(Final 8/12)The WILDEST Ride in the Wilderness!" Princess Half Marathon TR/Feb.2014

[ZellyB]

Excellent update yet again. And, stellar control on avoiding use of the Smilies.

I cannot believe you rode 14 times in a row. I love coasters and can ride them repeatedly, but I'm not sure I could have managed 14.

I love all your pictures as usual. You've now got me thinking about trying to book the Wishes dessert party on our next trip. Hmmm....

 

[Tink-erin-belle]

I didn’t forget about you, Karen! I’m reading along, and I hope to comment soon! I’m only on page 25, but it looks like you are having a wonderful trip, so far!

 

[annmarieda]

I am not sure how I missed your update... but WOW what an update!!

So I could finish off the WHOLE night if I can do this post with not-a-single-smiley. I have exactly 25 photos, so I won't be able to use ANY. I'm not sure I can do it! (see, here I would have put the EEK face)

I am prone to using them too. It is VERY hard to have pictures and add any sort of substance for me because I am always having to go back and take out those smilies.

and here the laughing face. Maybe I'll just put LOL every time I'm joking so you'll know. I have fear-of-misunderstading-if-i-don't-use-smilies!

I think that is why I do it too... that fear. Course, I KNOW I can be misunderstood/not communicate well so I definitely need those smiles.

After that the girls wanted to ride Space Mtn. I was weary because we didn't have a ton of time and didn't have a FP either...it was WALK ON! WOOT! Thank you rain! I ended up in front and screamed my head off while the girls laughed at me. When we got off, we exited and as we walked out of the building, Savannah realized she had left her minnie ears in the pocket on the ride. WHAT?!?!?

That is just a sickening feeling when you leave something on a ride.

Savannah was bummed, but only for a second because the CM pulled out a receipt booklet and told us to go to the nearest store and just show it to them, they would give her more! Ah, I love Disney. (definitely would have put some sort of smiley here)

So glad she got a replacement!

Boy I was never so glad to have picked this night for the Dessert Party! It was raining and we were sitting under cover with a glorious view of the castle.

While I am not a huge fan of the desserts they serve at the party, I do really think that the castle view makes up for it! I wonder if it will be affected now with the refurb'd rose garden? Or more specifically if that will be just as good a spot.

We had been eating sweets all week, but mustered up the courage to fill our plates and at least make an attempt to stuff our faces with goodies!

So good of you to be able to find the courage.

It was fun, just like our first time, to try out a bunch of different desserts and sit watching the castle. There's nothing that really blows me away with the desserts, but that's not really why we like it. If you go with lower expectations, you'll enjoy it more.

I think that I may have needed your advice BEFORE I did it. I know I probably had pretty high expectations.

The fireworks shots are nothing to write home about either. It was RAINING, so there was tons of smoke, it was really bizarre and I also had no where to steady my camera since it was raining and the railing was wet. It was so awesome to watch it from undercover though and the smoke made a really eerie look that was fun. The girls loved it.

Oh my! Seriously? "nothing to write home about"? If even one of those was a picture I had taken I would think I had done an excellent job. Your pics are amazing!

We could have ridden more but we had a date with the WILDEST RIDE IN THE WILDERNESS!!!!!! and this night a trip report name was born. (cue parting clouds and angels singing...except the clouds didn't part and it kept raining) LOL (it's really killing me. I'm a smiley junkie! I don't know how I can finish without using them!!!!)

SO. Here we were, walking on to Big Thunder. Ponchos and all.

and there we stayed.


and stayed...


and stayed...

BTMRR is my favorite favorite ride. I try to ride it as many times as possible when I am in Disney. I have had the pleasure of staying on it... but never for FOURTEEN TIMES!!! I can't even imagine! That is awesome! I bet you were just giddy by the end. Looking at your photos after with Savannah having her finger count challenge... I kinda think that you most definitely were all giddy.

I have been to WDW a few times in Jan/Feb and it's never been cold enough that we needed gloves. I think we just got lucky! I'm hoping for more of the same this upcoming February!

2009 and 2010 were cold...VERY cold. The gloves I wore didn't even keep my fingers warm. I remember specifically in 09 that the night time temps were going below freezing. I think one of these was the year that affected the races. If I were to bet... something tells me that January this year in FL will be on the cold side. I mean isn't there something going on causing lower than normal temps in that part of the country while at the same time causing places like where I live to have higher than normal?

 

[Belle_princess]

Hi! I'm Kristin. I've been lurking for a bit. This morning, I read your posts about the race, and I was nearly late to work trying to see if you finished or not! I'm so glad you finished! I haven't finished reading, but I wanted to say how inspiring your race recap was. I'm not a runner, and after reading your race recap, I felt that I, too, might be able to try the PHM if I trained. Thanks for the great story. I look forward to reading the rest of your TR!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Excellent update yet again. And, stellar control on avoiding use of the Smilies.

I cannot believe you rode 14 times in a row. I love coasters and can ride them repeatedly, but I'm not sure I could have managed 14.

I love all your pictures as usual. You've now got me thinking about trying to book the Wishes dessert party on our next trip. Hmmm....

Thanks! We've done it twice and enjoyed it. I don't know that I would do it every single trip, but Savannah liked it enough that she requested it again!

I didn’t forget about you, Karen! I’m reading along, and I hope to comment soon! I’m only on page 25, but it looks like you are having a wonderful trip, so far!

No worries Erin! I'm slammed with work and can't keep up at all around here lately!

I am not sure how I missed your update... but WOW what an update!!





I am prone to using them too. It is VERY hard to have pictures and add any sort of substance for me because I am always having to go back and take out those smilies.

I'm apparently incapable of posting without them!


I think that is why I do it too... that fear. Course, I KNOW I can be misunderstood/not communicate well so I definitely need those smiles.



That is just a sickening feeling when you leave something on a ride.

I don't think it's ever happened to us before, so it was pretty cool that we got some pixie dust!



So glad she got a replacement!



While I am not a huge fan of the desserts they serve at the party, I do really think that the castle view makes up for it! I wonder if it will be affected now with the refurb'd rose garden? Or more specifically if that will be just as good a spot.

I'm not sure, I've tried to look at pics of the hub refurb, but it's a bit of a mess and I can't tell what it will look like!

So good of you to be able to find the courage.




I think that I may have needed your advice BEFORE I did it. I know I probably had pretty high expectations.

We were REALLY pleased with sitting outside of the rain, so that overrode any issues we had with lackluster desserts!



Oh my! Seriously? "nothing to write home about"? If even one of those was a picture I had taken I would think I had done an excellent job. Your pics are amazing!

I'm a bit of a perfectionist with my shots, especially at WDW.

BTMRR is my favorite favorite ride. I try to ride it as many times as possible when I am in Disney. I have had the pleasure of staying on it... but never for FOURTEEN TIMES!!! I can't even imagine! That is awesome! I bet you were just giddy by the end. Looking at your photos after with Savannah having her finger count challenge... I kinda think that you most definitely were all giddy.


We were. We were delirious too and freezing cold. It was a blast!


2009 and 2010 were cold...VERY cold. The gloves I wore didn't even keep my fingers warm. I remember specifically in 09 that the night time temps were going below freezing. I think one of these was the year that affected the races. If I were to bet... something tells me that January this year in FL will be on the cold side. I mean isn't there something going on causing lower than normal temps in that part of the country while at the same time causing places like where I live to have higher than normal?

I'm hoping for more good mojo with the weather next year! I think either way it's better than home in February, so I'm good if there's a bit of sunshine and no snow!

Hi! I'm Kristin. I've been lurking for a bit. This morning, I read your posts about the race, and I was nearly late to work trying to see if you finished or not! I'm so glad you finished! I haven't finished reading, but I wanted to say how inspiring your race recap was. I'm not a runner, and after reading your race recap, I felt that I, too, might be able to try the PHM if I trained. Thanks for the great story. I look forward to reading the rest of your TR!

Hi Kristin! I'm glad you came out of lurkdom!! I'm so glad you enjoyed my race recaps! All you have to do is walk out the door and run and you will be a runner too! Running has had such an amazing affect on my life. I hope you consider the PHM, it was life altering for me.

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

I'm totally procrastinating the last day. I don't want it to be over!

 

[Victoriasmom98]

My head has an additional couple of grey hairs just waiting for another post......

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

The beginning of the end! Our last day. I honestly cannot believe it's taken me this long, I'm used to churning out TR's in a few weeks time, so this has been a bit different! It will take quite a few updates for our last day as we had an afternoon flight this trip (last trip we had to wake up at 4am to go to the airport and were NOT going to do that again!) so we were able to sneak in a little more park time on our last day.

I woke to a cold and drizzly morning. The high was only going to be in the 60s! We decided this was for the best, it was just practice for going home. I got the girls up at some point and we finished packing up. We called bell services and went down to check our bags and have them hold our carryons until later in the day. Then we were off on the MK bus but not headed to MK just yet! When we got there, we hopped on the monorail and headed to Grand Floridian for breakfast!

This took a bit longer than I expected, there were a LOT of people and we had to loop all the way around, GF being the last stop. No matter, I'm an earlybird, so we still arrived early and headed to 1900 Park Fare.

The system of getting in was a bit wonky, IMO. They take your name and give you a buzzer thingie. Then when they call you, they just take your picture and then you have to wait again. Naturally they want you to pay 35$ for said picture. Uh, no.

I think I was just hungry. Don't mess with my coffee/food consumption in the morning or you get a grump.

The lobby was pretty and the 2nd wait was short. I barely had time to snap a few shots.

I wish I had a wider angle lens.

We were called and escorted in, it was busy! I had scheduled this meal because Alice is Eleanor's favorite (or WAS...you will see later who her new favorite is now!) and wanted to make sure she got her pic with Alice. Little did I know we were going to have that AMAZING interaction on the first morning near the teacups. We could have passed on this meal for quite a few reasons.

The food was good, I finally got to try the strawberry soup and I liked it! The characters were coming around and I realized quickly that this was going to be a little cramped and awkward like Tusker House had been. They cram those tables so close that unless you have a wide angle lens, it's hard to get the RUSHED photos you are taking. I'm also a flash-snob. I really HATE using a flash, it ruins the shot, so inside it's a bit dark to get the shot I want. In any case, the characters came through and I got the best shots I could at the time.

The girls took a pic of me with MP to send to Rey. He likes MP.

Alice came and man was I disappointed with my photos. Ugh.

Savannah's snapback hat brought her a bit of attention, a teenage boy came over and asked her where she got it (much giggling ensued after he walked off!) and Tigger Fistbumped her when he walked up!

I finally gave up and used my flash.

It's pretty bad lighting if the flash shot ends up looking better than the non-flash shots. Grph.

Meh. It was ok. The girls were not super impressed with the character interaction and I was unhappy with my pics, but at least our belly's were full and we were ready for MK! I think we will be passing on character meals in the future, I find the interaction in the parks with characters better. (and there is more to come on that!)

We hopped on the monorail and headed to Magic Kingdom for our last 3 hours of magic.

 

[Trentmom]

Love Mary Poppins. My hubby has a tattoo of her silhoutte.

Nice pics

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Love Mary Poppins. My hubby has a tattoo of her silhoutte.

Nice pics

Well that makes me feel much better about my husband liking her so much!

 

[Tinker326]

I think I agree with you on the character meals. Too much money for too little interaction.

The only one I might consider trying again is Ohana.

The pictures are great though... and funny about Rey & MP. Kurt's main girl is Jasmine. I think it's because she's scantily clad. He always jokes about getting in line to get a picture with her & I always say 'you know she just thinks you're a creepy dude by doing that'.

 

[ZellyB]

Love your shots!! I also think the rush for photos at the character meals is not great. You don't get to enjoy the characters and you don't get to enjoy the meal. Not great on either count.

We are going to do Crystal Palace breakfast one morning on our next trip (partly because I love getting into MK before it opens), but other than that, no character dining for us.

 

[stacy~**]

Oh no, not the last day!

I tend to agree with your character dining views....too much money for too little interaction (and typically sub-par food with the exception of Tusker House!). BUT that somehow doesn't stop me from booking at least one or two a trip!

Yay for strawberry soup!

Looking forward to hearing what you are able to squeeze in in your last few hours!

 

[annmarieda]

Last days are always so very very sad!

I love 1900 PF for breakfast, but you are so right...the characters come around and everything is so crammed.

Your pics... bad pics are still better than what I do.

 

[Tink-erin-belle]

I’m loving your TR! The pictures are wonderful, as usual! The Olaf drawing was so cute! The brownie sundae looked delicious! Walking to EPCOT must have been awesome! I’m sorry to hear about how much pain you were in as you walked around, though! That is awesome that you and the girls got to ride Big Thunder Mountain so many times in a row! It seems like you guys had a fantastic day! I’m glad you all got a chance to go to 1900 Park Fare. It seems like you got to see quite a few characters. Too bad the interaction wasn’t that great, though. I can’t wait to see what you all did for your last few hours at the park!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

I think I agree with you on the character meals. Too much money for too little interaction.

The only one I might consider trying again is Ohana.

The pictures are great though... and funny about Rey & MP. Kurt's main girl is Jasmine. I think it's because she's scantily clad. He always jokes about getting in line to get a picture with her & I always say 'you know she just thinks you're a creepy dude by doing that'.

Uh yeah, I think Rey likes Poppins b/c of the corset.

Ohana breakfast was awesome, we did that in 2012 and enjoyed it. I love Crystal Palace breakfast as well. The rest I'm going to pass on from now on I think!

Love your shots!! I also think the rush for photos at the character meals is not great. You don't get to enjoy the characters and you don't get to enjoy the meal. Not great on either count.

We are going to do Crystal Palace breakfast one morning on our next trip (partly because I love getting into MK before it opens), but other than that, no character dining for us.

We LOVE CP breakfast and have to do it EVERY trip! Rey was actually shocked that I'm not planning it for the Princess Half trip because it's a tradition of ours...but I'm going without the family, so I figured I could skip it this time.

Oh no, not the last day!

I tend to agree with your character dining views....too much money for too little interaction (and typically sub-par food with the exception of Tusker House!). BUT that somehow doesn't stop me from booking at least one or two a trip!

Yay for strawberry soup!

Looking forward to hearing what you are able to squeeze in in your last few hours!

I am just dragging it out, I need to finish. It's like I just can't bear to wrap up the trip!

Last days are always so very very sad!

I love 1900 PF for breakfast, but you are so right...the characters come around and everything is so crammed.

Your pics... bad pics are still better than what I do.

Well thanks! Yeah, it was nice to do PF once, but I don't think we would do it again. We prefer CP breakfast in the park and will probably stick to that in the future!

I’m loving your TR! The pictures are wonderful, as usual! The Olaf drawing was so cute! The brownie sundae looked delicious! Walking to EPCOT must have been awesome! I’m sorry to hear about how much pain you were in as you walked around, though! That is awesome that you and the girls got to ride Big Thunder Mountain so many times in a row! It seems like you guys had a fantastic day! I’m glad you all got a chance to go to 1900 Park Fare. It seems like you got to see quite a few characters. Too bad the interaction wasn’t that great, though. I can’t wait to see what you all did for your last few hours at the park!

Thanks Erin! I'm ready to wrap this TR up, so I'm going to try and get it done here!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

I so wish I could just finish the whole TR with this post, but as always, I have too many photos.

We had full bellies and were ready for just a few more hours of magic at MK before we had to head home. It was around 11am when we got to MK and I had to try and get one last picture with my medal, naturally.

We had a FP for SpaceMtn, so we headed there first.

It was a bit dreary and cool, but that always makes for different photos. We took the "secret" back path from Tomorrowland into Fantasyland.

The train passed by and I got a wave.

I have no idea what we were really doing at this point, the photos seem like we were just moseying along, I think we were waiting for our next FP to come up.

We did Small World and then Philharmagic

I know, it feels like just going through the motions, right? I think that's just because I'm recapping. I wish there were something witty or funny that I could share with you (since I'm always so entertaining. ) We were enjoying ourselves but you know how that last few hours feel.

It was time for our next FP, Haunted Mansion. I LOVE HM, but it's the bane of my photographic existence. I have spent hours lamenting over camera settings and would just like ONE perfect wide-angle shot of the ballroom/dining area with the ghosts dancing. Taking photos in the dark with no flash is an art, and I caught a few shots, but there are always more that I wish I could get! Don't even get me started on Peter Pan, that ride is even worse when it comes to trying to get just the right shots.

see me???

Up next, the last update! ...stalking instead of riding... spending our last hour in a line. TOTALLY.WORTH.IT!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

So, as I start this last update, I have to backtrack briefly...

as we were getting a drink before going on It's A Small World, Peter Pan appeared near the bathrooms over near Pinocchio's? He just kind of appeared and was running up to people and as fast as he appeared, he was gone.

The girls were BESIDE themselves?!?! I do happen to understand teenage girls pretty well, I mean, I was JUST a teenager not that long ago. Maybe it was the tights or the ginger hair, but they were a bit mesmerized and spent the next hour talking about it as we went to IASW and HM.

After HM we had our last FP for Jungle Cruise, after HM, and headed over there. We were early again. I'm sure you are terribly surprised that I show up early to my FP's.

As we were sitting there, we talked about how we only had an hour left in the park. They were STILL talking about Peter Pan. I suggested we ditch Jungle Cruise and go find him, so off we went!

Now, I'm sure you will be surprised to know that I had no idea where the M&G for PP is. We headed back over to Fantasyland where we had seen him before in hopes that we could spot him again. I'm not sure if it was last day magic, but we weren't there 2 minutes and out comes Peter AND Wendy and he picked her up and spun her around!!! Can you say perfect photo opportunity for Karen???

The girls were BESIDE themselves, it was cute. Peter put Wendy down, took her hand, and headed towards PP. We had no idea where they were going at the time and took off after them. We must have looked like lunatics running after them. Or stalkers.

Around the corner and right into the M&G area, which I apparently never noticed, right next to PP.

As we got in line, there was a CM there and he told us it would be about 45 minutes...and then after two people got behind us, he shut the line down! Magical timing for sure, he was telling people that this line was full and they could come back for the 2:30 line in an hour or so. Shew!

So what did we do the last hour of our park time? We stood in line for Peter Pan.

TOTALLY.WORTH.IT.

It was the slowest and longest line I think I've ever waited in for a character, they really talked to each person and spent a lot of time with them. The girls were so excited, I'm sure you won't be surprised that they had no interest in Wendy, just Peter.

Finally it was our turn, I was getting nervous as it was VERY near our time to need to leave for DME!

They tried to get them to sign their boarding passes,(cause they were going to FLY!!!) but I think Peter thought it might mess them up in some way, so they just signed some paper they had on the side. I had nothing, not even a pen, because we hadn't planned on this. Luckily someone in line let us borrow their pen (while their kid griped and whined about it the whole time...apparently they didn't want to share. oops.)

This was the best character interaction of the week and when I realized that meeting characters in the park was way better than at a meal...and that teenage girls do better with face characters. Who knew??? Again, it might have been the tights. Eleanor even had a Peter Pan Birthday party theme later this year after the trip. Her new favorite character.

When we were finished, it was time to head out of the park for the last time. It looks a little sad, doesn't it? I just had the settings on my camera wrong...but it worked!

2:10...we were supposed to be at the BCV DME bus at 3pm. Looks like we have plenty of time...

famous last words. ahem.

I took ONE last shot. When I got home, I thought it was fitting. It was a shot of where we ran through into Main Street during the half marathon.

I didn't realize it would be the last shot. We got to the bus stop and waited. and waited. and started to freak out. and waited some more.

THIRTY MINUTES later a bus arrived. At this point I was pretty certain we would miss the DME. I guess I was so stressed, I didn't take anymore pictures (or I didn't have time). When we pulled up to BCV's, we could see the ME bus sitting there and people already on it. We RAN! I ran up to the podium to ask if they could get our carryon stuff that we had stored for the day and our luggage. I thought for sure we weren't going to make it, but they were really fast and we were the last people on the bus. We sat down and basically took off for the airport. As we got off DME, I told the girls my throat was scratchy...they both said they had sore throats as well. At least we waited until the very last moment to get sick, right?!? I think our cold & wet night riding Big Thunder 14 times finally caught up with us. We were all sick for over a week once we got home!

We ate at the airport, I met an old friend that happened to be coming in to have a Make-a-Wish trip with her daughters briefly, and we boarded and headed home. The flight home was uneventful and the 1hr 45min drive home was long. I was pretty ill by the time we got home, but Rey handed me a bowl of homemade squash soup as I walked in the door, that was a nice way to end our long day!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Random final thoughts in no logical order!

-Pop is ALWAYS home to us, it was fun to try BCV but doing a split stay can be hard when you have to back up two teenage girls. LOL

-Beach Club Villas are nice, the only really amazing thing about them (and it's AH-MAY-ZING) is that walk to Epcot. Have I mentioned how much I loved it???

-Watch those swinging chairs in the Animation room or you'll end up on your a$$!

-I.LOVE.ROPE.DROP. ALWAYS do RD. RD is the best. No, really. Go. Go to rope drop.

-Character interactions were best in the park and mediocre at best at meals. Stick to the park interactions!

-There's no sleeping at Disney, even after 13.1 miles and 23 HOURS!

-ALWAYS wear a bra at WDW. Tank tops are not your friend. I'll spare you another picture.

-Rain and cold make for multiple-crazy-insane riding of Big Thunder, amazing memories, trip report names, and sickness eventually. This next photo is STILL a laughing matter and topic of conversation 6 months later...FOURTEEN rides. Savannah could not wrap her brain around putting up 7 fingers while Eleanor did the same. She kept putting up 4 and 4...so Eleanor did 6! Ah, good times!

-Penny machines, guys in tights, Japanese candy and anything British are favorites for teen girls.

-Running my first half marathon AND having a girls trip that was Eleanor's first time at Disney was challenging at times but totally worth it! We all had a wonderful trip and still talk about it all the time. We are headed back for one day in February when we are at Playlist Live in Orlando because we couldn't imagine being there and not at least spending a day at Magic Kingdom. I'm excited for a whirlwind day with the girls, maybe I should hope for rain and cold??

-Disney fowl are special and revered by all.

-Meeting up and running with blogger/runner friends was awsome. I cannot wait to spend time with the women I am going to meet up with and room with (TWEEDLE!!!!) in 2015. There's just something special about the camaraderie that running brings...and costumes...and cupcakes...and booze...

and dancing by the pool...

-I accomplished something I had trained and worked SO hard for. There is not another place on earth that I can imagine doing this. Running my first half at Disney was the perfect marriage to two things that I love. It was everything I dreamed it would be and I cannot wait to do it again!

It was a magical trip!!

If you aren't already, you can join my Pre-Trip Report! I have two trips to Orlando coming up. February 5th-9th we are going to Orlando for Playlist Live and doing one whirlwind day at Magic Kingdom. Then on Feb. 19th-23rd, I'm heading to WDW on my own to meet up with friends and run the Glass Slipper Challenge!!! We're All MAD here! SPAZZ hands, cupcakes, booze, and running...GSC Feb. 2015 PTR

 

[annmarieda]

I love the picture of you with your medal. So cool! Ya know, I don't know that I have one of me with any of my medals in front of the castle (or in front of ToT for that race) I a few weeks, I will be sure to remedy that and start a new tradition. I am a copy cat at my core.

Your last day looks on the cool side. Lots of sweatshirts and jackets. At least it wasn't pouring rain.

Love your haunted mansion pics!

Peter Pan m&g sounds like it was indeed worth it! How fun!! And of course you have some great pictures!!!

Cutting it that close to DME time is so stressful. I have done that more times than I care to admit. I always feel like an hour should be ample...sadly it isn't always. Last fall... it took me an hour to get from main street to kidani village. Luckily, I had given myself a bit of wiggle room and wasn't running for DME.

Your final thoughts...

I think it is ok to have more than one favorite resort. One per category. Pop is mine for value for sure!

I agree that the walk to Epcot from the Epcot area resorts is amazing!

I think you are not the first or will be the last to realize that about the swinging chairs. Makes me wonder why they have them when without fail someone in each class falls.

RD is important to avoid crowds. I know this... but somehow I always miss rd. Don't get me wrong I get there early...but rarely at RD and it has been FOREVER since I have seen the opening ceremony in MK. I will have to be more diligent and follow your advice... RD...must hit RD!

I rarely stop for characters in the park. If I really think about it, they are much better interactions aren't they. Hmm... I may need to approach this differently too.

Ok, so you and the no sleeping after the half!!! I still think that you were crazy! Not that I sleep mid day but I have to make it an early night. Must be cause I am older than you

I totally forgot about your bra "mishap" I will be sure to learn from your lesson

I am still so impressed with the number of times you rode on BTMRR! I think I would be too giddy about it and probably would not hold up the right number of fingers too.

Isn't it great that Disney can have something for everyone? Toddler to Teen... or even older

I am with you on doing your first half in Disney. Personally, I have only done my long races in Disney... not because I don't want them to be challenging. I still push myself and challenge myself with them. However there is just something special about a long race put on by Disney that I just love.

My kids always are fascinated by any wildlife they come across in disney. I have had many down moments were the thought of "I paid how much for a park ticket and we are watching the ducks" has come to mind. So yes... disney ducks are to be revered by all.

Some of my favorite moments (or trips) have been ones that I have had with people I have met here on dis. I totally agree! It is very special.