them in advance or $20 if you check it at the airport.

I like to avoid the fees whenever possible, which is why I usually fly Southwest.

[disneygirlinnj]

JetBlue won't charge you for your first checked bag, though. Continental will. It's $15 if you tell them in advance or $20 if you check it at the airport.

I like to avoid the fees whenever possible, which is why I usually fly Southwest.

ohhh...good point. I did know that...just kinda forgot to add it into my calculation! :rotfl: Yet again another reason why I'm a fan of them!

[Lynn5700]

Hey!!! I'm running the half too! You are doing great with your training girl!! Keep up all your hard work!

[disneygirlinnj]

Hey!!! I'm running the half too! You are doing great with your training girl!! Keep up all your hard work!

thank you! :) I see you have a ptr too so I'm heading there now! good luck with your training...hope to see you in january!

[Lynn5700]

thank you! :) I see you have a ptr too so I'm heading there now! good luck with your training...hope to see you in january!

Aww thanks :)
Yeah I would love to see you on race day:goodvibes

[MyMuse]

So I just called Disney and added a few extra days to my reservation at Pop for that week!

Originally I had booked just Thursday (Jan 7th) to Wednesday the 13th. Well I REALLLY want to do a few solo days and my friends are NOT making it easy on me! :)

My one friend Nate has to be back at work that next Monday so he's only staying 4 nights...Thurs-Sun. My friend Christina thinks she can take off most of the week so she's coming down Thurs-Wed most likely. Well I wanted to add a few days on for myself so I extended the hotel reservation from Thurs-Fri (7th-15th). Then I'll have roughly 2 and a half days to myself. :)

I'm looking at flights and they're $230 if I go those dates with JetBlue. Not too bad. Continental is about $258 right now. Hmmmm!

Whoooo-hoooooo! :yay::yay:

I like adding on days. :thumbsup2

[disneygirlinnj]

Aww thanks :)
Yeah I would love to see you on race day:goodvibes

Definitely! I'm thinking we'll be talking more as it gets closer, even if it's a quick hello before getting in the corrals!

Whoooo-hoooooo! :yay::yay:

I like adding on days. :thumbsup2

ME TOO! :woohoo: And it's going to be my first solo adventures. Just actually bought my flight today!

[disneygirlinnj]

Bought my airline tickets today!!

I swear I didn't think it would be this complicated to plan 2 disney trips at the same time! Whew! It's serious Disney overload. :)

But yup! I looked at the JetBlue flights and saw they were a decent price so I bought them and used my credit from my September flight adjustment for the January flights! Definitely can't complain at all.

So I'm definitely going from Jan 7th-15th. WOOHOO!! Can't wait for a little solo adventures! Now I can try all the restaurants all my picky family and friends refuse to go to! :banana:

[disneygirlinnj]

OK so a little bit about the rest of the cast that's joining me for this adventure. :) I know I quickly mentioned they were coming with me but here's a little more info....

The first victim to sign up with me a while back is my friend Christina...another Disney-holic. Her fam goes all the time to the World and she knows it almost as well as I do. Can't wait to run around with her and have fun! We both love different things about Disney so it's going to be a great time sharing our ideas.

The second victim that signed up for the half with us is our friend Nate. He's only been to Disney once a few years ago but it was a crappy trip and he didn't enjoy it. So Christina and I have taken it upon ourselves to give him a crash course in all things Disney! :) Hopefully we can convert him!

So as of right now... I'm saying the 7th-15...Thurs-Fri. Nate can only stay Thurs-Mon and Christina can stay Thurs-Tues. We'll try showing Nate as much Disney fun as possible before he has to head back home.

Tomorrow I'll post our tentative schedule!

[Lynn5700]

That's great you got your air! We are going to be getting our air soon.

Can't wait to hear about your plans!!

[disneygirlinnj]

That's great you got your air! We are going to be getting our air soon.

Can't wait to hear about your plans!!

I'm having a brain fart...lol...did I ever ask you where in NJ you are? :confused3 I'm up in Bergen County...it's always nice to see a fellow NJian!

More plans on their way!

[disneygirlinnj]

This is going to be a JAM PACKED update! Sit back, relax, and enjoy the read...:lmao:

So since I'm the compulsive planner that I am...I forced a little pow-wow at Christinas the other day to figure out pretty much food for the most part when we're there and then a quick overview of parks and stuff. I didn't realize how hard it was when there's 3 totally different minds involved in this planning! Well actually....2 minds... Christina and I were pretty much on the same page (duh) but Nate? :sad2: This poor boy needs some Disney in his life. :wizard:

First question I asked was what do we want to eat when we're down there, what type of foods, etc. Christina immediately said Le Cellier. Nate raises and eyebrow. I explain it's a pretty decent steakhouse in one of the theme parks. He said he doesn't really want French :laughing:. I explain it's NOT French...if you MUST be picky it's 'Canadian' and they're known for their steaks and cheddar cheese soup. Nate, in his past life, was a chef for awhile and went to culinary school. So then he states the he refuses to pay $35 for a crappy piece of meat. :eek: Oh boy this is going to be a long pow-wow. Hmm... we kindly explain that umm... yes...your piece of meat will probably be around $30. It WILL not be to the caliber of a Ruth's Chris steakhouse, etc. But umm.... can we remind you that we are in a THEME PARK?! You're going to pay $15 for a crappy burger and fries so umm....that $30 decent piece of meat is looking pretty darn good, right? :confused3

So I then pull up AllEars menus and start reading off the prices. He calmed down a little when he found out it wasn't all a la carte. Whew!

Ok, Le Cellier will be somewhere on our list if I can get an ADR. When? We don't know.

Next up? Where do we want to eat the two nights before the race? Possibly Le Cellier? nah.. not healthy or enough carbs. Disney said they're offering a pasta dinner Thursday so that's a possibility on our first night when that info comes out. Can anyone give any suggestions?



So here is a little outline of our days and possibilities:

Thursday, January 7th
-Arrive at MCO around 9:45am.
-Take DME to Pop...hopefully get there between 11am & 11:30am? Wishful thinking?!
-Check in, buy Nate park tickets (I have an AP and Christina has unused non-expired tickets). Unpack possibly grab some food at Pop food court or just head directly to MK.
- Wander around MK and do whatever we want.
- Dinner: Either Pasta Dinner hosted by Disney for runners or somewhere semi-healthy.
- Take it easy and not do too much, still trying to save our legs
- semi early night

Friday, January 8th
- try waking up pretty bright and early since we're heading to bed early...breakfast at Pop?
- Animal Kingdom today since it closes early and we don't want to go crazy
- Dinner? Japan, GF Cafe, Wave, ????????
- very early night

The night before the race? We still have NO idea. I really think Nate has the mindset that there is NOTHING healthy to eat in Disney so he's already grumpy and miserable. I mention hibachi at Teppan Edo....some nice healthy protein...brown rice (i think they had brown rice?), nice salad, etc. It MIGHT be greasy/buttery so there's always Tokyo Dining with healthy sushi and grilled chicken teriyaki. Christina seemed mildly excited...nate? he was indifferent. I then recommend Chefs de France...they have a nice Roasted Chicken. No? Hmm... GF Cafe also had a bunch of nice healthy entrees. maybe? The Wave?! They don't have grilled chicken...GRRRR...Tutto Italia has pasta, yes...but someone might complain about the $24 for a bowl of pasta. So as of right now it's possibly Japanese, GF Cafe, Chefs, or something else. I'm going to send Nate the menu website and have him choose. Ugh! more suggestions anyone?

Saturday, January 9th
- RACE DAY!!!! :scared1: wake up at 2:30am... try eating some oatmeal that I'm bringing
- after race heading to room to shower..NO NAPPING!
- MK again today to see the stuff we didn't see the first day
- dinner at Hoopdedoo
- crash the minute my head hits the pillow


Night after the race? That was easy. Christina and I aren't giving Nate any choice. We're doing Hoop de Doo. :woohoo: I honestly have NOT done this since I was a little kid. Actually forgot all about it until Christina told me about it on her last trip. They do it every year.

Sunday, January 10th
- Jenn (and MAYBE the others) wakes up early and cheers on the marathoners :cheer2:
- either come back to room or meet the other 2 at GF for 1900 Park Fare for breakfast
- jump on monorail to Epcot, do some FW fun
- Drink Around the World! :drinking1
- Eat Around the world :)


Morning after the race... we're going to be sore. We know this. But umm... they always say it's best to get up and moving. So first we (or at least ME!) are waking up bright and early and I'm going to go cheer on my fellow DISers, DisneyRunners, and a lady that I work with for the full marathon. Then to give Nate the full Disney experience, we want to take him to a character breakfast. 1900 Park Fare seems fun with the Mad Hatter and stuff and semi-healthy. I believe they have a make your own omlette station? Or I could be thinking of somewhere else. Either way it'll be fun. I hope. Other than Chef Mickeys and Crystal Palace, can you guys think of anywhere else?

The day after the race will also be our Epcot day. We plan on getting there somewhat early and doing Future World. Then when the world showcase opens our Drinking Around the World adventure begins to celebrate our accomplishments! We're starting bright and early so we can pace ourselves. I've done this a few times and had NO problem doing every country by the time the park closed and STILL was coherent. There will be NO drunken stupidity from us three. Promise. For food we're going to make sure we eat around the world as well so no TS, just counter service and picking at stuff. I know Christina wants a pretzel from Germany! I want everything. :woohoo:


Monday, January 11th
- breakfast somewhere
- head to MGM and do top 3 rides...
- if Nate has to leave, go back to hotel with him, say bon voyage at DME, then Christina and I will head back out somewhere
- if Nate stays, finish up whatever at MGM and then dinner somewhere

Monday is kinda up in the air. Nate still doesn't know if he can stay until Tuesday. I believe we're going to do DHS either way, just early in the morning before he has to get home. I'm going to force him to buy the 6pm flight out of MCO. :confused3 I think he'll enjoy ToT, RNNC, and TSM. That's all we really need to do I think. Anything else would just be bonus.

Dinner Monday night would be either the 3 of us, or just Christina and I.

Tuesday, January 12th
- breakfast somewhere
- possibly Epcot with Christina or whatever she wants to do
- back to hotel for Christina's departure
- LET THE SOLO ADVENTURES BEGIN :banana:

Wednesday, January 13th
- solo adventures (not sure what yet)

Thursday, January 14th
- solo adventures (not sure what yet)

Friday, January 15th
- solo adventures (not sure what yet)

The most exciting thing for me for my solo adventures is being able to just do whatever I want, when I want, how I want, etc. If there are any DISers still left in the parks after the marathon rush leaves, I'm up for meeting up even for a little bit!

There are a few restaurants I NEED to try that I haven't been able to since I swear I'm only friends with or related to picky eaters. Jiko, Sanaa, Boma, Morocco, Rose & Crown, Flying Fish, Wave immediately come to mind, but I'm sure theres more. Yachtsman Steakhouse is on my list to try too. Obviously I'd only have 3 dinners alone and way too many possibilities. :eek: I think I'd also want to scope out and see which ones have a bar that I could sit at and eat. I know Jiko does. I don't mind eating at a table alone but I think it's more fun sitting at the bar and at least I can chit chat with the bartender, ya know?

Ok, whew!!! That's our tentative schedule and I feel like I've been writing forever!

Let me know what you guys think or if you can give any suggestions!

[Lynn5700]

OOh your plans sounds great!! I know what you mean about planning when you have somebody who can be difficult lol.

I think it's awesome you have days to your self in Disney! I love it when Tim sleeps in on some days, and I go off and do my thing by myself until he wakes up and meets me where ever.

You just helped me figure out where we should eat the day before the race! TUTTO! I can have my Penne Caprese meal!! I love it. What time is the race again? 5:30? When do the buses start? I forget.

Oh and I'm from Burlington County :)

[disneygirlinnj]

OOh your plans sounds great!! I know what you mean about planning when you have somebody who can be difficult lol.

I think it's awesome you have days to your self in Disney! I love it when Tim sleeps in on some days, and I go off and do my thing by myself until he wakes up and meets me where ever.

You just helped me figure out where we should eat the day before the race! TUTTO! I can have my Penne Caprese meal!! I love it. What time is the race again? 5:30? When do the buses start? I forget.

Oh and I'm from Burlington County :)

mmmmm penne caprese!!! it's on my meal list for september and HOPEFULLY I can convince the gang to go there before the race! :)

I thought I read somewhere that the bus starts at 3am? And the last bus is 4am or 4:30am? Don't quote me though. And race MIGHT begin at 5:30am... sounds familiar! haha

[disneygirlinnj]

Hmm... so I was running on the treadmill today and bored out of my mind so I started thinking obviously of my solo part of the trip. What can I do to pass the time...

backstage tours!!! :banana:

I've always wanted to do the Keys to the Kingdom and Behind the Seeds tours and what perfect time?

Has anyone done any of them before? What did you think?

[Lynn5700]

Hey! We did the Keys to the Kingdom tour!!! Loved it. It's so much fun. I have a review of it in my May TR.

[disneygirlinnj]

Hey! We did the Keys to the Kingdom tour!!! Loved it. It's so much fun. I have a review of it in my May TR.

heading there right now :cool2: thanks!

[disneygirlinnj]

Where'd everyone else go? :)

Yesterday ran 6 miles...it was just way too hot and humid by the time we got out there to do much more. Since I was only doing 6 I decided to push myself a little more. Finished in 1:05:30.... my best 6mi time yet, minus a 10k I ran but I usually run faster in races.

I feel good today too, knees aren't sore or anything...happy dance! :)

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11271397

[scoot241]

Where'd everyone else go? :)

Yesterday ran 6 miles...it was just way too hot and humid by the time we got out there to do much more. Since I was only doing 6 I decided to push myself a little more. Finished in 1:05:30.... my best 6mi time yet, minus a 10k I ran but I usually run faster in races.

I feel good today too, knees aren't sore or anything...happy dance! :)

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11271397

Nice job. A 10 minute mile is pretty good.

A couple of friends of mine are planning to do the WDW Marathon. I think they're going to do the full though.

[disneygirlinnj]

Nice job. A 10 minute mile is pretty good.

A couple of friends of mine are planning to do the WDW Marathon. I think they're going to do the full though.

thanks!! running the full is something i cant even wrap my mind around yet. just thinking about the half is daunting enough! :)

[scoot241]

thanks!! running the full is something i cant even wrap my mind around yet. just thinking about the half is daunting enough! :)

That's alright, I can't even wrap my mind around running the half. Not a big fan of running. I'd rather ride a bike.

[MyMuse]

Hmm... so I was running on the treadmill today and bored out of my mind so I started thinking obviously of my solo part of the trip. What can I do to pass the time...

backstage tours!!! :banana:

I've always wanted to do the Keys to the Kingdom and Behind the Seeds tours and what perfect time?

Has anyone done any of them before? What did you think?

I'm going to do the same in December. :woohoo:

I'm definitely going to do Keys to the Kingdom and the new Segway tour which has Behind the Seeds already in it as well as Undiscovered World, from the description.

Congrats on the mileage! I only do the treadmill and the most I can do s 3 miles. :rolleyes: Then my right knee goes out-of-whack for 1-2 days. :laughing:

[disneygirlinnj]

That's alright, I can't even wrap my mind around running the half. Not a big fan of running. I'd rather ride a bike.

I despised running at first. Now I'm honestly scarily starting to enjoy it! :confused3

I'm going to do the same in December. :woohoo:

I'm definitely going to do Keys to the Kingdom and the new Segway tour which has Behind the Seeds already in it as well as Undiscovered World, from the description.

Congrats on the mileage! I only do the treadmill and the most I can do s 3 miles. :rolleyes: Then my right knee goes out-of-whack for 1-2 days. :laughing:

I can NOT wait for the KTTK tour!! the segways seems really cool but I think I'm going to just stick to one semi-expensive tour and the cheap Behind the Seeds.

[scoot241]

I despised running at first. Now I'm honestly scarily starting to enjoy it! :confused3


A lot of people seem to enjoy running. Maybe if I really tried I might do alright. In the past I've gotten shin splints, which hurt like, well...

In high school and college I got a lot of exercise from marching band. Now that I'm out of college, I've been a bit lax on exercise and need to crack down.

[jordanyosh]

I'm back. I was at church camp, then really sick.....

[Lynn5700]

Where'd everyone else go? :)

Yesterday ran 6 miles...it was just way too hot and humid by the time we got out there to do much more. Since I was only doing 6 I decided to push myself a little more. Finished in 1:05:30.... my best 6mi time yet, minus a 10k I ran but I usually run faster in races.

I feel good today too, knees aren't sore or anything...happy dance! :)

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11271397

Great Job girl!!!!!! :banana::banana: Glad you felt good after!!!!

[disneygirlinnj]

A lot of people seem to enjoy running. Maybe if I really tried I might do alright. In the past I've gotten shin splints, which hurt like, well...

In high school and college I got a lot of exercise from marching band. Now that I'm out of college, I've been a bit lax on exercise and need to crack down.

yeah, I started running because after college I was doing NOTHING with myself! I needed to get out and moving!

I'm back. I was at church camp, then really sick.....

Aww jordan I'm sorry! Saw your update on your trip report too. :( Glad you're feeling mostly better!

Great Job girl!!!!!! :banana::banana: Glad you felt good after!!!!

Thank you!! :banana: Now umm... do your toenails ever hurt after a long run?! :( i swear they're not too long but omg my 2nd toe nail feels like it's going to fall off :( OUCH! And I really think my shoes are big enough. Grrrr...

[disneygirlinnj]

Woke up early this morning for my long 8am run. Then realized that my Garmin wasn't charged so I bummed around for an hour until it got enough juice. Got to the park and when I started running I saw Nate, the guy running Disney with us, as he was finishing up his long run.

Trucked along and completed my first 9 miles!! :) Took me 1hr 48mins...pretty good for me and a steady 12 min pace. Now that I know I could do it I'll pick up the pace next time.

I felt good for the whole thing. It was slighly drizzling when I started, then stopped, then flat our rained for a good 20 mins, then stopped, then drizzled again. Needless to say I was soaked to the bone but it felt good to cool off.

Right now I'm bumming around and getting stiff and a little sore but nothing horrible. Taking it easy tonight! :)

[scoot241]

Woke up early this morning for my long 8am run. Then realized that my Garmin wasn't charged so I bummed around for an hour until it got enough juice. Got to the park and when I started running I saw Nate, the guy running Disney with us, as he was finishing up his long run.

Trucked along and completed my first 9 miles!! :) Took me 1hr 48mins...pretty good for me and a steady 12 min pace. Now that I know I could do it I'll pick up the pace next time.

I felt good for the whole thing. It was slighly drizzling when I started, then stopped, then flat our rained for a good 20 mins, then stopped, then drizzled again. Needless to say I was soaked to the bone but it felt good to cool off.

Right now I'm bumming around and getting stiff and a little sore but nothing horrible. Taking it easy tonight! :)

Congrats on 9 miles! :yay:

[disneygirlinnj]

Thanks Scott! :)

So I've been trying to narrow down where I want to go on my solo portion of the trip but I feel like I can't make any of those decisions until i finalize the plans with my friends for the beginning of the trip! :( BOO!

Narrowing down food options is tough too. :( I'll have a TiW card so I'm not going to mind doing signature dining. Jiko is a MUST for me. Sanaa is also very high on the list but do i want to head to AKL 2 nights out of my three solo? Cali Grill is up there... hmmmm!

[Lynn5700]

Congrats on the 9 miler!!!!! Good for you! You are doing so well girl!!!!!

[scoot241]

Thanks Scott! :)

So I've been trying to narrow down where I want to go on my solo portion of the trip but I feel like I can't make any of those decisions until i finalize the plans with my friends for the beginning of the trip! :( BOO!

Narrowing down food options is tough too. :( I'll have a TiW card so I'm not going to mind doing signature dining. Jiko is a MUST for me. Sanaa is also very high on the list but do i want to head to AKL 2 nights out of my three solo? Cali Grill is up there... hmmmm!

When I get some alone time (or relatively alone) I'm either going to be shooting pics or hitting the big boy rides. But I guess you don't need to worry about having a 4 year old with you. :)

Cali Grill is high on my list of restaurants to try one day; mostly because it's at the top of the Contemporary. The only "classy" (I guess that's the word I'm looking for) restaurant I'm doing is Teppan Edo ('Ohana & Mama Melrose are borderline I suppose). I'd also like to try Jiko and Boma; V&A would be good for a special occasion (like completing the half-marathon ;))

[disneygirlinnj]

Congrats on the 9 miler!!!!! Good for you! You are doing so well girl!!!!!

Thank you! :cool1: We're both gonna kick this half marathons butt :)

When I get some alone time (or relatively alone) I'm either going to be shooting pics or hitting the big boy rides. But I guess you don't need to worry about having a 4 year old with you. :)

Cali Grill is high on my list of restaurants to try one day; mostly because it's at the top of the Contemporary. The only "classy" (I guess that's the word I'm looking for) restaurant I'm doing is Teppan Edo ('Ohana & Mama Melrose are borderline I suppose). I'd also like to try Jiko and Boma; V&A would be good for a special occasion (like completing the half-marathon ;))

Haha, yeah no 4 year old to tag along yet! I'm definitely dragging my tripod around with me if I can but I'm worried it's going to be too big and bulky. I bought it without even thinking about Disney! :scared1: Now of course I've thrown out the box and all that fun stuff so exchanging it is out of the question.

V&A is definitely on my list but I think I want to wait until someone does it with me. :)

[disneygirlinnj]

Another personal record with the whole running thing! WOOHOO!!

Went to the park today and it was pretty decent out. I've been having a scratchy phlegmy throat though all day and it was acting up again. Tried to ignore it so went out and ran my best one mile time ever of 8:56!! :) It was tough but I did it. After that one mile though I was DONE! I couldn't take a huge deep breath because my throat kept bothering me so I decided to can the other 3 miles and turned around and headed back to the car. My last mile was a combo of walk/run.

So not the best total run but happy about the first mile. :)

[hlrababy]

Whats up girl!!! Sorry I haven't been around that much! :(

But, I just wanted to drop in and say hey and check on you! Congrats on the 9 miler!!! Wooo hooo!!:thumbsup2

[Lynn5700]

WOOOO!!!!! Awesome time on your mile!! I bet you are so proud!! Keep it up girl!!! You're doing so good.

[disneygirlinnj]

Whats up girl!!! Sorry I haven't been around that much! :(

But, I just wanted to drop in and say hey and check on you! Congrats on the 9 miler!!! Wooo hooo!!:thumbsup2

Hey!! :) I totally understand...I just went to your pretrip too and said hi. I've just been lurking and haven't had much time to write!!

WOOOO!!!!! Awesome time on your mile!! I bet you are so proud!! Keep it up girl!!! You're doing so good.

Yes! Happy dance! :) One day I'll get to "Lynn Speed" :rotfl:

[scoot241]

Haha, yeah no 4 year old to tag along yet! I'm definitely dragging my tripod around with me if I can but I'm worried it's going to be too big and bulky. I bought it without even thinking about Disney! :scared1: Now of course I've thrown out the box and all that fun stuff so exchanging it is out of the question.

V&A is definitely on my list but I think I want to wait until someone does it with me. :)

I've had my tripod for a while now; much longer than I've had the XSi. It's somewhat long when folded up but fairly light. I only see myself carrying it around a couple of nights. I recently bought a Gorillapod and may carry that around for the rest of the trip. Right now I see the Sigma 30mm being on the camera the majority of the time and pulling out the 18-55 to get some wider shots and maybe in AK (but 55 isn't really a whole lot of reach).

[Todd_H]

Now umm... do your toenails ever hurt after a long run?! :( i swear they're not too long but omg my 2nd toe nail feels like it's going to fall off :( OUCH! And I really think my shoes are big enough. Grrrr...

Hey, disneygirlinnj :wave2:! Just caught up on your PTR.

Ummmm... you do know that it's very common for long distance runners to lose toenails, right? It's pretty disgusting actually :crazy2:.


Trucked along and completed my first 9 miles!! :) Took me 1hr 48mins...pretty good for me and a steady 12 min pace. Now that I know I could do it I'll pick up the pace next time.


A slightly belated congrats! That's quite an accomplishment! Looking through your PTR, it looks like you are making very steady progress toward the half! You're going to have absolutely no problems in January.

[disneygirlinnj]

Hey, disneygirlinnj :wave2:! Just caught up on your PTR.

Ummmm... you do know that it's very common for long distance runners to lose toenails, right? It's pretty disgusting actually :crazy2:.



A slightly belated congrats! That's quite an accomplishment! Looking through your PTR, it looks like you are making very steady progress toward the half! You're going to have absolutely no problems in January.

Haha, thank you Todd! Yeah...sadly I know about the toenails but I think I solved my problem and all ten toenails are still in tact! :) I was somehow scrunching my toes when I stepped off my food during my runs. I mentally was aware of it during my last long run and luckily...no toe pain and no toenail pain anymore! hahah

[disneygirlinnj]

Tweet! Tweet!

So I will be twittering/tweeting from the parks. I just created an account just for Disney stuff. My normal 'non-Disney' friends were bugging me about stuff and didn't want to hear all the minute details of my trip when I'm down there!

So come follow me here...

www.twitter.com/disneygirlinnj

yes, what an original name :)

[jordanyosh]

Okay, back from vacation....congrats on the run!:thumbsup2

Twitter....I'm just getting used to FB.....I will try and follow you though...do I have to register to do that though?

[disneygirlinnj]

Okay, back from vacation....congrats on the run!:thumbsup2

Twitter....I'm just getting used to FB.....I will try and follow you though...do I have to register to do that though?

Hey Jordan! Nope, you don't have to register. Although you can. :) You can just go to the website and get updates. If you register you can get the updates sent to your phone but that's up to you lol

[disneygirlinnj]

So quick training update!! :)

I've been pretty good all week. Went to the gym 4 times, ran twice during the week and then yesterday had my big 10 mile run! Finished in 1:58:06. That's pretty much a 11:48 pace per mile, slowly bringing that speed up!

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/12846017

My legs were tight and sore when I finished but nothing horrible. I guess it also didn't help that I went to play golf with my dad after! By nightfall I was sore. Iced a little and feel decent today. Slightly stiff but still feel good. Bring on Disney!

[disneygirlinnj]

Ok new dilemna!! :) Well not a bad dilemna though!

So I got this bright idea to see how much it would cost to rent DVC points for all or part of my stay in January. Do any of you have any experience with this? Lynn I think you might have on your last trip?

Looking on the DIS DVC section it seems like most people are renting their points for $10 a point. If I can snag a AKL value or standard or a BWV standard... it'll be 82 or 92 points for the 8 nights. Or I could rent for just my solo portion of the trip... which would be 30-39 points for the 3 solo nights.

It would be slightly more expensive than staying at just Pop but... i'm not a HUGE fan of Pop, and would love to try a studio somewhere even if it is solo. Hmmmm!

If my caluclations are correct...and they could be TOTALLY off:

8 nights at Pop for me: $421 ($120 for Nate, $161 for Christina)
5 nights at Pop, 3 at DVC for me: $475 (value AKL) or $565 (standard AKL or BWV)

I totally have to sit down after work and really try figuring out prices.

I haven't figured out how much each it would be if we all stayed DVC for all 8 nights. I have to figure out how the price would break down. From quickly looking though, Nate and Christina's price would go up a little so I don't know if they'd be ok with that. :(

so any thoughts? suggestions? :)

[LouDisney]

Tweet! Tweet!

So I will be twittering/tweeting from the parks. I just created an account just for Disney stuff. My normal 'non-Disney' friends were bugging me about stuff and didn't want to hear all the minute details of my trip when I'm down there!

So come follow me here...

www.twitter.com/disneygirlinnj

yes, what an original name :)

I can't wait to read your Tweets. I'm going to add you. I Tweet when I'm at WDW. :)
I've got two more trips this year.

[disneygirlinnj]

I can't wait to read your Tweets. I'm going to add you. I Tweet when I'm at WDW. :)
I've got two more trips this year.

Thank you! :) I think I'm now following you too :)

[jordanyosh]

Congrats on continuing to reduce your time.

I know people have had varying experiences with folks renting out their points. Make sure you do as much research about your potential DVC partner before you send any money. If you can find a good match, you do save a bit of money.

Good luck and go to the DVC forums for help!:thumbsup2

[Lynn5700]

Hey!! Congrats on your time for your ten miler. It's great!

Tim and I have DVC so we have never rented points before, but we plan on saving our points next year so if we take a summer trip to Disney we will most likely rent points.

[disneygirlinnj]

Congrats on continuing to reduce your time.

I know people have had varying experiences with folks renting out their points. Make sure you do as much research about your potential DVC partner before you send any money. If you can find a good match, you do save a bit of money.

Good luck and go to the DVC forums for help!:thumbsup2

Thanks Jordan! I keep going back and forth if I should do this or not. I'm wondering if a good deal will come out but then again... the deal probably won't be THAT good compared to me staying at a deluxe resort DVC, ya know?

Hey!! Congrats on your time for your ten miler. It's great!

Tim and I have DVC so we have never rented points before, but we plan on saving our points next year so if we take a summer trip to Disney we will most likely rent points.

Thanks hun! Hmm... I don't know who I was thinking about then! :) I know I just read about a couple that rented points, lol.

[jessily]

Hi! Just found your trip report. I ran the half last year and it was such a blast. We also stayed on rented DVC points at BCV and it was great.

We've been looking into renting points again this year. Unfortunately at this point most everything is booked up for Marathon Weekend. I had someone check for any Studio for 1/8-1/15 and the only Studio available for the entire time was Saratoga. There was some varying availability for the week after the marathon, but for the weekend it was just a day here or there at various resorts. We decided not to rent this year and to hope Disney comes out with a good deal. It's worth a shot though. If you find a DVC member who is willing to work with you and check on availability, you never know when something might open up!

Good luck with your training! Sounds like you're doing great:thumbsup2

[MyMuse]

Tweet! Tweet!

So I will be twittering/tweeting from the parks. I just created an account just for Disney stuff. My normal 'non-Disney' friends were bugging me about stuff and didn't want to hear all the minute details of my trip when I'm down there!

So come follow me here...

www.twitter.com/disneygirlinnj

yes, what an original name :)

I'm following on the web for now; I need to get on the horn and join the Twitter / Facebook Nation. :laughing: I'm lagging behind on Myspace.


So quick training update!! :)

I've been pretty good all week. Went to the gym 4 times, ran twice during the week and then yesterday had my big 10 mile run! Finished in 1:58:06. That's pretty much a 11:48 pace per mile, slowly bringing that speed up!



Holy Buckets! I did (well, attempted) running on the treadmill for a full hour and all I got was 4 miles. I only did 4.5-7 mph, though. I couldn't do more than that. By the end, I was ready to fall down.

Ok new dilemna!! :) Well not a bad dilemna though!

So I got this bright idea to see how much it would cost to rent DVC points for all or part of my stay in January. Do any of you have any experience with this? Lynn I think you might have on your last trip?

I totally have to sit down after work and really try figuring out prices.

so any thoughts? suggestions? :)

Hmmm....it's a good thing to look into. I'm tossing around the idea to go down for F&G. Of course, it would depend if my gutters stay up!!! :lmao:

On the surface, if it only costs slightly more to do DVC deluxe vs. Value, than it is a no-brainer. But what's the other catches? Can you still book ADRs? If so, at +10? How reliable is the person you rent from? Can you still request a room locale? Is there any issues with check-in? Y'know, stuff like that. Of course, I'm a worst-case scenario type of gal!!

[lacrosse_lady72]

SOOOO.......... I'm not really sure why I haven't jumped in on this PTR yet but I have been reading along :)

I'm renting for this first time for our January trip at Kidani so far so good. We got 5 nights at a standard studio for $500. Not bad. I guess the only issue I forsee you running into is availability for BW especially and possibly AKV. From everything I have read, BWV studios are some of the first to book up because of point price and location. I guess my point is to urge you to hussle on what you're going to do since you're getting really close and there may be limited availability.

Also... are you or someone in your group planning on driving? It might pay to stay at a resort that is a "host" resort for the race so you don't have to worry about transportation. I know for the Expedition Everest shuttles only run from All-Stars, POR and AKL...

Way to go on the running!!!

[disneygirlinnj]

Hi! Just found your trip report. I ran the half last year and it was such a blast. We also stayed on rented DVC points at BCV and it was great.

We've been looking into renting points again this year. Unfortunately at this point most everything is booked up for Marathon Weekend. I had someone check for any Studio for 1/8-1/15 and the only Studio available for the entire time was Saratoga. There was some varying availability for the week after the marathon, but for the weekend it was just a day here or there at various resorts. We decided not to rent this year and to hope Disney comes out with a good deal. It's worth a shot though. If you find a DVC member who is willing to work with you and check on availability, you never know when something might open up!

Good luck with your training! Sounds like you're doing great:thumbsup2

Thank you! I do have a quick update on my DVC Rental, which I'll post after I reply to you guys! :woohoo: Luckily I won't be needing the DVC studio until January 12th so there were a bunch of openings!

I'm following on the web for now; I need to get on the horn and join the Twitter / Facebook Nation. :laughing: I'm lagging behind on Myspace.

Holy Buckets! I did (well, attempted) running on the treadmill for a full hour and all I got was 4 miles. I only did 4.5-7 mph, though. I couldn't do more than that. By the end, I was ready to fall down.

Hmmm....it's a good thing to look into. I'm tossing around the idea to go down for F&G. Of course, it would depend if my gutters stay up!!! :lmao:

On the surface, if it only costs slightly more to do DVC deluxe vs. Value, than it is a no-brainer. But what's the other catches? Can you still book ADRs? If so, at +10? How reliable is the person you rent from? Can you still request a room locale? Is there any issues with check-in? Y'know, stuff like that. Of course, I'm a worst-case scenario type of gal!!

Thank you! Keep trudging on the treadmill, that's awesome! I personally HATE the treadmill and for some reason mentally can't run long distances or at high speeds on it. :confused3 When I'm outside though it's a totally different ball game. lol

So I've completely researched the DVC thing and will update in a few. But... I had all the same questions you did about where the catch is. So the reservation would be in my name...but Disney will NOT deal with me. The DVC owner has to book everything and even call back themselves to update my DME information. I CAN book ADRs myself using the reservation number that the member would give me, including +10. I'm only looking at people that have references and seem to be active on the DIS DVC section of the board. I can request a room locale but again, the owner will do this over the phone themselves. I can fax my request myself when it gets closer to the travel date. As for checkin, I scoured the DIS for this and haven't read one problem about a renter checking in. Since the reservation is in my name, I just show up and give them my credit card for room charging privileges.

SOOOO.......... I'm not really sure why I haven't jumped in on this PTR yet but I have been reading along :)

I'm renting for this first time for our January trip at Kidani so far so good. We got 5 nights at a standard studio for $500. Not bad. I guess the only issue I forsee you running into is availability for BW especially and possibly AKV. From everything I have read, BWV studios are some of the first to book up because of point price and location. I guess my point is to urge you to hussle on what you're going to do since you're getting really close and there may be limited availability.

Also... are you or someone in your group planning on driving? It might pay to stay at a resort that is a "host" resort for the race so you don't have to worry about transportation. I know for the Expedition Everest shuttles only run from All-Stars, POR and AKL...

Way to go on the running!!!

Hey! Like I told the other ladies above, I'll be updating with my DVC rental story in a bit but so glad you're renting too, haha! Now I kinda feel a little better that someone else I know is going through it too. :) Did you have a contract written up? Ask for references? It's pretty overwhelming but so far so good! As for availability, since I only want Jan 12-15th (Tues-Fri), there was availability at most of the villas I asked about. The marathon crowds seem like they left that Sunday or Monday. :woohoo:

As for transportation to the marathon, since it SUCH a big event, there is bus transportation from every single Disney resort. So that's not a problem. I remember when I was looking into Expedition Everest, I had the same worries because I saw that that even only had certain location pickups! :scared1:



OK...gonna do some work and then update about my DVC Rental information!

[disneygirlinnj]

So I did it! I rented DVC points for the solo part of my trip. :)

I researched and scoured the DVC section of the boards and tried to soak up as much information as possible about renting. Found out how many points I would need for the resorts I'm interested in, how much is normal price per point, the process of renting, dealing with the DVC owner and/or Disney, details about ADRs, Magical Express, checking in, etc.

I posted a rent request on the boards and almost instantly an owner sent me a message saying that he had points available. He was already going to call Member Services in the morning for another reservation so he would be able to check availability for me. I searched his other posts and he had been around for awhile. He mentioned he had references so that was a plus.

I stopped everything I was doing and tried to figure out where I actually wanted to stay. I knew that I only wanted to stay at one of the following:

Bay Lake Towers - who wouldn't? They're brand spankin new and you get the monorail!
Boardwalk Villas - Epcot is my 1st love and the villas are walking distance or a boat to Epcot AND MGM. Plus all the fun the Boardwalk has to offer, how can you go wrong? I knew they were slightly old and some reviews talked about the rooms looking worn but I felt it was still worth it
Villas at Wilderness Lodge - only stayed at WL once and it was really cool. Browsed through photos and reviews and it seemed awesome
Animal Kingdom Lodge Villas - A savannah view would be amazing. And I've always wanted to stay at AKL. But it was very far away from a lot of the things I would want to do (Epcot and MK). Not sure if I'd want to go back to AK after going with the gang. I did however want to eat at Jiko AND Sanaa so that played a part too.

So I emailed him back last night giving him my dates and the possible villas that I would want in this order:

BLT - 39 points (standard studio)
BWV - 30 points (standard studio)
BWV - 39 points (preferred studio)
AKL (Jambo?) - 27 points (value)
AKL (Jambo?)- 30 points (standard studio)
AKL (Jambo?)- 39 points (Savannah)
VWL - 39 points

By 10am today I had an email from him saying he called and there was availability at a Boardwalk Villa Preferred Studio for the dates I wanted. I didn't even bother asking about the ones below in my list since BWV was one of my top choices.

After a few more emails and information sent back and forth....

I HAVE A RESERVATION AT THE BOARDWALK VILLAS!!!! :cool1:

I'm really excited about this! :) And so far the DVC member I'm working with has been great. My emails have been answered within the hour and he mentioned I can call his cell phone at any time if needed. He said he should have written confirmation from Disney within 7-10 days. When that happens he will scan a copy of the letter and email it to me. After I see the scan and verify, I will send him my payment. After my payment has been processed, he will officially send me the hard copy of the confirmation. :yay: I emailed him my flight information to add DME for my return home and again, within the hour I had a confirmation email saying he called DME and added it to the reservation and included the confirmation number.

Yes, I know I'm being very optimistic about this and that there is still a possibility of something going wrong but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

[jessily]

Congrats on finding a studio! That's great... that area is awesome to stay in. Walking to and from Epcot is the best!

[scoot241]

BWV! How cool is that?

I'm home, by the way. :)

[lacrosse_lady72]

Wow, that was fast! Wooooo hooooo for BWV!!!!!!!!

[annnewjerz]

Very exciting news about the reservations at BWV, I'm sure you will love it!!! Have you ever stayed there before? We can only ever afford to stay at value resorts---but this year I met a great DISer on the Photo Board and rented points from her and it ended up being $95 per night, only $5 more per night than staying at POP!

For us, renting points has been a very pleasant experience. It does take a bit of trust because the reservation is completely out of your hands, but I'm a pretty trustworthy person and for us, the savings were worth it.

Now, if I would have stayed at POP, I could have gotten free dining (in theory), but when you weigh POP with free dining against staying at a deluxe when we wouldn't usually have the opportunity it was a no brainer. Deluxe resort with nicer ammenities, walking distance to Epcot and DHS and c'mon---we get to stay at BWV!!! We saw the Boardwalk Resort for the first time in 2007 and DH said "One day I want to stay there, even if it's only for a few nights" and this year, we get to. :woohoo:

[disneygirlinnj]

Congrats on finding a studio! That's great... that area is awesome to stay in. Walking to and from Epcot is the best!

Thank you! I can't wait!

BWV! How cool is that?

I'm home, by the way. :)

Welcome back! :thumbsup2

Wow, that was fast! Wooooo hooooo for BWV!!!!!!!!

it was really fast! Now I can't wait to stay there!

Very exciting news about the reservations at BWV, I'm sure you will love it!!! Have you ever stayed there before? We can only ever afford to stay at value resorts---but this year I met a great DISer on the Photo Board and rented points from her and it ended up being $95 per night, only $5 more per night than staying at POP!

For us, renting points has been a very pleasant experience. It does take a bit of trust because the reservation is completely out of your hands, but I'm a pretty trustworthy person and for us, the savings were worth it.

Now, if I would have stayed at POP, I could have gotten free dining (in theory), but when you weigh POP with free dining against staying at a deluxe when we wouldn't usually have the opportunity it was a no brainer. Deluxe resort with nicer ammenities, walking distance to Epcot and DHS and c'mon---we get to stay at BWV!!! We saw the Boardwalk Resort for the first time in 2007 and DH said "One day I want to stay there, even if it's only for a few nights" and this year, we get to. :woohoo:

The savings was definitely worth it! The price was slightly more than a value, slightly less than a moderate. How could you say no? Now that I know about renting points, I might have to do this on every trip! :scared1:

[lacrosse_lady72]

it was really fast! Now I can't wait to stay there!


Me either, but you'll be there first. I'll be looking out for the TR on that for sure :surfweb:.

[MyMuse]

Whoo-hooo! :woohoo:

I can't wait to hear about your stay and your experience with renting points. If you have a good experience all the way through, then I'll ask for your advice and think about it for my next trip.

[disneygirlinnj]

Me either, but you'll be there first. I'll be looking out for the TR on that for sure :surfweb:.

Oh there will be a long TR! :) I'm just attaching it to this pre trip!

Whoo-hooo! :woohoo:

I can't wait to hear about your stay and your experience with renting points. If you have a good experience all the way through, then I'll ask for your advice and think about it for my next trip.

Crossing my fingers! If all goes well I'll recommend the guy I'm renting from. From my research it seems that he has a few DVC properties that he rents on a regular basis. :)

[disneygirlinnj]

Well I'm finally back from my Sept Disney trip and can now focus 100% on this trip! I'll update more tomorrow but had a pow-wow with Christina and Nate last night and we made our ADR plans.

I had totally thought that my 90 mark was Saturday. Luckily Christina texts me today in a panic that she can't believe the race is only 92 days away. I thought that sounded odd since the 90 day mark was Saturday (in my mind lol). I double checked and OMG it's Friday!!! Thank GOD she mentioned something or I would have totally missed our 90 day mark! EEK!!!

Ok bed time and hopefully I'll come back here tomorrow for some updates!

[disneygirlinnj]

Here's a few updates!!! FINALLY!!!

While I was away, I got written confirmation mailed to me about my DVC rental and BWV. I can NOT wait. :cool1: The gentleman I'm renting from really has been great. We've just dealt with communication through email but he assures me I can call him at any time. I just haven't needed to. It was nice having that official letter from Disney with my name on it saying I'll be staying there!

Another idea brewing for our reservations is POSSIBLY a switch in hotel instead of Pop. :rotfl: the 4/3 and 5/2 deals do NOTHING for us since I have an AP and Christina has a million days of unused park tickets in her possession. I've been scouring the DIS to see what the AP rate for rooms was last year when they released them and it seems that there wasn't really a discount on value resorts. BUT the AP discount for Mods turns out to equal the same price of values without a discount. :) $89 or $99 a night depending on the night. If I cross my fingers and pray hard enough, I'm hoping they release the same discount this year. If they do, I got the OK from Christina to switch over to POFQ. I did really enjoy it last week on my trip with my mom but didn't really get a chance to wander and 'experience' it. Plus we didn't get to go to Scat Cats! :scared1: I'd love to go back! So that's always a possibility.

I think that's it for major updates.... oh!

OK so tomorrow is our ADR day! :) Here's what we decided and our itinerary....Let me know what you guys think!

January 7, 2010 (Thursday)
Info: Nate and I are flying in on the 7am flight from Newark. Christina has to take the later flight because of teaching that day so she won't be in until really late. So Nate and I have the whole day with just the two of us. After we check in, and possibly grab a small bite to eat in the food court, I figure we should head directly to the Race Expo to pick up our race packets and wander the expo a little bit. We'll also have Christina's info with us so hopefully we can pick up her info as well. I want to look for half marathon shirts and all that fun stuff they have there. :) After that, we'll probably head to the MK to start off our day. Then head to the Contemporary for dinner at the Wave! We both try to eat very healthy when we're home so this should be perfect. Plus my breakfast experience there this past week was great.
Park: Race Expo/MK
ADRs: Wave dinner (for Nate and I)

January 8, 2010 (Friday)
Info: Christina will finally be with us so we'll wake up bright and early since we have to be in bed early, grab some food at the food court, and head to Animal Kingdom since it's a 'smaller' park. Dinner will most likely be at Teppan Edo but I just found out that they don't accept TIW! BOOOO! So now Nate is thinking we should eat somewhere else. Nate suggested Chefs but Christina vetoed that one. I just texted Nate asking about Tutto and he was all for it. So Tutto it is! :) Bring on the hottie waiters! (you'll read in my TR from last week...when I write it...that tutto has some scrumptious eye candy lol)
Park: AK?
ADRs: Tutto early dinner

January 9, 2010 (Saturday) - RACE DAY!
Info: Well today is the day we're going to try not to die. :) Up at around 2:30am or 3am and heading right to Epcot after a quick breakfast probably in the room. After the run we decided we can NOT just go back and sleep. We'll head back to the room and shower quickly and then head back out. Most likely to MK. We'll then head back to the room at some point for a quick nap and relaxation. Spectro and Wishes are scheduled for this day though so hopefully we get to see both. We decided on doing Hoopdedoo that night but the late show at 9:30pm so we'll hop the boat after Wishes. It's the only show time we can use TIW for so the discount will be much appreciated. :)
Park: MK
ADRs: Hoopdedoo

January 10, 2010 (Sunday)
Info: After dragging our sore bodies out of bed, we wanted Nate to experience a lovely character breakfast before he left. We decided on Akershus because none of us have done it, and Nate isn't a HUGE buffet fan. So the family style seems perfect. Plus he wanted to meet the princesses :) Our plans also bring us to Epcot anyways so it's great. After breakfast, we'll do part of future world and all the good rides there. Then around noon? We're Drinking Around the World!! :banana: Wish us luck...Nate's gonna need it :lmao: I have no idea how Christina and I can drink him under the table, but we do...poor kid. :) Dinner will consist of snacking around the world.
Park: EP
ADRs: Akershus breakfast

January 11, 2010 (Monday)
Info: Nate is leaving today :( But he's taking the 3pm flight so he still has a few hours in the morning to hang out with us before DME takes him to the airport. We'll wake up and grab breakfast in the food court and head to Hollywood Studios to show him TSM, ToT, and RNRC. Hopefully we get through all 3 and we'll head back with him to the hotel to say bye. After he leaves, Christina and I will either head back to DHS or to Epcot. We're trying to get dinner ressies at Le Cellier, and if not then San Angel Inn. I'm skeptical about it but she liked it last time so I'm willing to try it!
Park: DS/EP
ADRs: Le Cellier or San Angel Inn

January 12, 2010 (Tuesday) - half solo
Info: Well Christina leaves today so I'm soon gonna be solo. In the morning, we wanted to do a character breakfast and possibly MK so I suggested Crystal Palace since I enjoyed it on my last trip. Plus we get to see MK deserted again. :) Christina really enjoys 1900 Park Faire and I haven't been there in awhile so I'm up for either. I'll try getting CP first and then if it's not at a good time, I'll get 1900. We'll do MK for awhile and then head back to the hotel to see her off. Then I'm on my own!!! :banana: Eek! Not really sure what park I'll do... Epcot or one of the smaller parks since I'll be doing MK the next day. As for dinner? I'm still torn. I'll most likely pick Sanaa for dinner tonight. :) I'll never get a chance to go back if I go with family. :rotfl: I did however, LOVE Kouzzina so I'm debating going there too since it's at my hotel. Hmmmmm!!!!! Decisions decisions!
Park: EP/MK
ADRs: Crystal Palace or 1900 Park Faire
dinner... Sanaa? kouzzina?

January 13, 2010 (Wednesday) - solo
Info: My first full solo day! I'm planning on doing Keys to the Kingdom today so I'll be at MK most of the day. Dinner at Citricos? I'm salivating just thinking about my last meal there. mmmmm!
Park: MK
ADRs: Keys to the Kingdom
Citricos

January 14, 2010 (Thursday) - solo
Info: Not sure what park to do today but dinner will definitely be at Jiko! :) i'll probably wander around downtown disney for awhile too.
Park: wherever the wind takes me ?? Downtown Disney??
ADRs: Jiko

January 15, 2010 (Friday) - solo
Info: So today is my last day :( I have a full day though since my flight isn't until 6pm. Don't know what I'll do yet... probably no ADRs either. Just food court and wandering!
Park: MK??/EP??
ADRs: ??

So what you guys think? :)

[disneygirlinnj]

Quick training update...:)

I really haven't been running as much as I should be... AT ALL!! Haven't done more than 6miles since I ran that 10 miles over a month ago. BUT I did run a 10k (6.2 miles) the day after I got back from Disney and broke my personal record!!! Happy dance!

Ran it in 1:02:36....a 10:04 pace. SO thrilled with it! It was a gorgeous run through the streets of mahwah...past some farms, through tree lined streets, and gorgeous houses. Perfect weather too.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/15365161

[jessily]

Your plans look great:thumbsup2 Love Jiko and love love love drinking (and eating) around the world!

If you're going to a late Hoop-de-doo show on Saturday I would definitely suggest trying to take a nap during the day. We went right to Epcot (after a shower) after the half last year. I'm glad we did because it kept us moving and streched out the muscles. Around 6 pm though I crashed hard! I barely slept at all the night before the half, then getting up at 2:30, etc.. it really takes it out of you (more than I expected). I left my BF in the park and fell asleep at 7:30:scared1: That's something I never thought I would do in Disney.

I'm staying 1/8-1/15. Need to make ADRs this Saturday and I'm not NEARLY as organized as you are:rolleyes1 Time to start planning!

[scoot241]

Schedule looks great! I don't really know what else to say (for once). :confused3

[disneygirlinnj]

Your plans look great:thumbsup2 Love Jiko and love love love drinking (and eating) around the world!

If you're going to a late Hoop-de-doo show on Saturday I would definitely suggest trying to take a nap during the day. We went right to Epcot (after a shower) after the half last year. I'm glad we did because it kept us moving and streched out the muscles. Around 6 pm though I crashed hard! I barely slept at all the night before the half, then getting up at 2:30, etc.. it really takes it out of you (more than I expected). I left my BF in the park and fell asleep at 7:30:scared1: That's something I never thought I would do in Disney.

I'm staying 1/8-1/15. Need to make ADRs this Saturday and I'm not NEARLY as organized as you are:rolleyes1 Time to start planning!

Oh we are DEFINITELY going to take a nap :) Just the thought of staying up that late after being up at 2am is making me tired! I think after the run, we'll quickly go and shower and stuff but then head right now. I figure we can go back to the room to nap around 3? Haven't decided yet. But a nap is definitely in the plans!

Schedule looks great! I don't really know what else to say (for once). :confused3

hahaha, thank you! And photos WILL be scheduled in! :)

[disneygirlinnj]

ADRs ARE MADE!!!! :)


If you guys are following me on Twitter, I appologize for ranting and raving so early in the morning. I was soooo annoyed... still am when I think about it. UGH! But it all worked out in the end. :) So sit back, relax, and get ready for my vent!

So for some reason I had a brain fart this morning. I woke up at 6:30am when my alarm went off, bummed around for a few mins and then OMG realized I had to make ADRs today! I totallllly forgot. So of course then I'm freaking out because I wanted to try for Le Cellier and Crystal Palace AND Akershus.

Jumped online and tried to quickly enter in all my info...and get the stupid 'E' Error thing. Hmm... clear cookies...try again. Same error. Open up Safari...try again...same error. Now I'm starting to get irrirtated. :( Look at the clock... 6:50am... I guess I can wait for 10 mins until the phone lines open. Check the DIS and NO ONE is complaining about this at 6am lol... hmm... either no one has this problem or no one is trying to make ADRs.

I quickly make my dinner ADR for the Wave since that's exactly 90 days out. I try for 7pm and there's nothing available. Really? Who the heck wants to eat at the Wave?! :rotfl: We end up with 5:55pm. Not too bad.

7am according to my phone I start to call Disney Dining... keep getting the office closed message until 7:04am. OK, not a problem. Get through the prompts and a CM answers right away. She was sweet...I swear. I'm not denying her that. She just had NO CLUE what she was doing. I give her my reservation number about 3 times until she gets it right. That was my first clue this might not be a fun phone call. I seriously debate hanging up and trying for another CM but who knows how long I'll be on hold for.

I quickly say Le Cellier...4 people... January 11th. and she's like making small talk with me about Disney. Umm... LADY... I NEED THIS LE CELLIER ADR... STOP TALKING TO ME AND PUNCH IT INTO THE COMPUTER! Finally after repeating my date and number of people a few times...she gets it... I asked for 6pm...all they have is 7:05pm showing up. No other options. Not a problem, I'll take it. I tell her I want a few ADRs with credit card holds... she tells me we can do those later. I tell her one of them is Akershus and it's pretty popular... she tells me we can do it later. GRRRR. OK fine.

So I gave up on those and tell her Crystal Palace. She looks, nothing is coming up. AT ALL. Then after 5 minutes of doing I have no idea... she starts to laugh. "oh that's right!!! Crystal Palace is closed that week due to renovations! I totally forgot! How about Chef Mickeys?" Ok, thanks for wasting another few minutes of my life. :confused3 I keep trying to tell her we want 1900 Park Faire instead then but she KEEPS ON TALKING about Chef Mickey's. I finally get her to stop talking and she looks for 1900 and it's available at 8am. Whew...now we're getting somewhere.

Slowly and painfully we get Tutto for the day before the race at 4:30pm. I also get Sanaa for one of my solo meals. Made it for 2 people just in case I get company.

I'm about to give her more ADRs but she interrupts me and says that she has to confirm all of these because they aren't allowed to do more than 4 at a time. :scared1: Excuse me!??!? I did this myself a few months ago and positive the system allows 10 at a time. Hmph. Fine. She went through the whole entire spiel about ADRs, etc. Got my confirmation numbers... lets move on.

Time for the credit card hold ADRs... Hoopdedoo please, Jan 9th...before I can tell her the time of the show and its only 3 of us... she automatically puts in the 5pm show for 4 people. I tell her I have TIW and can only do the 9:30 show and it's for 3 people and she still tries to give me the 5pm show. Hmph. We figure it out and it's available...she asks for my credit card. I ask about TIW and she's says they didnt ask her for it. But you just told me HDDR charges my card right away so I don't want to be overcharged. Time to ask a supervisor...hold please. Another 5 mins later, the supervisor tells her where it is. She asks for the TIW number and I try to give it to her. Well...part of the TIW number is the date you BOUGHT the card... she keeps asking me to give the expiration date instead. I gave up and just gave her the expiration date. BUT....when she goes to confirm the reservation....it's still for 4 people AND in Category 1...we want Category 2. :mad: So cancel everything we just did and start over.... GRRRR. I'll blame it on her when we get there if it didn't work. :)

So she gives me the confirmation number for that one. OK...lets move on :)

Akershus... :sad2: seriously..it was as if that whole Hoopdedoo fiasco never happened. Gave her the info...3 people... Jan 10th...8am. Cross my fingers 8am is still available. She comes back and says 'yes! it's available'.... asks for the credit card. I ask about TIW again and she's like 'OHHHH you want to use a TIW card....' :eek: Seriously lady. She backs out of the Credit Card piece, enters the TIW. Before the Visa piece again she recites the reservation. FOUR PEOPLE she booked it for. :mad: I tell her, no....I wanted 3 people. I even remember specifically telling her 3 people when I started Akershus. So she gets quiet and says she'll have to start over again. I think this is when I sent my tweet about jumping through the phone and strangling her. So she backs out and laughs and says 'oh boy...well I hope that 8am time is still available!' By then I had pretty much lost it and calmy said 'Yup...you're right...I hope it's still available because this wasn't the systems fault'. So luckily it was and after another TIW card entry fiasco, I finally gave her my credit card (which I had to repeat 5 times) and I got my confirmation number.

Sadly I still had other ADRs to make. :( Luckily those didn't go too badly. Make Jiko for my solo dinner as well as Citricos. WHEW....DONE! :woohoo:

I still need to make my Keys to the Kingdom reservation but when she asks if she can book anything else like a show, etc for me, I just say no, thanks, and get off the phone. I call the tour line and right away I get an awesome CM who had me booked with my AP discount and off the phone in less than 5 mins. :woohoo:

Wow...just reading that whole thing again ticks me off. lol... I'm gonna go relax now hahahahaha!

[annnewjerz]

Wowww, talk about jumping through hoops to get your ADRs. On my 90 day mark, I was getting that E error message also. Luckily after about 45 minutes, clearing my cookies and a few re-starts it worked and I was able to get all of my ressies by 3:45am. I'm completely surprised by the fact that no one was on the DIS at 6:00am complaining about the online system. :rotfl:

I'm glad you were able to get everything you wanted, give or take an hour. I'll be at The Wave and Jiko for dinner in December, so hopefully they're good!

Now, I think it's time to get to the TR from September, don't ya think?? ;)

[scoot241]

Wow, no wonder why you were freaking out. I would have been quite aggravated too. You should definitely go get a beer and relax.

[disneygirlinnj]

Wowww, talk about jumping through hoops to get your ADRs. On my 90 day mark, I was getting that E error message also. Luckily after about 45 minutes, clearing my cookies and a few re-starts it worked and I was able to get all of my ressies by 3:45am. I'm completely surprised by the fact that no one was on the DIS at 6:00am complaining about the online system. :rotfl:

I'm glad you were able to get everything you wanted, give or take an hour. I'll be at The Wave and Jiko for dinner in December, so hopefully they're good!

Now, I think it's time to get to the TR from September, don't ya think?? ;)

HAHA...I knowww! :( I was in such a rush when I left for work this morning that I left all the info and receipts on my dresser. Because of the ADRs this morning I had to rush and get ready and sprint out the door for an early meeting. Made it on time though but the TR is slightly postponed...again :)

Wow, no wonder why you were freaking out. I would have been quite aggravated too. You should definitely go get a beer and relax.

Beer is later tonight. We're actually going to go see that crazy scary movie that just came out, Paranormal Activity. Then grabbing a few beers. Hopefully this movie doesn't scare me TOO bad. I hear it's the scariest movie EVER. :scared1:

[MyMuse]

I was so worried this morning! I was hoping it would all end up OK. But yeah, I would have wanted to strangle her too. She was obviously new or new-ish and didn't realize what power she had at her fingertips. LOL!

Staying off-site, I didn't have to worry about reservation numbers, but getting up early daily was a little on the rough side. :surfweb:

YAY for finishing ADRs!!! :yay:

[disneygirlinnj]

I was so worried this morning! I was hoping it would all end up OK. But yeah, I would have wanted to strangle her too. She was obviously new or new-ish and didn't realize what power she had at her fingertips. LOL!

Staying off-site, I didn't have to worry about reservation numbers, but getting up early daily was a little on the rough side. :surfweb:

YAY for finishing ADRs!!! :yay:

Haha... I'm already figuring out ways to tweak a few of them so I might be waking up early to change some things. Kind of a pain :)

[lacrosse_lady72]

:headache: I hate imcompetence... it's so annoying! I feel like I am a magnent to new employees not the seasoned ones, urgh.

Luckily you managed to get them though with a $1000 temporary HDDR charge or something :)

Oh no, what ADRs are you planning on changing already? lol.

[jordanyosh]

I am glad it worked out for you with your ADRs.

I think sometimes we forget that WE'RE the experts when it comes to WDW....They should allow us to telecommute and let us do the job....;)

[disneygirlinnj]

:headache: I hate imcompetence... it's so annoying! I feel like I am a magnent to new employees not the seasoned ones, urgh.

Luckily you managed to get them though with a $1000 temporary HDDR charge or something :)

Oh no, what ADRs are you planning on changing already? lol.

Ha, well they did charge me full price on my credit card. Now I'm trying to figure out how they're going to know that I already paid when we get there?

I am glad it worked out for you with your ADRs.

I think sometimes we forget that WE'RE the experts when it comes to WDW....They should allow us to telecommute and let us do the job....;)

Haha...they totally need to let us do the job!

[disneygirlinnj]

Two PTR's for the price of ONE!

OK so if you're reading my Sept TR, you would have seen my little update...

My dad and I have been dying to see a shuttle launch before they retire the fleet in 2010. So we just booked a quick trip down to Florida for the Nov 16th launch. Cross your fingers that the launch doesn't get scrubbed!!! And since we'll be down in Florida... dad wanted to stay at..... AKL....woohoo! We got a pretty sweet discount with my AP rate so we figured why not? Never stayed there and I even convinced him and Stepmom to try Jiko. Should be interesting b/c they are NOT adventurous eaters. If the shuttle goes up on time, we'll have 2 full days and 1 half day in the parks....plus a full day at Kennedy Space Center. If the launch gets delayed to the next day... how much time we'll have depends on if we actually get all the way out to KSC before they decide to scrub it.

I decided since it's such a short trip, I'm going to include all the info into this PTR and stuff. Just to keep everything in one place!

I've been already diligently planning so here's what we have so far...

November 14, 2009 (Saturday)
ADRs: Narcoossee's 5:55pm
Notes: Oh..and did I mention it's my dad's bday on the 21st of Nov? So my step mom and I decided that we'll have his bday dinner down there. He loves Narcoossee's so that's where we're going. Actually...I think he like Citricos food better but Narcoossee's atmosphere. And Stepmom loves Narcoossee's more than Citricos. So to keep them all happy this will be dad's bday dinner.
Park: Stepmom has never been to AK so since we'll be so close, we'll probably go there for the day. And since dinner is at Narcoosse's....watch the fireworks from the beach.


November 15, 2009 (Sunday)
ADRs: San Angel lunch
Tutto dinner
Notes: Epcot today...our favorite park. We decided to try San Angel for lunch. Crossing my fingers! And of course...my yummy Tutto for dinner :)


November 16, 2009 (Monday)
ADRs: Liberty Tree Tavern lunch
Tony's dinner
Notes: Today is launch day so we prob won't make these ADRs. The park we'll go to if we're there is MK. And I'd stay for EMH since it's open till 11. If we go to KSC for the launch, we'll push these plans to the next day and spend the day at KSC. I'd still like to try to get to EMH at the MK though.

November 17, 2009 (Tuesday)
ADRs: Liberty Tree Tavern lunch
Jiko dinner
Notes: If all goes as planned, we'll be at MK today. If the launch is pushed to today, we'll be at KSC.

November 18, 2009 (Wednesday)
heading home :(

[disneygirlinnj]

Sad training to report...

I don't even remember the last update I gave! I remember telling you guys I ran 10 miles awhile back and all went well. I ran in a 10k and got my best time yet..which was awesome. I ran in a 7.77 mile trail run race and that was entertaining... I can't remember what else!

Well anyways... Sunday I went to run 10 miles again. I was doing fine until about the 5.5 mile mark. Then out of nowhere my left knee starts getting this stabbing pain on the side. I try to run through it was but it hurt so bad I had to start walking and stop for a bit. Tried to stretch it but nothing was working. So I had to walk back to the car!! :( I was SO discouraged and disappointed. Definitely on the verge of tears at one point because I was so annoyed. Speed walking didn't bother it, just running on it. So I went home and iced it and researched and called some friends. Everyone said it was my IT Band....the muscle that runs from your butt all the way down the side of your leg to your knee. It's a common running injury and I just need to stretch it and all that fun stuff and I should be good to go. The next morning I went into the gym to talk to the owner and he agreed it's probably my IT Band. He gave me stretches to do and told me I should try running again in a week. After that I headed to the running store and bought a foam roller and IT Band wrap for my leg. The wrap is supposed to alleviate the pressure while you're running so it doesn't tighten up. The foam roller you use and roll your leg on it like a rolling pin and it alleviates the tension too.

I'm just annoyed at this setback. :( Hopefully I can run again next weekend just to try it out. Grrrr!!!!!

[jordanyosh]

Nice bonus trip and AKL no less.

And Jiko! can't beat that....:thumbsup2

Here's hoping for clear and calm weather.

[pirates5]

I'm so glad I found you guys on here! I, too, decided this year to run the Half Marathon. Haven't so much as run to the mailbox in 10 years. I found out friends ran it (and they used to be the fat girls...now I was the fat girl!), so I got motivated.

Since Jan '09 I've lost 59 pounds running. I may not make it quickly to the finish line in Jan '10, but I will do it!!! I hope to see all you fun people there. Best of luck to everyone, especially those trying this for the first time.

[scoot241]

Tutto dinner
Notes: Epcot today...our favorite park. We decided to try San Angel for lunch. Crossing my fingers! And of course...my yummy Tutto for dinner :)


We all know the real reason you like Tutto so much... ;)

Sad training to report...

I don't even remember the last update I gave! I remember telling you guys I ran 10 miles awhile back and all went well. I ran in a 10k and got my best time yet..which was awesome. I ran in a 7.77 mile trail run race and that was entertaining... I can't remember what else!

Well anyways... Sunday I went to run 10 miles again. I was doing fine until about the 5.5 mile mark. Then out of nowhere my left knee starts getting this stabbing pain on the side. I try to run through it was but it hurt so bad I had to start walking and stop for a bit. Tried to stretch it but nothing was working. So I had to walk back to the car!! :( I was SO discouraged and disappointed. Definitely on the verge of tears at one point because I was so annoyed. Speed walking didn't bother it, just running on it. So I went home and iced it and researched and called some friends. Everyone said it was my IT Band....the muscle that runs from your butt all the way down the side of your leg to your knee. It's a common running injury and I just need to stretch it and all that fun stuff and I should be good to go. The next morning I went into the gym to talk to the owner and he agreed it's probably my IT Band. He gave me stretches to do and told me I should try running again in a week. After that I headed to the running store and bought a foam roller and IT Band wrap for my leg. The wrap is supposed to alleviate the pressure while you're running so it doesn't tighten up. The foam roller you use and roll your leg on it like a rolling pin and it alleviates the tension too.

I'm just annoyed at this setback. :( Hopefully I can run again next weekend just to try it out. Grrrr!!!!!

A friend of mine who runs a lot has hurt his IT band more than once. One time it was so bad he could barely walk. Sounds like you're doing the right things for it; hope it gets better soon!

[Lynn5700]

Oh no girl. I hope your injury heals soon!

[disneygirlinnj]

Nice bonus trip and AKL no less.

And Jiko! can't beat that....:thumbsup2

Here's hoping for clear and calm weather.

Hoping and crossing my fingers for awesome weather! I've been keeping track of this test rocket they've been trying to launch over the past few days and it's getting me antsy!!! They scrubbed it yesterday due to rain and stuff and now today they've already pushed it back a few times. :scared1:

I'm so glad I found you guys on here! I, too, decided this year to run the Half Marathon. Haven't so much as run to the mailbox in 10 years. I found out friends ran it (and they used to be the fat girls...now I was the fat girl!), so I got motivated.

Since Jan '09 I've lost 59 pounds running. I may not make it quickly to the finish line in Jan '10, but I will do it!!! I hope to see all you fun people there. Best of luck to everyone, especially those trying this for the first time.

Welcome over here! :) Wow..congrats on the amazing weight loss too! That's an great accomplishment in itself. And there's no rush to finish the race. I just want to finish it injury free and have a great time doing it.

As the race gets closer, a few of us should plan a meetup spot the morning of just to say hi and try working out the nervous jitters. It'll be fun to put faces to names on here, and know we're all in this together!

We all know the real reason you like Tutto so much... ;)

A friend of mine who runs a lot has hurt his IT band more than once. One time it was so bad he could barely walk. Sounds like you're doing the right things for it; hope it gets better soon!

Haha...the eye candy at Tutto has NOTHING to do with me loving it so much... :rolleyes1

This whole IT Band thing is a pain in the you know where! :( Walking is fine for me now, going up stairs is fine. Going down stairs is where the problem starts. This morning though was much better than yesterday so we're making progress! I've been wearing flat shoes to work every day and avoiding heels. I also went to the gym and did a small leg workout and nothing bothered it, which is good.

Oh no girl. I hope your injury heals soon!

Thanks hun! I'm hoping to try a small run this weekend! :)

[MyMuse]

Cool for your plans! And sorry for the injury. :sad2:

I'm glad you are not in pain anymore and things are progressing. A 10 mile run is amazing! I do 4 on the treadmill and I'm ready to fall over. :lmao:

I'll be sending good luck vibes :wizard: :wizard: for the shuttle launch!

[disneygirlinnj]

Cool for your plans! And sorry for the injury. :sad2:

I'm glad you are not in pain anymore and things are progressing. A 10 mile run is amazing! I do 4 on the treadmill and I'm ready to fall over. :lmao:

I'll be sending good luck vibes :wizard: :wizard: for the shuttle launch!

Thank you :) And 4 miles on a treadmill is a serious accomplishment too. I DESPISE the treadmill. Lately when I've attempted to walk/run on it, I start to lose my mind and hallucinate after about a mile and a half. I think the thought of running in place for that long period of time makes me wonky :rotfl:

[jordanyosh]

Sorry about your injury. At least you know what it is and how to treat it. Hopefully, you'll be running again with no pain.

[disneygirlinnj]

Sorry about your injury. At least you know what it is and how to treat it. Hopefully, you'll be running again with no pain.

Thanks Jordan! I'm thinking happy thoughts for an attempt this weekend :)

[jordanyosh]

Thanks Jordan! I'm thinking happy thoughts for an attempt this weekend :)

I will too then:thumbsup2

[disneygirlinnj]

hey guys!! Just a quick update to tell you I'm alive :)

Little update... I finally caved and went to the doctor just to double check it was just my IT band. And he said it was and recommended physical therapy. My first PT appointment is tomorrow but the doc said I can try to do some light running before then.

I didnt get a chance to really run last week but I did run Monday and today. 2.5 miles on Monday and then 6 today and the knee was good! I wore a wrap around my leg to help the IT Band and it definitely worked. I only wore it on my left leg and that felt perfect...and of course my right barely started bothering me, so time to go buy a wrap for that leg! ugh! :(

My shuttle launch trip is in SIX DAYS!!! EEK!!!! I can't believe it creeped up so fast! I'll post more in the next few days about it. :)

[disneygirlinnj]

Hey guys! well tomorrow we leave on our mini trip for the shuttle launch!! I'll be tweeting...

www.twitter.com/disneygirlinnj

so if you want live updates, follow me :D

Hopefully after this trip I can sit down and finish the TR for my LAST trip!