Top 5 Favorite Christmas Moments of 2018

Happy Friday and happy New Year's Eve weekend! This will be my last post about Christmas of 2018 (I promise), but this was seriously our best Christmas with Brayden to date and so many fun memories were made! This was the first year that he understood about the true reason we celebrate Christmas. This was also the fist year he really got into ripping the paper off of his presents!

It was hard, but I managed to narrow everything down to a "top 5" favorite moments of the weekend and although I already blogged about our Christmas twice already, I just had to do so one last time!

#1 Spending Time With Family

This is almost always a given, but I really truly enjoyed spending time with all of our family over the holiday weekend! We were able to visit with my brother and his wife in Texas as well as Jason's family and extended family here back at home. It truly was a great time! 

#2 Christmas Eve Orangetheory

This might sound kind of silly, but I had the opportunity to work out at Orangetheory on Christmas Eve with my sister-in-law and although the workout was TOUGH, I enjoyed the challenge and working up a sweat on Christmas Eve! This workout was different in a way that made it challenging but fun. Everyone pulled cards from a tin throughout the class and the card told you what workout to complete. Some cards were harder than others (coal) and some were a little less challenging (present).  I pulled so many coal cards it wasn't funny. Mine even included the treadmill with a run at a pretty decent pace with a 12% incline. (I might have been holding on for dear life!) My sister-in-law ended up pulling a 2,000 m row card and she completed 55 burpees by the time it was all said and done. Needless to say, it was a great workout and I enjoyed the change!

#3 Brayden's First Gingerbread House 

Although this was Brayden's third Christmas, we still had a few "firsts" for him, including his first gingerbread house! This gingerbread house was themed towards The Grinch (of course) which made it even more fun! He mostly helped his Aunt put the decorations on the house and I was amazed at how long this task captivated his attention. In all, I'd say this was a successful first for him! 

#4 Cookie Contest

Speaking of gingerbread, our family did a really fun Gingerbread decorating contest where we asked our Facebook friends to help us vote! In the end, Kayla's "Mrs. Santa Claus" (top right) ended up with the most likes for the win! This was a really fun activity to do with all of our family together!

#5 "Grinch Cakes"

On Saturday, we took Brayden to Ihop for breakfast and the look on his face when this plate of "Grinch cakes" was set in front of him was hilarious! They were a HUGE hit and he loved them! This was such a fun morning for all of us! 

Memories like these are what make the Christmas season so much fun! As the years continue on, I can't wait to see what they have to bring! 

If you'd like to see more from our Christmas weekend, check out the video below!

I hope this Christmas season brought lots of fun memories for you, too! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Goodbye, GoRun

As many of you know, Saturday was supposed to be the last group meeting of the running group I've been a part of for the past 8 years. We've had organized group runs every Saturday with water and Gatorade stops along each course, a running coach who planned out our training schedules, and lots of support along the way.

However, mother nature had another plan for Saturday and we weren't able to meet to say goodbye. With a ridiculous below-freezing cold snap in South Louisiana, much of my town was frozen over and we woke up Saturday morning with a "feels like temperature" of 14 degrees F. (That might as well have been below zero to me.) So, the decision was made to cancel our group run. While I understand the reasons, I'm not gonna lie...I was a little sad. You see, change isn't easy for me and I like closure. I was looking forward to meeting up and saying goodbye to everyone. This upcoming Sunday is the Houston Marathon and though many from my group are running it, I'm not this year.

Since we weren't able to say goodbye in person, I decided to put together a little memory of my time spent in GoRun.

My journey with GoRun began in 2009 after returning home from the Walt Disney World Marathon. I was there to spectate for a few friends who were running the race and I decided I wanted to train for the half the following year. NEVER in my wildest dreams did I think I would run anything more than 3 miles at a time...like ever.

When I returned home, I began looking for local groups in my area and that's when I stumbled upon GoRun. I initially thought I would only be a part of the group for a year because I mean....once my half marathon was finished, that was it, right?! Yeah...right. What was initially supposed to be one season turned into eight years of my life.

Throughout those eight years, I've learned a lot about myself as a person, I've grown mentally and physically, I've accomplished things I never thought possible and obtained PR's and goals I've set for myself, and I've made lifelong friendships...all because of my running group.

I've also done things I never thought I would ever do!

Take Goofy's Challenge for example...
 

 
Or how about the fact that I've completed 5 marathons and 25 half marathons to date! (Had you told this to me in my early 20's, I would have told you that you were cray cray!)

What about the time we ran underneath a parked train?! (OMG I still can't believe we did that!)
 

 
Or ran as superheros through town on Halloween?

I've seen gorgeous sunrise after gorgeous sunrise...

...I've also overcome an injury and had an amazing physical therapy team because of my running group.

My favorite of all? I met one of my best friends...

....and made many other friendships along the way because of GoRun.

Sure, all of these things didn't just happen, it still required me to get out of bed early on Saturday mornings and put forth the effort to train...but despite it all (ridiculous heat and humidity of the summer, crazy cold of the winter, even a tropical storm!) my running group has been there through it all.

I can't say enough thank you's to my running coach and all of the friends I've made along the way. These past 8 years have left a huge stamp on my life and I know I'm a better person because of it.

Here's to new challenges and future adventures! Goodbye, GoRun. I'll never forget you or the impact you've had on my life! Thanks for the lifetime of memories!!

All my love, Karen

Music & Memories

I’ve always loved music – it’s been a huge part of my life as long as I can remember! My husband also came from a family who loved music, so we blended well together. One of our favorite things to do at WDW is watch the various musical acts that perform throughout the parks. Just to name a few – The Dapper Dans (MK), Mulch, Sweat, and Shears (HS), the JAMMitors  (EPCOT), the Voices of Liberty (EPCOT), and the Main Street Philharmonic (MK). We also enjoy the music of the Candlelight Processional. As long as I can remember, we’ve stopped to watch these music groups as they take to the streets (or domed ceiling rooms…or grand stands) to perform…..such wonderful memories! :)

Welcome to another Disney Wordless Wednesday, by the way! :)

Today’s Wordless Wednesday theme is: Music & Memories
Host: Deb at Focused on the Magic

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Want to participate in an upcoming Wordless Wednesday? Click on the button below for more details!

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Do you have a favorite WDW musical group?

My Top 5 Favorite “Life” Moments

As a runner, I typically use time on the road for thinking. My thoughts have a tendency to drift all over the place, but running really gives me a chance to sort through my thoughts and emotions.

Yesterday, I ran a few unplanned miles (this week is going to be busy so I wanted to knock them out while I could) and my thoughts took me to a different place. I spent most of the mileage looking back over my life, sorting through my  favorite life moments and I thought it would be fun to share a “top 5” with you today!

Here’s what I came up with!

My Top 5 Favorite Life Moments

1. Wedding Day

I planned this day for an entire year (minus two days) to the tee. I knew every in and out of my wedding and how I wanted it all to come together. This day was incredibly magical and our wedding day was one of the best days of my life!

2. 1st Marathon – WDW

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again – the 2011 Walt Disney World Marathon (my first Full) was hands down the second best day of my life (second to my wedding day, of course).  I had SO MUCH FUN running this race and I definitely cherish all of the memories made out on that course. There will never be another first Marathon for me and I’m so glad I got to spend it with these guys!!

 

3. 2013 VMA’s and Joey at Disneyland

Since we’re on the runDisney topic, it’s fitting to discuss this next one here – 2013’s Disneyland Half Marathon weekend. The week began with us leaving for vacation (that’s always a great start to a week, yes?) and the 2013 VMA’s. Justin Timberlake was being honored with the Vanguard Award and rumor had it that NSYNC might make an appearance. Boy did they ever…and after spending my birthday in San Diego (it also fell on that week), we traveled to Anaheim for the Disneyland Half Marathon weekend. I ran into Joey Fatone in Downtown Disney (OMG), then ran into him again several times on the course! I still talk about this week with excitement in my voice. It was seriously one of the most exciting weeks of my life! (Hard to believe it was exactly a year ago this week! Time flies!)

 

4. Graduating College

This one’s a doozy. After working my tail off through college, I graduated from Nursing school! Receiving my diploma (and later passing the very tough NCLEX test to become an RN) was an incredible feeling – especially after putting so much work and effort towards my goal. I am so happy I chose my career path and can’t wait to see where the future leads!

 

5. Hitting my first Home Run in High School softball

Growing up, baseball/softball was my life. I played softball from about 7th grade through age 20, then city league after that. I hit my very first home run my senior year in high school. It was an amazing feeling to hit home plate, knowing I gave it my all! Those were very special days in my life and I will cherish the memories forever!

I had fun travelling down memory lane, thanks for coming along with me! If you had to name one of the best days of your life, what would you say?

Retro Disney–Worldess Wednesday

Guess what? Today is Wednesday! Know what that means? It’s time for another (almost) Wordless Wednesday! Today, I’m participating in Focused on the Magic's Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

Today’s theme is: Retro

Time to go waaaaaaay back…back to my very first trip to Walt Disney World (I was one year old)! I was also told that I took my first set of steps during my first trip to WDW (kinda like that commercial…awww).  The second set of pictures you’ll see is from my second trip to Walt Disney World circa 1989, where I was six years old.

Take a walk down memory lane with me! (I promise I’ll stop talking now!) :)

Sorry, Brian… I had to! <3

…just for kicks and giggles, check out that Disney wallpaper! What what!

I’m not very good at this wordless part, but I’m working on it! :D

Want to participate? Click on the button below for more details! Happy August!

What’s your favorite Disney childhood memory? (park and/or non-park)

Race Memories

Apart from hanging medals on the wall or displaying race bibs in a holder, how do you document your race accomplishments?

If you couldn’t tell, I’m a fan of pictures – so much so, I take a point and shoot camera with me pretty much every where I go. I love documenting life through photos and don’t want to miss an opportunity to capture memories on camera.

When I first began running, I made Shutterfly books for each major race I ran (ie. Half and Full Marathons). The Half Marathon received an 8x8 book and the Full Marathon a 12x12 book. I’m quite a few races behind on my Shutterfly albums, I know I need to get caught up. Unfortunately, I’m so OCD I spend hours working on these books (which isn’t always feasible to accomplish). Ah well, maybe one day!

My other alternative is scrapbooking. I’m much closer to being caught up on my race scrapbooks than I am with the poor Shutterfly albums.

Each page of these two books contain pictures from every race I’ve ever run from 5K’s to mud runs to Half and Full Marathons. How do I keep up with it all? After each race, I fill a folder with race pictures on my computer. Once the pictures have been ordered, the file goes to my hard drive and off my desktop.

Here’s my scrapbooking “suitcase”. I think I need a desk to store all of these items so I don’t have to drag my supplies out every time I scrapbook. Hmmm…now there’s a thought! Oh Jason….hint hint….

I also keep Expo/race bag items together in a container in my closet. Along with pictures from each race, I also like to scrapbook with items from each race’s Expo/swag bag/race bib, course map, etc.  Once I’m finished with that page, I throw all of the extra items I’ll never use away (papers, fliers, etc).

Intro page to book one. :0)

Here’s a few sample pages:

My first ever “Disney Race”, the Castaway Cay 5K in April of 2009. It counts, right? Back in those days, we received a Magical Moments certificate of completion!

The Wine & Dine Half…see, I have my bib and everything!

And just because these two are coming up in a few days…

Rock N Roll New Orleans Full Marathon of 2012…

…and the Princess Half of 2012!  (Secret: I even kept my race box of goodies…you know, the one they give you after the race? I cut out pieces from the box itself to use with these two pages!)

Flipping through these scrapbooks sure brought back a lot of fun memories and great times shared with friends!  Most of these photos were taken by my husband with a DSLR or by me with my point and shoot camera – I rarely purchase official race photos unless I really really like them!

I spent a good bit of my iced-in afternoon on Wednesday catching up on book #2. Currently, I’m up to Goofy’s Challenge of 2013. That’s pretty darn close if you ask me! ;0)

Do you display your race photos in any way? How do you document race accomplishments?

Disclaimer: I did not write this post as an advertisement for Shutterfly, nor did I receive any promotional goods or compensation for my opinion. I just like to share my way of documenting races with you! :0)