See you @@ the Finish Line- Our Dark Side Half Marathon Weekend Adventure

[MommaoffherRocker]

I grabbed a picture of the start real quick



And one of the boys


The announcers counted us down and we were off. Almost immediately Liam and I were separated from Becky and Killian. I needed to take this run easy because my goal race was in a couple weeks so I let Liam lead the way. He had been diagnosed with Pneumonia a couple weeks before (he was cleared by his doc to run) but you could tell he was still feeling the affects.

Before the first mile we came up on the first photo op. EWOKS!!! The line was long and I didn't realize it was them until we were almost past them. I asked Liam if he wanted to go back and get in line but he said no. I think he was nervous and overwhelmed. So we kept going. We entered into Epcot at a steady pace, Liam was so quiet I think taking it all in.

We passed by R2D2 and we thought about stopping but then we saw the line. I think it was about a 20 minute wait so decided against it. Then Liam started telling me he was hurting. So we slowed down to a walk.





We passed by Chewie and then mile 2. Liam wanted to run again so we picked up the pace. We ran out of World Showcase and into Future World. We passed the stormtroopers taking pictures and then turned towards the figment ride. We saw the characters from Star Wars rebels and I thought Liam would want to stop for them but he said no and we ran on. Before I knew it we were by the ball and on our way out of Epcot.

When we got to finish we linked arms before we crossed



Yay for Liam!
He made it through his first Disney 5k. We got our medals, grabbed drinks and snack boxes before we stopped for our medal picture.



They handed us a paddle this time to hold so they wouldn't have to add the I did it graphic later. Probably a smart move on their part, they always seem to have problems with adding those graphics.

Around this time Becky texted me they were still on the course. Liam was looking bad and he told me he was hurting again so I made the decision to ask Becky and Killian to take the bus back so I could get Liam back to the room ASAP. It took us a minute to find the car but we eventually did and made our way back to POP.

When we got back Liam relaxed while watching TV and I got ready for the day. Not only were we going to Epcot but we were also switching hotels. We were moving to CBR for the last two nights of the trip. Becky and Killian ended up not too far behind us. When they got back we looked at the medals and I noticed something odd about Liam's.


So a star is missing, a chunk of the helmet is also missing and where it says WDW it is all smeared.

Seriously?! I was so mad. I didn't even know where to go from here. The expo was my only hope but did I really want to waste that much time. I called runDisney hoping they had another option but they could only tell me to go back to the expo. So we got ready, packed up the car and headed over.

And thankfully after some tylenol and rest Liam felt better and he didn't have problems for the rest of the trip.

Next Up: My mini mental breakdown...






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[ZellyB]

Great job for Liam completing his first Disney 5K. The pictures of you two together are fantastic. I'd love to get one of my kids to run a Disney race with me. So far, no takers. LOL

That's a huge bummer about his medal though and, ugh, on having to return to the Expo.

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

I love the race outfits and your ears!! The photo ops all turned out great.

You all look great! Nice photos!!

Thanks guys!

I'd love to get one of my kids to run a Disney race with me. So far, no takers. LOL

Hopefully you can convince them one day, they are so much fun to do together!

That's a huge bummer about his medal though and, ugh, on having to return to the Expo.

I was so mad at myself for not looking at the medals when we got them, I usually do. I think I was so focused on getting Liam back to the room.

 

[rteetz]

Awesome Pre-race photos! I don't know if I could have passed up Ewoks.

You guys looks like you had a great time during that race.

I have seen medals with some paint issues before but wow that medal is bad. I think this will be a reminder for me to check the medals. I know after the marathon I was in a daze of sorts that I didn't check mine.

 

[Sailormoon2]

Congrats on completing the 5K and getting some awesome photos. However, that medal being in such bad shape is absolutely riddiculous!

 

[Ariel484]

Yay, first 5K! Those pictures are so cute!

I would be LIVID about the medal - hope they made it right.

 

[wehrengrizz]

Maybe @MommaoffherRocker can put up some of my pictures ( I apologize this is annoying) of me and Killian since we kind of separated for the race.
I was glad to see Cpt Phasma, I ended up wearing my PhasMama shirt again over a tech shirt for the race, because costuming ended up in total failure at my house. I bought a Cpt Phasma costume for like $8 from the Disney store online after Halloween. I was planning to pare down the cape and use some of the front of the costume on a shirt. But I got worried about even a shorter cape being annoying and scrapped that. Melanie can attest to my utter annoyance at SO. Many. People. breaking the costume rules set by runDisney/Disney. Full length capes, full helmets and masks,etc. all on adults who were running. It was frustrating, moreso because it's specifically not allowed, and less because I didn't end up doing a short cape . Don't worry. I'm working on building a bridge so I can get over it.

Almost immediately Liam and I were separated from Becky and Killian

It was pretty nuts, we DEFINITELY weren't running fast, but short of holding hands, it was hard to even stay near to Killian! I liked the mini-waves but still the beginning is always a cluster. We heard someone say, "okay, let's just walk this part" and the response from her daughter (?) was "SERIOUSLY?! We've gone about 12 feet. No walking." None of this seemed out of place, sadly lol. I reminded Killian we were there to have FUN with this run and stop for any pictures he wanted, etc. BUT we still wanted to run! A few minutes in, I couldn't even see Melanie and Liam, and we knew we'd catch up with each other at the end so I figured we could enjoy some mom/son time, as we all enjoyed the prerace together. I think Killian was experiencing race jitters, even though he's run 5Ks before, because he skipped meeting the Ewoks. Seriously, we were in line for about 1 minute and he was ready to roll out. I'm pretty sure he had to use the bathroom and once that thought stuck in his head....well I'm sure we've all been there It was ironic because he obsessively searched to find a Wicket plush (and got one) on this trip. We stopped at Norway for the bathroom and all was well with the world again. We did stop for R2D2 and it was a LONG line but we were sure we'd meet BB8 at DHS the next day and wanted to meet R2 since that wasn't an option anywhere else. The girls in front of us in line were awesome and we chatted with them quite a bit, but the girls behind us...holy annoyingness. I think I'm showing my age or something but they were doing like facebook live or similar, and were driving me up the wall. Luckily they kept (most of) it PG-13 and Killian was oblivious. We didn't need to stop for Chewbacca because we'd met him at Disneyland in October and nothing was going to top that Chewy's interaction. Killian was amped to meet Ezra and Sabine (definitely spelling that wrong), and said it was for his siblings. It was a relatively short line, and they were great at chatting with us! We saw some storm troopers that had stopped as a kind of weird add-on meet and greet or so it seemed, but we moved it along. We tried our best to get some photopass pics snapped, and stopped for some selfies along the way too and just had a great time. We kind of had a hard time actually running toward the finish...it was like a slow parade near the finish line and chEar zone. At the end, we were on the right side by Rudy and he was calling us out as we ran by and he liked my shirt. One of the finish line storm troopers saluted me after seeing my shirt so that was funny. We were handed medals (I was kind of bummed they didn't put it on us, or at least on Killian. He got hte last one from the volunteer and I had to go to the next person. The guy literally just said "here" and walked off. Again, Killian didn't care) and we grabbed our drinks and snacks, after a selfie. We grabbed a bus back to Pop and walking through the food court I pointed out "THIS is why we don't try to eat breakfast here"...It was funny it felt like lunch time because we'd been up for so long at that point already.

Epcot / World Showcase domination was on the docket for the day after checking on Liam, checking into CBR, and getting cleaned up of course.

 

[cavepig]

Great ears and his outfit is awesome & adorable, oops can an Imperial officer be adorable?!? That medal is sad (like the painter machine thingy threw up on it), hoping you get a new one....My brother has had a few he's exchanged at a tent in the post area. I hardly ever remember to check though, there's so much going on it's hard remember.

That linking arm finish is the BEST!

pointed out "THIS is why we don't try to eat breakfast here"...It was funny it felt like lunch time because we'd been up for so long at that point already.

Oh my gosh I said the same thing back Sports after the races, it was always a zoo for sure!

 

[iivye]

I love the costumes and it sounds like the boys really enjoyed the race. That really sucks about having to return the medal; I hope it worked out.

 

[TeeterTots]

Great job to the boys!!! So much fun!!

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

I don't know if I could have passed up Ewoks.

I know it was so hard but I told myself they will be out for the half so I'll stop then.

I think this will be a reminder for me to check the medals.

Yes!! Please learn from my mistake!

that medal being in such bad shape is absolutely riddiculous!

Right?! So frustrating.

Yay, first 5K! Those pictures are so cute!

I would be LIVID about the medal - hope they made it right.

Thanks! and I was!

Maybe @MommaoffherRocker can put up some of my pictures

I'm sorry I meant to put them in another post because I can only put 10 up at a time and I got distracted. I don't know how that happens LOL

Great ears and his outfit is awesome & adorable

Thanks!!

I hardly ever remember to check though, there's so much going on it's hard remember.

YES!! plus they are pretty much pushing you down the chute.

I love the costumes and it sounds like the boys really enjoyed the race.

Thank you! I think both of them had a great time

Great job to the boys!!!

Thanks!

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

OK here are @wehrengrizz's pictures

 

[TeeterTots]

Epcot is so beautiful! More great photos!

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Making it right
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We headed back to the expo. By this time I'm so upset because it is costing us time. We debated in the car what to do because it was ridiculous to park and walk all the way to runner relations. I guess they were expecting a lot of people that day because they were parking everyone in the farthest lot. We briefly talked about me dropping Becky off and having her run up to do the exchange so I told the parking people that I was dropping off. They let me go to the front lot but we realized that plan wasn't going to work and I started to freak out because I'm like am I overreacting, is it worth all of this stress.

I parked in the front parking lot and took a breath. I decided it was worth it and left everyone in the car while I ran up to runner relations. The expo was only open 10 minutes at that point so luckily there were only like 5 people in line. A cast member approached me to see if she could help me quickly and I showed her the medal. She looked upset, apparently my medal was not the first to have been returned to the expo that morning. She took me to the desk to see what they could do. The leftover medals are taken to the expo after the races but they hadn't arrived yet. We walked to the 5k bib pickup area to see if they were dropped off there but they weren't there either. The cast member told the lady at that booth to let her know if they got them because they weren't just giving them out to anyone with a waiver which leads me to believe that has happened in the past? Like you missed the race but could still pick up everything including the medal afterwards? In the end it was decided that I would leave my info and when they got the medals they would have it delivered to my hotel. She told me to keep the other medal as well.

They made good on their word and the medal was in our room later that day. Ok now on to Flower and Garden!!

 

[wehrengrizz]

I'm sorry I meant to put them in another post because I can only put 10 up at a time and I got distracted. I don't know how that happens LOL

GEEEZ.

I started to freak out because I'm like am I overreacting, is it worth all of this stress

Yeah I wasn't helpful either, I was telling Melanie I'm not sure you want me to argue it...I'll MAKE something happen, but I might not stay as tactful for as long as she might ha! I eventually told her that we made this trip happen because of the race and it would be totally worth it to have our medals be right. None of us minded waiting in the car. Liam was pretty much passed out sleeping anyway (he did knock off as soon as we were parked). Glad she decided to go take care of it! So sad it was the second medal with issues within TEN minutes!

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Yay! They found our Animal Kingdom photos!

 

[wehrengrizz]

Yay! They found our Animal Kingdom photos!

View attachment 236522

Killian's foot again This is a good picture!!

 

[MommaoffherRocker]

Epcot

While leaving the expo we got the text that our room was ready at CBR. We were going to just go to Epcot but I made a wrong turn and we ended up at CBR. Our room was in the Jamaica section and I really liked it. The last time I had stayed there it had a Nemo theme so I thought the update was really nice. We relaxed for a minute and unpacked a little but we had FEA fastpasses so we didn't stay long.

Instead of driving to Epcot we thought we would take the bus. The bus stop was right outside our room so why not. We didn't have to wait long for the bus but it seemed like it took the bus forever to get to Epcot.

Here we are on the bus




We had to sprint to get to our fastpasses on time. After FEA we started our egg hunt with the maps we had purchased a couple days before. We found Norway's and moved on to China. We browsed through China for a little while, stopping at the kidcot stop and buying some souvenirs for the kiddos back home. Then we found the egg and went on to the African outpost.

The egg in Africa was really easy, we spotted it on our way by and kept moving to Germany. It was Flower and Garden festival while we were there so we stopped at a plant vendor to pick out a plant for Liam's grandparents. They were helping DH hold down the fort back home so that was our way of saying thank you. After we got the plant I went to the F&G booth in Germany to sample what they had to offer. I choose Potato Pancake with Caramelized Ham, Onions and Herb Sour Cream and Warm Cheese Strudel with Mixed Berries. Both of them were to die for!!!

While Liam and I enjoyed that snack, Becky and Killian stopped at the regular Germany stand and got a pretzel and apple strudel. Then we found a bench and took a break. I feel like this was the most crowded day that we experienced this trip and probably the hottest too so that bench felt like heaven.

We found the eggs in Germany and Italy and then made our way to America. We were standing looking a menu when these cast members go by in a golf cart. I'm not sure if they were coming from a show but they were all dressed up and being silly. They even watered Becky and me because of our ears. We found the egg in America and then made our way to Japan.



At the kidcot stop in Japan, Killian made the cast member a origami Yoda and she gave him a crane, it was a great interaction. On the way out I grabbed some squid to take back home. DH loves weird food.

It was not a hit.

We found the egg and then grabbed some Frushi at the Flower and Garden booth. The frushi was a big hit.

Up next: More Epcot




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[MommaoffherRocker]

More Epcot

After Japan we decided to split up. Liam still wasn't feeling well and the only thing he wanted to eat was fish and chips in the United Kingdom. So Becky and Killian headed into Morocco and Liam and I went in search of fish and chips.

Before getting lunch we decided to find the eggs in Morocco and France first so we wouldn't have to backtrack. Once we were in the United Kingdom we got an order of fish and chips to split. The quick service seating was next to the water in the shade so it was the perfect place to relax for a bit. The fish was good as always and plenty to split. The chips on the hand were not a shareable size so I went back for more and I also added on a Victoria Sponge Cake. The cake was delicious!!

A little while later Becky and Killian joined us. We were sitting there enjoying the shade and talking when we heard a chorus of quacks. I was thinking that's a strange noise and then from the corner of my eye I see three ducks approach in the garden next to us.



They sat there "singing" to us for a minute and then when Becky tried to show her DH on Skype they immediately stopped. It was hilarious and felt like something that could only happen at Disney

Then we headed to meet Alice. She was funny and wanted to know what we were going to name the plant we were giving to Liam's grandparents.



I was a little disappointed she didn't say anything about our ears

We made sure to find the egg in the UK before heading to Canada. Canada proved to be the hardest country to find the egg. I think it was because we didn't want to walk much by that point. But we found it and took a picture with the hanging baskets because our flower ears matched perfectly.



It was finally time to turn in our egg maps and get our prize.



The prize was an Easter egg. Killian chose a Mickey egg (he is holding it in the picture above) and Liam chose a Dory one.

Since we had gotten up at 3am we were so tired by this point. So we decided to head back to the room. Before leaving we got a couple pictures in front of Spaceship Earth.


Then we hopped the bus back to CBR.

Back at the room we relaxed in front of the TV for a bit. Killian and Becky also went to the quiet pool for a little while. Around dinner time we grabbed a pizza from the QS restaurant and brought it back to the room before crashing for the night.

Up Next: Hooray for Hollywood!

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[rteetz]

I wonder how many medals were affected by something like that. I am sure that is frustrating for both runners and CMs/runners relations. Interesting that you can pick up everything after the races at the expo.

Looks like you had a great day at Epcot though. Love the hats!