runDisney Mommy guilt... trips to Disney without my kids...

Okay let me explain... rewind to December of 2011... we had a glorious family trip to Disneyland.  We had saved for 2 1/2 years!  We took our oldest niece (who is in her 20s) along with us so we wouldn't kill each other while in the midst of the magic.  We had two rooms at our perfect off property hotel!   It was a fantastic, magical, and unforgettable trip!   

 

The kids, at that time were 7, 5, and 3... perfect for the magic!  The saddest part of the whole trip was waiting for the shuttle bus at the end of the whole thing and looking at my kids faces as they watched other families scurrying for the turnstiles and we... we were on our way home.  

 Waiting for the shuttle bus on Harbor Blvd... to take us to the airport... sniff sniff.

We have 3 kids... and basically a one income household.  It took some amazing creativity to save up for this trip.  Especially considering what we had been through financially in the 3 years prior to this trip.  (long story)  So it was amazing that we made it there at all!  We headed home with fireworks  sparkles in our eyes to start saving up again!

This is our bank that sits on the bar in our kitchen!  Every piece of spare change goes in it!

Fast forward now to the Spring of 2012... I made a big change in my life and started running to get in shape and lose some weight.  I had discovered in the Fall of 2011 this little thing called runDisney!  My main motivation to keep running and do more races was the chance to possibly go to Disneyland and run in the Tinkerbell Half Marathon.  I hadn't given it a ton of thought as to whether we would bring the kids or not when I finally went.  In the summer of 2012 the registration opened for the 2013 race and I registered.  About a week later after I had talked to my husband about a hundred times about how excited I was... I went back to the runDisney web site and registered my husband and myself the Neverland 5K as well.  I couldn't imagine going and not experiencing EVERYTHING the weekend had to offer us!  We decided that it would be too much in so many ways to try and make this a family trip.  So we decided we were going but the kids were not.  

I didn't feel too badly about this at first... I mean don't get me wrong... I would LOVE to take my kids to Disneyland as often as possible but realistically we live north of Seattle... this = $$$ folks.  Plane fare, hotel, FOOD, etc... it adds up people!  We knew that with the two of us going alone... we could cut some corners and get by fairly cheaply (for Disney standards).  We stayed off property... we didn't eat 3 squares a day... that alone saved us a ton!

  
The trip was amazing but so many times during the trip I caught myself being so grateful they weren't with us... it was crowded... so crowded in the Parks.  Especially the days following the race.  They would have driven us nuts and been somewhat miserable... it was HOT for January... like in the 80s during the day.  As adults we were LOVING this... but my poor little children who are used to the Seattle January weather would have been overheating. (How am I doing making up reasons for feeling better they weren't there?)  On the other hand there were MANY moments that I wished they WERE there.  That first ride on Radiator Springs Racers... oh my babies are going to LOVE this I thought!  (I almost cried on the ride imagining their little eyes dancing with the amazement).   

 

Single Rider line for Radiator Springs Racers

Seeing Carsland light up at dusk... oh I thought... they are going to LOVE this!   I could go on and on with moments we had that were so much fun that I wished they were all with us!  Having a kid free 5 days in the middle of the magic though was on the flip side amazing!  We wore out the "single rider" option on many attractions... something we wouldn't have been able to do as much if the kids had been with us.  We relived a bit of our Disneyland honeymoon (13 years ago) and ate at the Blue Bayou... and a big splurge we ate at Carthay Circle at DCA the night before we came home.  

Blue Bayou

Oh ... but constantly that guilt hovered in the background.  Not that I took a vacation without children... I think couples with children NEED to do that from time to time... but that we went to Disneyland without them.  I KNOW we are not the only ones out there to do this!  In my runDisney social media connections I have "met" many who travel solo to the parks... sans kids I mean.

So... here I am again... the Fall is looming. (I dislike the Fall... because Winter is after that and I really dislike Winters in Seattle)  When we returned last January from our amazing Racecation to Disneyland... my husband told me he wanted me to register for Tinkerbell 2014.  Really?  He knew it was important for me that I keep that goal out in front of me and have something to work towards.  It took me about a half of a second to say "OKAY!"  But my next thought was... oh no... I can't go AGAIN without the kids?  Can I?  Is that fair to them... see Carsland AGAIN when they haven't even been once.  (The sad thing is my youngest son who is now 5 thinks he has been to Carsland because we watch the Carsland attractions on youtube a lot) Once again - we live north of Seattle... my oldest son (who is now 9) has been to Disneyland 3 times in his short 9 years.  

 

My oldest at 21 months with some friends... (circa Dec 2005)

My oldest at 3 yrs old and now sister who was 15 mos at the time... (circa July 2007) 

My oldest at 7 yrs old, daughter now 5, and youngest son 3 yrs old (circa Dec 2011) 

MANY of our Northwest friends think this is quite excessive!  They are shocked when they learn this and can't believe it really.  Are you kidding me?  I was born in Anaheim after all... I can't and wouldn't Disney deprive my own children.  I will take them at every opportunity!

BUT... here I am planning another Disneyland trip without them.  This time my husband is going to stay home in Washington with the kids and I am going with a group of other moms who are also participating in the Tinkerbell Half Marathon weekend.  (all of them leaving children at home too) I am sad the kids aren't going... but this isn't the right trip to take them.  Money wise at least... 

Crowds will be thick... we can't afford an entire family trip at this point... If we lived closer to Southern California it would make more sense... we would go more often and it wouldn't such a big deal to go once or even twice sans the kids.   So I deal with the Mommy guilt again... we WILL go again as a family... we are saving for it.  

Hoping for the Spring of 2015... seems like an eternity from now.

If you have children do you do "fun" vacations without them?  

If you have children and do runDisney races... do you go solo or make the race weekends a family affair?

Chime in if you go solo and leave your kiddos at home... I need to know I am not the only one doing this... and living with a bit of guilt!

 

I am a runner...

I ran 9.08 miles yesterday - I am a runner.  Really?  A year ago I wouldn't have laughed at you had you told me that I would be running for 2 hours straight but I would have had a hard time believing that would be a true statement about myself and that it would be something that I could do!    I have had this goal in my head that I wanted to run a 1/2 marathon "someday" (maybe more than 1).   BUT - as far back as I can remember I have been told that I am not good at running,  I am not fast, and that I am not athletic.  So what do you do... you believe it.

 

Lets start before the running...four and a half years ago (2008) I had my 3rd baby... I gained A LOT of weight... because I could.  I knew he was my last baby (a surprise at 41)... we had trouble conceiveing the first 2 times and had paid lots of dollars to a fertility clinic to assist us in getting pregnant the first 2 times.   After my Luke was born I was miserable and needed to drop some weight.  I turned to Weight Watchers.  I had watched a few friends have GREAT success with WW.  I am a pretty focused person and if you put a goal in front of me that I believe in... get out of the way!   Controlling my diet and without much exersize  I was successful and dropped almost 70 pounds.  I reached my goal weight with in a little over a year and felt pretty awesome.  That lasted about 2 months and then I slowly started to put some of that weight back on.  I wasn't nursing my baby anymore and I hadn't really changed my major habits.  I knew that the answer was that I had to put some kind of exersize into my routine.  I dreaded it... I had no idea where to begin.  I had just sold my treadmill when I was pregnant and "nesting"... it took up too much room and drove me nuts.   I had 3 little kids and a crazy schedule.  How was I going to fit anything else into my routine?

Then sometime late in the summer of 2011 I saw this photo in a publication... 

I looked at this photo for a long time the first time I saw it... I have been a Disney addict since I was young.  I was born in Anaheim afterall - it was fate.  I love Disneyland and every single thing about it.  When I saw this photo and read the information about the Inaugural Tinkerbell 1/2 Marathon I wondered if that was something I could do.   Kudos to runDisney for this photo... I imagined myself running through the castle MANY times... not to mention also imagined that my legs would look just like this girl.  

I figured if you are going to run a 1/2 marathon... then Disney was the place to do it.  I looked up the runDisney website and realized I was too late... there was no way I could pull my training and the finances together to make the 2012 Tinkerbell a reality.  But I didn't forget about it. 

Then 2012 hit and into the spring and I decided... 2013 Tinkerbell was mine!  I begged my husband to be able to try.  So in the Spring of 2012 I laced up my shoes and went out for my 1st run.  I thought I would die... I don't think I went farther than a couple of miles that first day and I walked a lot of it.  As I dug a little deeper on the runDisney site I found Jeff Galloway and read about his run/walk methods.  THIS sounded doable.  So I bought myself a Gymboss intreval timer and off I went.  I decided to sign up for some local races.  Many of my cyber running friends said this would help me stay motivated and assist in my training.  So I did some local races.   We also went on Craig's List and found a used treadmill... I have 3 young kids... I knew I would end up on the treadmill a lot of the time.  That was okay with me... it is what it is.  I would also strongly recommend any one interested in serious walking or running to go to a good running store and get fitted for shoes... I did.  I went to Fairhaven Runners in Bellingham, WA.  They were awesome and fitted me with some good shoes.

 

This is me at the Fairhaven 15K in Bellingham, WA - Yes a 15K was my first REAL race.  I figured - if you are gonna dive in you might as well dive deep!  I finished in 1 hour and 59 min!  My time was a little disappointing and I thought I would die the last 2 miles... but I made it.  I finished!

Then I did another race - this time a 10K in a nearby town - Arlington - 1 hour and 14 mins... and my kids got to see me finish.  It rained really hard at the beginning of this race and it really affected the turn out... only about 20 people did the 10K... I was the LAST 10K finisher... but I still won 3rd place in my age division!  I wore my runDisney shirt that I had ordered to motivate me and remind me what my goal was!  I met a lady who had run the Wine and Dine 1/2 Marathon at Disney World.   She told me good luck and said that the Disney races would be a lifetime memory. 

 

I was feeling more confident and was losing some weight!  All big bonuses for me!

 

Then I did some more races...

 

 

 

This is me and my younger sister Heather at the Poulsbo 10K in Poulsbo, WA on October 14th, 2012. This was the first time I ran with someone else.  My time  - 1 hour 15 min and 16 seconds.  I felt great even if my sister ditched me at the end.

 

On December 8th, 2012 I actually ran a 5K at 8am (my time for the 5K was 39 minutes) and then went to a neighboring town and ran a 10K (1 hour and 17 min) all in the same day.  I had added a few minutes to my 10K time but hey I woke up and ran a 5K in the morning before it so that is my excuse for adding the few minutes.  CRAZY woman! (no photos from that day)

 

In the midst of all of this training and racing... I lost about 25 pounds of the weight I had gained back after Weight Watchers.  I was feeling so much better!

 

Then my BIG goal was right around the corner!  I couldn't believe it!  The Tinkerbell Half Marathon 2013 and I was so excited!  My husband and I planned the trip and decided earlier that the kids would not be coming this time.  We had just taken them in December of 2011 and finances just would allow for them to be there this time.  It promised to be really busy at the parks anyway - besides the Race Weekend it was also President's Day that Monday.  Crowded at the Parks!

 

I had made some cyber friends through a Facebook page for runDisney fanatics and Twitter.  I had learned about these amazing fan Meet Ups that runDisney holds at each of it's race weekends.  I HAD to get in.  I bought my plane tickets in advance banking that I would get in to this special event prior to the race festivities.  Turns out... I did get in!  I wrote about the runDisney Meet Up HERE.  Totally a dream come true!  That is me in the back row to Goofy's left - 3rd one in.

 

 

 

 

 

Then... I went on to run in the 5K and the 1/2 Marathon Tinkerbell Weekend 2013!

 

 

This photo is a little blurry but I love it anyway.

 

 

I am within about 5 pounds of my Weight Watchers goal weight (and have a goal to lose more)... I run about  3- 5 times a week depending on our schedule.  I have registered for some more local races this year and have plans to return to the Disneyland Resort to run the 2014 Tinkerbell 1/2 Marathon!  This time I am taking a couple of friends with me!

 

It felt amazing to accomplish this goal!  I would recommend runDisney to any one!  So amazing and fun!  I would encourage anyone that seems to find running too hard or something they could not do to look into Jeff Galloway's training methods.  His program is so user friendly to newbies and people who never thought running would be something they could be successful at.  (I even got to meet Jeff at the special runDisney Meet Up I attended).

 

 

 I have dreams of doing MORE Disney races - getting my Coast to Coast medal... but reality right now is we have a one income family and 3 young kids AND we live in Washington State.  It takes some funds to make the trip to Disneyland or the World.  I also don't want to deprive my kids from trips while they are still young.  So we will do what we can and the time will come later.  I will be back to run the Tinkerbell 2014... can't wait! 

 

For now I will live vicariously through my cyber friends who fly from coast to coast and run all that Disney magic!