Flowers, 5Ks, and Fiancées-A May 2011 TR *Updated 4/30 The Last Update*

[PirateKate]

The start to the that race sounds horrible. I hope the rest of the race goes better. I would have been interested in seeing pictures, but I can see the appeal of leaving everything behind.

I've never run into a DIS in real life before, but I bet most of them are pretty nice.

 

[TeresaG]

Joining in! I caught up on all your updates. I love your style of writing.

I'm sorry the start to the race was so stressful. Definitely not what you need right before a 5k. I can't wait to read your next update!

 

[Shell & Ted]

I run at night between races but do much better when I do 5Ks in the morning. I don't like waiting all day for the race if it's at night.

The start of the race sounds horrible.

 

[TanzUnited99]

Yay on making it to the race!

Oh no on the way it started out - I can't believe you had to deal with all that stress just moments before your race!

Hope the race itself went smoothly.

 

[20thingamabobs]

Hey! Omg, I was laughing so hard reading your post. Not that I thought it was funny that you got so upset but it's just funny hearing it from your perspective about what was going on having been on the other end of everything. I don't really approach people either but I like when people come up to me because I think it's neat to meet everyone in person!

I'm so sorry you had such a bad start to the race. My DF and I were in Wave 5 too but we were right next to the lady holding the sign in the very front so we had a completely different experience and didn't even notice the comotion. It's funny... this was my third Disney race and all the starts have been different. The Half in Jan was really organized and every Corral had their own area to stand in. They wouldn't even let you in the Corral without verifying your bib. So there was no way anyone could end up in the wrong place. The ESPN 5K was chaos. The start was a weird L shape kind of like EEC except instead of being assigned to a corral there were just sections to line up in based on your personal estimated running time (10 min mile). It was bascially a free for all. It was crazy. Plus there were no waves so the course was ver congested for the first 1-1.5 miles which was pretty annoying.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the rest of the race! Can't wait to hear your thoughts!

 

[Aussiesalad]

This is too funny!I love how you write and I am really looking forward to what's to come! Yayyy!

 

[amazingact21]

YAY race time!!! I love the crazy feeling I get right before I start...too bad I usually lose steam soon after

I actually wrote my disboards name on my race shirt when I did the Wine and Dine half marathon...lots of people stopped me which is what I was hoping for, because I was a little shy to say hi to them first...I actually met up with a lady who I still stay in touch with and we did a race in Virginia together recently As I am typing all of this I realize I haven't really approached anyone from the DIS without talking to them about meeting up first, so I guess I am not making a good point I am actually agreeing wtih you I would be nervous Sorry for that random thought!!

I love your shirts and can't wait to see how the race went, sounds like a pretty frustrating start

I don't know if I hate or love that feeling before a race. I guess I don't like it prior to starting, but once the race is done, I enjoy that adreneline rush.

The start to the that race sounds horrible. I hope the rest of the race goes better. I would have been interested in seeing pictures, but I can see the appeal of leaving everything behind.

I've never run into a DIS in real life before, but I bet most of them are pretty nice.

The race was a complete 180 from the fiasco that happened beforehand. DF and I regreted leaving our cameras behind the moment we hit Mile 2. We kept kicking ourselves in the butt for not bringing something to capture the moments with.

Joining in! I caught up on all your updates. I love your style of writing.

I'm sorry the start to the race was so stressful. Definitely not what you need right before a 5k. I can't wait to read your next update!

Thanks for joining! Yes, that start was really stressful, but thankfully it didn't tamper with the overall race.

I run at night between races but do much better when I do 5Ks in the morning. I don't like waiting all day for the race if it's at night.

The start of the race sounds horrible.

I agree, running a race in the morning is better, if only because it's out of the way and you can spend the rest of the day celebrating.

Yay on making it to the race!

Oh no on the way it started out - I can't believe you had to deal with all that stress just moments before your race!

Hope the race itself went smoothly.

The start of it was definitely a bad memory, but luckily things could only go up from there.

Hey! Omg, I was laughing so hard reading your post. Not that I thought it was funny that you got so upset but it's just funny hearing it from your perspective about what was going on having been on the other end of everything. I don't really approach people either but I like when people come up to me because I think it's neat to meet everyone in person!

I'm so sorry you had such a bad start to the race. My DF and I were in Wave 5 too but we were right next to the lady holding the sign in the very front so we had a completely different experience and didn't even notice the comotion. It's funny... this was my third Disney race and all the starts have been different. The Half in Jan was really organized and every Corral had their own area to stand in. They wouldn't even let you in the Corral without verifying your bib. So there was no way anyone could end up in the wrong place. The ESPN 5K was chaos. The start was a weird L shape kind of like EEC except instead of being assigned to a corral there were just sections to line up in based on your personal estimated running time (10 min mile). It was bascially a free for all. It was crazy. Plus there were no waves so the course was ver congested for the first 1-1.5 miles which was pretty annoying.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the rest of the race! Can't wait to hear your thoughts!

Yikes, the ESPN 5K sounds horrible! I would have been so stressed out, trying to find some room and figuring out where my run time group was. It makes my situation look like a walk in the park!

This is too funny!I love how you write and I am really looking forward to what's to come! Yayyy!

Thanks for following along! The stories only get funnier from here.

 

[amazingact21]

Finally, the part of the trip I'm most excited about writing! The Expedition Everest Challenge!!!


May 7th:

I'd like to say DF and I bolted through the starting line strong and steady, ready to knock out those 3.1 miles. But, in reality, we were at the very back of the wave, and we pretty much shuffled our feet for the first 200 feet.

There were a lot of people trying to take off, all at different paces, and it took a long while to get at the pace we were comfortable with.

We wound our way through the parking lot, making a big circle to get to the entrance of AK. Along the way there were cars parked with people waving and cheering us on.

I shocked myself a little in the first mile, because I was holding on strong. Normally, it takes me a little while to get my legs warmed up and my muscled loosened up enough to maintain a consistent pace. During my training sessions, Mile 2 was my best.

However, DF and I flew through that first part without blinking. Before we knew it, we had arrived at our first obstacle...

HAY BALES!

We had to jump over several bales of hay.

Leading up to the race, I was a little anxious about the obstacles, because I wasn't sure what to expect. However, I loved the first one. I was so ecstatic to be through with the first mile and ready to enter the park, that I jumped over the hay laughing.

With that behind us, we came upon the AK entrance and hit a crowd of people. That area was really congested, because not only was it part of the running path, it was also the first stop in the scavenger hunt. Therefore, people who were in earlier waves were standing there trying to figure out their clues.

As DF and I maneuvered through the crowd I checked my stopwatch. In practice, my times were usually 11 minutes for Mile 1, 12:30 for Mile 2, and 13 for Mile 3.

So I was a little bummed to see that we had completed the first mile in 12 minutes, almost a minute behind my normal time.

"We need to pick it up, Alex!"

Of course, DF is a much better runner than I am and was slowing his pace down for me, so when I gave him the go-ahead to crank it up, he was thrilled.

The first half of Mile 2 was in the direction of Asia. We went to the left of the Tree of Life and straight ahead to the other side of the park. The race cut through a behind-the-scenes area where a bunch of trash was deposited. That was definitely the stinkiest part of the race.

It was kind of hectic here, as well. The path wasn't very wide, so a lot of walker were blocking the path of runners. The width of the road couldn't hold more than four people at a time, and with teams racing, it made passing people a pain in the butt.

Along the route, Mickey Mouse was in a jeep cheering runners on, not to mention there were CMs every 100 feet or so applauding and urging our feet to move faster.

The bad thing about this leg of the race for me was that I was so concerned about keeping up a good pace, I didn't take in my surroundings!

I didn't even see the Tree of Life!!!

I was so focused on my breathing and passing other runners, I did not look around me.

Bummer...

At 2.5 miles, we reached our second obstacle.

TIRES!!!

"Nooooooo," I groaned.

DF laughed at me. He knew how much I was hoping tires wouldn't be along the way.

I am the most ungraceful person you will ever meet. And despite the fact that tires have decent size holes in the middle, I still tend to catch the tread and fall flat on my face.

I was getting a little nervous.

"Don't trip, don't trip, don't trip!"

DF sailed through them, his heels never even touching the concrete. When he turned back to look at me, I heard him let out a quick chuckle.

Right foot in the first tire...

Now left foot in the second tire...

This is good. Haven't fallen yet.

Pick the right foot up, set it in the third tire...

One more to go!

Left foot, fourth tire...

Now get out!!!

It was not the prettiest site, and the tires slowed us down a lot.
And since we weren't running anymore, I started to feel my muscles. I was sort of surprised it had taken that long.

I also realized that I had been missing the scenery, so I asked DF if we could slow it down a bit.

He complied and we found a good speed-walking pace.

While we were moving, I was able to see how cool AK is at night. It was like being in a whole new park. The music playing on speakers mixed with all the greenery around us actually made the place look very peaceful. I loved seeing all plants in the moonlight.

DF and I came upon Baloo standing by the mile 3 marker sign.

Kicking ourselves for not bringing a camera, we decided it was time to resume running.

I checked my watch...24 minutes. Amazingly, we were keeping a 12 minute pace, which I was excited about. Taking that happiness, I pushed myself through the last mile.

We passed the Tree of Life on the other side and ran out of the park.

The first part of Mile 3 was the hardest for me. I was starting to feel all the running, but I was determined to keep going, because I wanted to keep my time under 40 minutes.

DF and I arrived at the last leg of the race...a grassy area near the starting line, where we saw the final obstacle.

A CRAWL SPACE and A CLIMBING WALL!!

DF and I zipped through the obstacle easily and came upon the last 100 feet to the finish line. The only indication that we were at the end were the row of white tents set up and the line of volunteers handing out pens and flashlights and our first set of clues.

As DF grabbed the materials, I glanced at my watch. 36:09!!!




We'd kept a 12 minute pace the whole time and had finished with my best run time ever!


Right after the volunteers was a water station, and DF and I gulped down a cup while we headed back to the park entrance.

Along the way, we took our first look at Clue # 1.

There were 4 seperate clues for each station, in order to prevent everyone from cheating and copying other people's answers.

Our clue said we were to answer the riddle and go to Oasis (the main entrance to the park) and find the group labeled "Springs."

The riddle was:


At first, DF thought it might be a trick, because it seemed so obvious, but it turned out there was no catch. All he had to do was find the letters that were next to the stars and put them together.

As soon as DF wrote the answer down, we jogged to Oasis and looked for the sign that read "Springs."

DF missed it the first time around and we had to double back to find it. When we got there, we waited in line for a CM to check our answer and see if it was right. When she saw that it was, she gave us our second clue.

This one was, by far, the hardest clue.

It killed our overall time, because we spent 15 minutes on it!!!

We saw that we had to go to Camp Minnie-Mickey, so we began to simultaneously walk over there and read the riddle.



Our initial guess was to put the letters in alphabetical order, but after doing that it was apparent that was wrong.

Then, I remembered playing a game as a kid where I associated every letter in the alphabet with a number, and figured out sentences using the numbers. I thought maybe it was a backwards version of that and perhaps it would give us coordinates.

(Hence why there's a bunch of crazy numbers on my paper.)

By the time I had come up with that crazy idea, DF and I were near FotLK, and we decided to stop at a table and think it through for a while. While we were sitting, DF noticed the red arrow on the compass was pointing to the east.

"That has something to do with it, I just know it."

"Yeah, but what?"

"I don't know!"

It had been a good twelve/thirteen minutes by that point, and we were starting to get frustrated. No matter how much we tried, we just couldn't figure out how to work the riddle.

DF decided that we needed to go ask a CM for help.

When we got to the line, there was a massive group of people trying to ask questions.

Apparently, we weren't the only ones having trouble.

While in line, another runner came up to us and asked if we needed help. We nodded our heads helplessly, and she told us to take the E from East and rearrange the alphabet starting from E.

AAAHHHH.

After doing that, we came up with the correct answer...ONWARD.


In a way, DF and I were on the right track. He knew the arrow pointing to east was important, and I knew the alphabet had some kind of pattern going on.
I imagine if we'd tried a bit longer, we would have figured it out.


After giving our answer to the CM, we received Clue # 3, telling us to go to Africa.
It was the longest distance between two clues, taking us practically across the park, but it was the easiest riddle. DF looked at it for ten seconds and then told me what to write.



For some reason, DF does really well with optical illusions, so he had no problem figuring out what to do. Which was good, because after the disastrous 2nd clue we needed a boost of confidence.


Retrieving Clue # 4, we raced to Asia, ultimately making a big clockwise circle around the park.

Clue # 4 was also an easy one for us. The EE officials had sent out the same practice question to us a few months prior, and thankfully DF and I remembered it.



Not wasting any time, we turned in our clue and got our final one.

Finding a concrete stump to sit on, DF and I began to figure out this last riddle.


I read through it three times, just to make sure I did not overlook anything, and then I set out all my clues in a row.

DF was completely lost on this one, but I felt like I was on the right path, so I told him to just sit back and let me work on it. My clues were not in order, but as I re-read the riddle one more time, I concentrated on the "letter-perfect" part and began to take a closer look at my previous clues.

Saying "ten" over and over again, I started to add look at the first letters in each clue.

AH-HAH!!

I had it!

I started to arrange the clues in order, and I had gotten Mile and Onward set up, when out of nowhere, DF whispers, "Mountain!"

Huh?!

"How'd you figure it out before me! I was just about to get it!"

DF looked at me, guilty.

"Well..."

"HOW?! I just realized that the clues, put together, spelled MOUN, and I was about to put it with 10 and get the answer!"

Now DF was looking at me a little sheepishly.

"I kinda overheard someone else say it."



I was a tad bit angry, because I was sooooo close to having it, and DF blurted it out because he cheated.


Ah well, no matter how we came by the answer, we had it, and it was time to finish up the race.





Between being burned out by the 3.1 mile run and the two clues slowing us down, our total time was 1:19:59.

We spent 43 minutes on the scavenger hunt.

Seeing as the race was a ton of fun and we both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, we weren't complaining about the overall time.
It felt great receiving the medal and being able to wear something I'd worked so hard to accomplish.

The endorphins were soaring through me, and I was telling DF we'd have to make it a tradition to run it every year.

I couldn't believe how nervous I had been before.

All in all, it was a ton of fun, and it opened up a special place in my heart for AK.

Whenever I go to the park from now on, I'll think to myself, "I ran through this place...in the dark!"


With so much energy and adreneline still flowing through us, DF and I had only one thing to do...

PARTY!

It was time to celebrate our victory by riding some rides!


Up next...Searching for the Batmobile.

 

[Shannon84]

Wow I don't think I would have been able to get that second clue at all...that was a tough one but I am glad you guys had so much fun and what an awesome time you got on the running I love AK at night and that event sounds like a lot of fun...might need to convince DBF to do that next year!

 

[TeresaG]

That was a tough clue!! I don't think I would have been able to figure it out. The run sounds like a lot of fun. I wish I lived closer to Disney because I would love to take part in all the runs they offer.

I can't wait to read more!

 

[Nermel9]

That race sounds like fun, I had no idea there were obstacles in it! That would make me nervous, I'd probably fall or something, knowing how clumsy I am! The scavenger hunt looks great, another thing I didn't know existed!

 

[TanzUnited99]

Wow your race experience sounds awesome! I loved reading about the little obstacles along the way but would have been scared of falling over the tyres as well!

Yay on solving all the clues - some of them sound a bit tricky and getting the final answer (even if DF blurted it out just as you had solved it!)

 

[amazingact21]

Wow I don't think I would have been able to get that second clue at all...that was a tough one but I am glad you guys had so much fun and what an awesome time you got on the running I love AK at night and that event sounds like a lot of fun...might need to convince DBF to do that next year!

You should definitely try to! DF already talks about next year's race as if it's a done deal.

That was a tough clue!! I don't think I would have been able to figure it out. The run sounds like a lot of fun. I wish I lived closer to Disney because I would love to take part in all the runs they offer.

I can't wait to read more!

The run was very cool, and I loved being in AK at night. I wish I could participate in more Disney runs, as well. Unfortunately, they are just a little out our price range right now.

That race sounds like fun, I had no idea there were obstacles in it! That would make me nervous, I'd probably fall or something, knowing how clumsy I am! The scavenger hunt looks great, another thing I didn't know existed!

The scavenger hunt was what sold me on doing the race. DF really wanted to do another 5K, and I love puzzles/trivia, so I felt that this was perfect for us.

Wow your race experience sounds awesome! I loved reading about the little obstacles along the way but would have been scared of falling over the tyres as well!

Yay on solving all the clues - some of them sound a bit tricky and getting the final answer (even if DF blurted it out just as you had solved it!)

Those tires....DF still laughs out loud when I mention them. If I'm going to participate in it again next year, I'm going to practice my tire jumping skills.

The clues were a bit tricky. I could especially see the 3rd one being difficult. There were several people asking us how we solved that one. And the last one definitely required some thinking.

 

[amazingact21]

Here comes the only post I'll do without pictures.

May 7th Night:

With the race over, DF and I were ready to have some fun and burn off our remaining endorphins. We grabbed some bananas, granola bars, and water bottles from some tables set up behind the finish line; with all that running around, the refreshments were gone before we walked ten feet.

Since the race ended right before the Expedition Everest ride, I thought it only fitting that we celebrate our accomplishment by going on the attraction where the competition got its namesake from.

Around the time we walked up to the fastpass kiosk, a huge mob of people began filing into the entrance, and suddenly there was a massive amount of confusion. Everybody was unsure where they were supposed to extend the line, and I'm pretty sure there were 2 separate lines formed, one leading out towards the exit area, and the other passing the fastpass stands.

Eventually, a CM realized what was happening and sent the people by the exit area towards the other line. It was slightly chaotic at first, but after that was all squared away, the line moved decently along.

Ten minutes later, DF and I were ushered into a car, and we began our climb up the mountain.

Up until that point, I had been oohing and aahing over how pretty AK was at night and how I wish it was open during the late evenings more often.
However, when EE started to climb that one very steep incline towards the inside of the mountain, DF and I got a good look around us.

DF might deny it, but I swear we both went, "OOOOOOOOHHHH" at the same exact moment.

I'm not sure which was cooler. Seeing the moonlit park and the surrounding area from up high.

Or the view of the mountain lit up in the night.

It was one of the coolest sights I have seen at WDW.

I looked behind me and I could see the tracks lit up with small bulbs, giving the cars behind me a yellowish tint. To my left was complete darkness, which gave the trip up a spooky feel, what with the car clicking slowly upwards and the eerie music playing in my ears.

To my right, I could see the snow covered side and off in the distance, I could make out the lights and screams from another set of cars taking the plunge...an exciting preview of what was to come.

And straight ahead, I could watch as we were swallowed into the mountain, making the ride become even darker.


The first and only time I had ridden EE, I was a little shaken. It bordered the line of too-much for me. Therefore, I wasn't exactly chomping at the bit to ride it again.
But I'm glad I did. Because that was a sight to be seen.


Even the rest of the ride was twice as exciting as normal.The drops weren't as great a sight as the journey upwards, but they were exhilarating to do in the dark. You could barely see the turns up ahead and it took away that feeling of safety you get after you encounter the yeti.

Which I managed to see this time around!

DF and I hopped off the ride at the end, and we both were trying to tell the other about how cool the adventure was.

"Hands down, that has turned into my favorite ride at Disney," DF proclaimed.

"Too bad we won't get too many opportunities to ride it at night."

"I don't care, it's still my new favorite."


We wanted to jump right back in line and go again, but I figured we needed to get all the other things we wanted to do out of the way first, then come back to EE, making a big circle through Dinoland in the process.

So, we headed off to ride Dinosaur.

Thankfully, there were no cameras to capture my reaction this time. Because, even though I had a vivid memory of what the ride was like, I still became scared.

About the time that the meteors began showering our RV with rocks, I decided to close my eyes and wait for our return to present day.

Walking out of the gift shop, DF laughed at me, and I just shook my head violently and swore I would never get on that ride again.

"That was my last time, Alex! I wanted to give it one more try, now that I knew what to expect, but it was even worse this time around! I kept waiting for that horrible creature at the end!"

Still laughing, DF and I took our time strolling through Dinoland. There was a celebration party going on near Triceratops Spin, and we (well, me. DF just held me hand and walked) danced for a little bit.

A short trip past the Finding Nemo the Musical stage and we were back in Asia, ready to take on EE again.

It was getting pretty late (11:30ish) and the crowds were thinning very quickly. DF and I were able to walk onto the ride 2 times in a row.
We debated going one more time, but both of us were really beginning to feel the race, and the thought of soft pillows and peaceful dreams were more appealing.

Giving the EE mountain a parting look, DF and I made our way back towards the entrance. We'd already gone through the entire park (entrance to exit) once, and after we reached the exit we would have completed a 2nd round trip.
Needless to say, by the time we reached the tram waiting area, I was ready to keel over. My feet were killing me!

After a five minute wait, a tram came and picked us up, where we were able to sit down. How comfortable those plastic seats were at the time! I wanted to sit there forever and just let the driver take me in loops from lot to lot. Two trips back to the entrance and I probably would've fallen asleep!
DF reminded me, though, that I'd be more comfortable in my bed, where I could take my running shoes off.

That's very true.

"And a shower. I kinda stink."

I listened to DF chuckle and nod in agreement, but he whatever he was about to say in reply stopped short on his lips.

"Alicia?"

"Mmm-hmm,oh trust me I'm not the only stinky one. You need some cologne bad time-"

"What lot are we in?"

I felt my eyes bug out, then cut to the left, where DF was staring at me.

"What'd you say?"

"The parking lot! Which one are we in???"

"Uhm, the one with the animal as the name?"

We realized right then that in our pre-race excitement, neither of us had looked to see what parking lot we were in.

Oops.

We both were quiet as the tram driver came over the intercom and said the three lots he was driving to.

Unicorn, giraffe, and dinosaur.

"I'm positive it isn't unicorn; we were nowhere near this close to the entrance," DF assured me as the vehicle came to a stop.

"Well, look around, which do you think is closer to where we entered?"

DF thought long and hard, then said, "Giraffe. I'm pretty sure it's giraffe."

Thankfully, it was almost 12:30 at night, and 80% of the cars had already left.

But there was still that 20% we had to sift through to find ours.

And as luck would have it, I had left my glasses in the car, along with all our other belongings.

A lot of help I was going to be.

We walked from one end of the Giraffe lot to the other, moving up and down the rows, trying to keep our eyes out for black cars.

Reaching the end, we agreed to continue walking to the Dinosaur lot, to try and see if our car was there. Unfortunately, this lot was a lot darker, so we had a harder time identifying vehicles.

"Why'd you have to have a black car?! You couldn't have chosen silver? Or yellow?!?! Yellow is bright. It can be seen from far away."

"How was I supposed to know that one day I'd lose my car in a massive parking lot?"

"I don't know, but it's called preparing for the worst! Now we're out here looking for a little two door black car-IT'S LIKE LOOKING FOR THE BATMOBILE! It just can't be found."

Not seeing the car in Dinosaur, we doubled back and began to search Giraffe again.

"Is that it over there?"

"You think my rims are that nice?"

"Good point."


After searching all through Giraffe again, DF decided it was time to walk over to Unicorn and try our luck there. We had already spent 20 minutes looking, and the lot was getting emptier and emptier by the minute. As we passed over a patch a grass, DF and I saw the most beautiful thing in the world.

A lonely black car parked at the end of the row.

Just to be sure, DF hit his panic button on his keys and the car chirped to life.

YAY!!!

We didn't sit down in the car so much as fall groggily down into the cushions.

After racing around the park and riding rides for two hours, the last thing our poor feet needed was to walk around 3 parking lots searching for a car.

Driving back to All Star Sports, DF and I laughed at the situation we put ourselves into.

"I knew I should have done something when I got out of the car."

"Three parking lots and we pick the one lot we did not check."

"We have got to start being more observant."

By the time we parked the newly discovered car in front of our room's building, DF and I had learned a valuable lesson.

ALWAYS look to see what lot you parked in.

It was something we took very seriously in the days to come…


Up next: Alex vs Toilet

 

[Shannon84]

I cannot imagine how beautiful riding EE at night must be!! I wish they stayed open late enough to find out, but alas every time I visit AK is closed by 5 pm!

Sounds like you guys had a lot of fun at the after party part!! I have to tell you riding Dinosaur scares me every time even when I know what is going to happen

I cannot imagine being unsure of where my car is parked at WDW...nevermind after a race I always manage to forget where I park at the mall, but that is nothing in comparison!! I am glad you guys found the batmobile

 

[amazingact21]

I cannot imagine how beautiful riding EE at night must be!! I wish they stayed open late enough to find out, but alas every time I visit AK is closed by 5 pm!

Sounds like you guys had a lot of fun at the after party part!! I have to tell you riding Dinosaur scares me every time even when I know what is going to happen

I cannot imagine being unsure of where my car is parked at WDW...nevermind after a race I always manage to forget where I park at the mall, but that is nothing in comparison!! I am glad you guys found the batmobile

Yeah, AK closed at 6 the last time I visited, and it wasn't even dark by then.

The lost car was certainly an adventure. Even though it was aggrevating, it's probably the memory both of us will remember the clearest. I'll start to ask DF "You remember when we went in May?" And he'll reply with, "You mean when we lost our car?!"

 

[amazingact21]

Two updates two days in row! Can you tell I'm putting off making wedding invitations?


The Morning of May 8th:

The alarm clock woke DF and I up at 8 o'clock on the dot. Normally, I like to start my WDW vacation by going to Epcot first, but since they were having morning EMH, I decided to forgo the normal routine and switch it up a bit. DHS opened at 9a.m. that day, and I figured going there first would give us some extra time to sleep in.

Grateful for a later start, I woke up perky and jubilant. I was finally going to be able to spend the day in the parks! I'd only waited 2 whole days for this!

It took me about twenty minutes to get ready. By 8:25, I was prepared to hit up the food court and get on the road.

(I told you I liked a little coffee with my creamer. Four containers was just enough.)

DF, on the other hand, woke up in a grumpy mood.

Hermpf.

He stalked around the room, brushing his teeth, throwing his shoes on, scowling the entire time.

"What is your issue?"

I knew it couldn't be the lack of sleep; DF is notorious for only getting 4-5 hours of sleep on worknights.

"My shin is killing me!"

Ruh-row.

DF has a tendency to get horrible shin splits after running, and I knew if he had them now, they'd stay with him the whole day.
Making for a very miserable day for me.

"I have some Alieve in my bag. You think that'll help?"

"What'll help is if we buy a nightlight," DF snapped.

I felt like I was starting to miss something at this point.

"A nightlight?"

"These rooms are too dark!"

"I don't get how that has anything to do with your shins..."

DF gave me a sour look.

"Last night, I got up to use the bathroom, and I didn't want to turn on any lights and wake you up, so I tried to close the door before I hit the lights."

"Ohkay."

"Well, the (we'll say he said) goshdarn toilet was so close to the door, I ended up ramming my shin into the bowl."

I couldn't really see what the big deal was. I mean, I'd rammed my toes into chair legs and hit my elbow on dresser corners before.

So he hit his leg on the toilet bowl? Big whoop...

Then I looked down at his left leg.

Holy smokes!

There was a big ugly knot protruding from his leg. Throughout the week it kept expanding and expanding, until it was about twice as big.

"That happened three hours ago??"

DF nodded while I shook my head in disbelief. The bump looked like it had been there for days.

"Jeez, Alex, were you sprinting into the room? How'd you manage to whack it that hard?"

DF just shrugged his shoulders.

As the trip progressed, it became kind of fun to watch the bump turn from a knot to an ugly blue color to a sickly yellowish shade. It was still on his leg when we left WDW, and when his family saw it they asked, "Did someone kick you in the leg?"

In fact, the bruise was still fairly apparent when DF and I came back home, because even my parents noticed it.


I tried not to laugh at the absurdity of the situation as we made our way to the food court, but it was difficult not to. How many people can say that they hurt themselves on a vicious toilet?

We didn't take long at the food court, because all we were doing was filling up the mug with coffee.


Once that was done, DF and I went to our car and drove to DHS. It was about 8:35 at that point, and I was curious to see how long it'd take us to enter the park.


When we reached DHS and parked the car, the first thing DF did was snap a picture of the parking lot.


There would be no lost cars today!

A tram arrived and took us to the front of the ticket window. It was a really beautiful morning out. The sun was shining, but it wasn't unbearably hot out; there was actually a nice breeze circulating through the air.

Getting off the tram, DF looked longingly at the Tower of Terror looming above the tree lines.

He knew the only chance he'd have of going on it was by himself, and he had decided he didn't want to do that. So no 13 story plunge for him that day...

The crowds going into the park looked daunting.


I was afraid it was going to be packed, but when I shared my fears with DF, he reminded me that it just looked crowded due to rope drop.

Which, miraculously, we were able to catch.

We had hoped to get inside the park before it opened, just to be able to stay ahead of the game, but we weren't insistent about it. We were following the philosophy of "If it happens, it happens. If not, life moves on."

We were not strung up on getting there the second the park opened, because we were probably one of the only guests that were not trying to make the Toy Story Mania dash.

Which, I must say, was a wonderful break.

We'd participated in that craziness in December, and DF and I agreed that it wasn't worth it this go around.

We wanted a nice, slow, relaxing day...therefore, we opted to skip TSM.


Because the two of us weren't in any rush, we stood among the other guests waiting for rope drop, taking in the scenery and enjoying the fact that we were at WDW.






I tried to get a good picture of DF in front of the hat, but none of them ever came out right.



A nice man came up to us and congratulated us on our engagement and then offered to take our picture.

(I promise, we did not intend to match. DF and I have this nasty habit of getting dressed, then looking at each other and seeing that we picked the same colored shirt. It's a terrible habit that I wish we could break, because I think it makes us look ridiculous.)

About five minutes after we got our picture taken, the host of rope drop came on a intercom and began his spewl. We were so far back in the crowd, though, we didn't hear a word he was saying. We just waited for everyone in front of us to start moving, and when they did, DF and I began our stroll into the park.

But if we weren't going to TSM, where were we going?????


Up next...Stitch for Pluto? Sounds good.

 

[20thingamabobs]

I loved your view of the race! And I'm glad you enjoyed it too! DF and I had so much fun too! We too have said that as long as they run it, you can count us in as being there for it. Looks like you had fun at the after party too, I can't wait to hear about your morning at HS!

 

[TeresaG]

You know, the smashing-into-the-toilet thing is SO something my husband would do. In fact, I imagine he HAS done it. Poor guy. Hope it didn't mess up his trip too much.

This year was the first time I participated in the TSM dash. It was...interesting. And by interesting I mean insane.

 

[TanzUnited99]

Wow at being able to ride EE in the dark - your description of the view sounds amazing!

Lol at forgetting where your car was parked! We have done that at a theme park in the UK and although you hate it at the time it is something you will look back and laugh at! Lol at taking the pic the next day - we always do that now as well!

I was wondering why there was a second update as well! Hope you have managed to make some wedding invitations.

Eek at DFs leg and him injuring it on the goshdarn toilet!

Look forward to seeing where it is you end up going.