SarahRose's New, Improved, VERY LARGE Marathon Weekend Pre-Trip Report!

[Sarah_Rose]

Hi there!

Well, we're doing it again. DH and I did our first marathon weekend back in 2009. It was a spur of the moment decision to register and book the trip, with the half marathon at 97% full - I had never run ANYTHING in my life at that point, but I decided to run the WDW half marathon. If anything could get me in shape, Disney could, right?

Well, I loved it so much that we made the decision to go back in 2010, while we were still stiff from our first half marathon. But this time we were doing the full marathon! A few months later, a DISer who will not be named (but she knows who she is! ) convinced me to go Goofy. So, I started training to run both the half and full marathons in the same weekend.

In November of 2009, life changed for us. I learned that, after exactly two weeks of TTC, I was pregnant! So, I ended up running the Goofy while 3 months pregnant. It was again a fantastic experience, but DH and I decided that we would sit out 2011. Until the day after we got home when DH was talking to his co-workers about the trip and one of his work buddies asked if he was going back the next year. This guy had lost over 100 lbs in one year after being told by his doctor that he wasn't going to live to see 40, and he wanted a new challenge now that he had lost the weight.

And thus, the 2011 Marathon Weekend trip was born.

The Cast:

Here's the HUGE part. We kept mentioning the trip to people and people kept inviting themselves along. It's going to be fantastic (or chaotic and awful. We'll see.).

SarahRose (27) - Me. Disney fanatic recently converted insane runner. Currently working on getting that runner's body (and stamina) back after having a baby in August.

James (DH) (29) - Not so much a Disney fanatic, but he does like to run and does enjoy marathon weekend.

Here are DH and I at mile 23 of the 2010 Disney Marathon.

Callum (will be 5 months at time of trip) - My sweet little baby boy. He was born on August 8 and is currently just really getting into grabbing onto things and exploring his (limited) world. He's a pretty easy baby and has just started sleeping really well. I think he'll be a blast at Disney - I can't wait to see how he reacts!

Here are Callum and I in his first race - a local 4 mile race, one month after he was born! This is also the stroller that is coming along with us; it's huge, but comfy and easy to push around.

DMom and DDad - The happy grandparents. When I mentioned that we were thinking of taking this trip, they immediately volunteered to come along to help out with Callum. My dad said a few years ago that he "missed Disney, but won't go until there's a grandchild to go with". And here we are.

David (25) - My little brother. Pretty much me in male form and two years younger. Also loves Disney but hasn't been since our last trip with our parents in 2000.

DMIL and DFIL - Not really Disney fans but didn't want to be left out on the fun. The ones I'm least sure about traveling with (and this includes the baby).

Bancha and The Gang - DH's co-worker and an undetermined number of his friends (I think we're at two or three now... maybe?) who are coming along. They're staying at a different resort so we'll see how much their plans align with ours.

The Trip: January 5-12

The Resort: AKL Kidani, AKL, and ASMu

The Events:
Disney Family Fun 5K - Me, DMom, DDad, and Callum
WDW Half Marathon - Me, DH, David, DFIL, Bancha, and Bancha's Friend #1

Come back to find out how the planning and (more importantly) the training goes!

 

[Sarah_Rose]

So, around May, we started discussing resort plans. We had originally decided to stay at POP, but as the discussions continued, it made sense to have my parents and us in the same place on half marathon day, to help with the 3:00 am Callum trade-off. I started looking into DVC points rental and found someone with points to rent for January at $10. Our first choice was a Treehouse Villa but they were totally booked up. Our second choice was BWV, but ditto on that. However, there was a 2 bedroom savanna view at Kidani available for our dates.... it was more than we wanted to spend, but we decided to book it anyway. My parents, my brother, DH and I and Callum will be staying in that villa for January 5-12.

I am SO EXCITED to sit on the balcony with a cup of coffee in the morning and feed Callum.... while watching the animals right outside our room! I'm also hoping that Kidani will be the proverbial straw for my DH when it comes to our own DVC membership.... We'll see... It'll just be so nice to have the villa with the awesome view because I have a feeling I'll be spending a lot more time in the room than normal. Callum is hardcore committed to his nap schedule and I'm not sure how well he'll do with napping in the stroller. Time will only tell.

DFIL and DMIL booked a room at AKL (with a request to be close to Kidani) for January 6-10th.

Bancha & Co booked a room at ASMu for January 6-12th. So, we'll be meeting up with them for meals and at the parks.

How are we getting there?
DH, Callum and I will be flying Alaska Airlines. We have a direct flight that leaves Seattle at 8:45 and arrives at 5:00. We usually fly SWA but couldn't pass up the direct flight. We haven't booked our return flight yet, but I see that SWA has a flight that leaves at 1:30 and gets in at 6:00 with one stopover and no plane change.... it's on sale for $129 right now so I might book it today.

My parents decided to take a few days and drive down from the Toronto area. They're going to spend a few extra days in south Florida after we leave WDW. They might arrive around January 3rd and stay offsite for a few days.

Everyone else is arriving at various times on January 5th and 6th.

Now here is a question: DH is definitely flying home on January 12th, so he can go back to work the next day. I have a close friend whose family owns a condo in Miami and she and her baby (who will be born within the next 48 hours! So exciting!) will be down there for the entire month of January. This friend lives in Edmonton and so I don't see her nearly often enough... and she's invited Callum and I to hang out with her in Miami for as long as we want. Do I dare rent a car and drive to Miami by myself for a few days and then fly home by myself with the baby? How tough is traveling with a 5 month old infant alone? I'd be worried about just getting all the stuff (stroller, carseat, luggage, etc.) around the airport!

Any thoughts?