Vintage Minnie & Dopey Challenge Costumes

Happy New Year! 

This weekend was full of fun things, especially those related to our upcoming Walt Disney World trip for Marathon Weekend! Our bags are mostly packed and we are ready!

We will be spending our week at Port Orleans Riverside with plans for visiting all four theme parks over the course of seven days. Jason's even taking a Disney fishing excursion with a friend of ours where they will have the opportunity to fish in World Showcase Lagoon before EPCOT opens for the morning! He is SO excited!

As far as other plans go, we will be at the Expo on Wednesday afternoon and Brayden will be participating in his first 100m dash on Friday morning! 

For the races, I'll be sporting several different outfits, most of which I've already worn...whoops. The full marathon is a different story, though! A friend of mine wanted to run the full dressed as Steamboat Willie Mickey and that's where the idea for Vintage Minnie came into play!

Putting this outfit together was SUPER easy as it didn't require any extra work on my part. With running the full marathon, I wanted everything to be functional and easy to run in.

For the costume itself, I put together the following pieces:

• Solid black dry fit BCG brand shirt from Academy
• Sparkle Skirts sparkle light vintage blue skirt
• Legend Compression sleeves in black
• Vintage Minnie ears from Etsy (my running buddy purchased her Steamboat Willie ears from the same vendor so we will match!) 

I used this picture as my inspiration....

...and voila! 

Easiest costume ever!

For the 5K, 10K, and Half, I decided to bring back a few oldies to wear again. We had so much fun running as Anna & Elsa several years back for the Enchanted 10K, so that was a no brainer. Lilo definitely needed a redemption race since most of that one was spent under a poncho in pouring down rain (the Wine & Dine Half of 2014 aka the "Splash & Dash"). We couldn't decide what to run as for the 5K and as a last minute (literally) idea, we threw in Mousketeers to the mix (from the Disneyland Half of 2013).

Mousketeer - 5K

Anna & Elsa - 10K

Lilo - Half Marathon

So, if you happen to see me out there, please don't hesitate to say hello!

If you're running this weekend, have a GREAT time and enjoy every moment! If it's your first runDisney race, I hope you have a blast!!

Princess Enchanted 10K Costume

After last year’s Princess Half Marathon (where I ran the race dressed as Snow White), my friend Melissa and I decided to dress up in joint costumes for this year’s Princess Enchanted 10K! She usually runs Disney races for time, but she decided to hang back with me for this one, have fun, and take pictures with characters along the way!

Since we decided to run together, we needed costume ideas, right? Well, we occasionally (and randomly) text each other “Do you wanna build a snowman?”…which led to the idea of us dressing as Elsa and Anna for this race (she’s Elsa, I’m Anna)! We both also love the movie Frozen, by the way…as does most of America. :)

I had so much fun putting this costume together, I decided to share my process with you!

Supplies

For this costume I used:

• Black Champion tank from Academy
• Light blue BCG tank from Academy
• Sparkle Skirts royal blue headband
• Gold glitter ribbon for trim (and now there’s glitter all over my house!)
• Sparkle Athletic royal blue skirt
• Black Running Skirts skirt underneath the sparkle athletic skirt
• Dark Silhouette iron-on transfers (for use with the Silhouette Cameo)
• Black Zensah compression socks
• Sparkle Skirts cape
• Light blue East Bay arm warmers
• Stuffed Olaf I found at Books A Million

A good part of my weekend was spent sewing pieces and parts together!

For this top, I sewed gold ribbon trim around the neckline and very bottom of the shirt. I also hand stitched the light blue tank in place underneath the black tank.

The Silhouette Cameo was a huge help with this costume. Most of the online guides I found gave instructions on painting the flower design onto the shirt…..and I knew that would be a disaster for me! Thank goodness for the Cameo – I was able to print the design on my printer, then use the cutter to cut out the design. I also decided to add a black background to the image after practicing earlier in the week on a white sheet of paper. There was a bit of white margin around the flowers and I didn’t want white to show on my black tank top – so the black background made a world of difference!

The process of laying the pieces out was a bit tedious, but I loved the finish product in the end!!

SO excited to see how it all came together!

Now, without further adieu, here’s my version of an Anna costume for the Princess Enchanted 10K!

I can’t wait to run this weekend! This is by far one of my favorite costumes to date! :)

What do you think of Frozen? Are you a fan?

New Running Favorites

Three (new) favorite things I’ve added to my running lineup since Princess Half Marathon Weekend include:

• Sparkle Skirts
• Flip Belt
• Crown Shwings

For starters, the following companies did not provide compensation or ask for this review. I purchased all of these items on my own and I loved them so much, I decided to share my discoveries with you!

#1 – Sparkle Skirts

I originally purchased this yellow Sparkle Skirt as a piece to my Snow White costume for the Princess Half. I’ll be honest with you, the price tag on this skirt scared me away at first and I did NOT expect to fall in love with it as much as I did! 

Apart from the beautiful bling, this skirt has pockets…and I mean POCKETS!

Pockets for a phone, pockets for a camera, pockets for GU, Kleenex, Tylenol…these pockets will hold just about anything – and they are big, too!

Apart from the zipper pocket at the waist, this skirt also has two large pockets on the sides of the shorts.

Another bonus – when I heard people say they never had a problem with the shorts riding up, I didn’t believe them at first. I quickly discovered they were not lying! These shorts do NOT ride up at all!! Amazing!

Sparkle Skirts also make a beautiful addition to any race costumes! :0)

#2 – Flip Belt

I’d heard of Flip Belt prior to the Rock ‘n’ Roll New Orleans Expo I attended this year, but had never seen them in person nor had a chance to try them on. Unfortunately, our area experienced a huge freeze the week before the race, so trucks were unable to deliver the Expo shipment in time.

So - when I saw the super friendly Flip Belt team at the Princess Half Expo, I knew I had to snag my opportunity!

Flip Belts come in a wide variety of colors and include several sizing options. I found their sizing guide to be true to its word.

For starters, let me say that I am not a fan of any belts that clip around my waist or hips. They all give me major muffin top and bounce like crazy.

I love this Flip Belt because it includes four pockets and even fits my iPhone 5 (complete with Otter Box)!

I wore this Flip Belt for the Enchanted 10K and absolutely loved it – no muffin top and definitely NO bouncing!

You can see a clip of me wearing this Flip Belt at the beginning of my Royal Family 5K video.

#3 – Team Sparkle Shwings

This one might sound kind of silly, but I saw these babies at the Princess Expo and knew I had to have them!

Created by the lovely ladies of Sparkle Athletic, they slip over your laces and stay put – you don’t even realize they are there! Also available in fairy wings and red/white polka dot bows, they are the perfect snazzy addition to any running shoe!

I still have these on my shoes and I am not sure when (if ever) I’ll take them off!

There you have it – my newest running accessory favorites!

What are you loving lately? Do you tend to stick to the tried and true or do you like to be adventurous with new running gear?

Fitness Friday–1/31 Marathon Weekend!

Currently training for:
-Rock N Roll New Orleans Marathon – February 2, 2013, Louisiana (IT’S MARATHON WEEKEND!)
-Glass Slipper Challenge, Princess Half Marathon Weekend – February 22 & 23, Walt Disney World

Saturday – 6 miles on the treadmill 
Sunday – Squats/Lunges
Monday – 3 miles on the treadmill…boo. 
Tuesday – 2 miles on the treadmill….double boo. Squats/Lunges
Wednesday – 2 miles with Madalynn OUTSIDE! Yay! Squats/Lunges
Thursday – Squats/Lunges
Friday – Squats/Lunges

Well, here we are – marathon weekend! Stay tuned on my Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter accounts for a weekend filled with fun and excitement in good ol ‘Nawlins!

The only thing I’m worried about for the weekend is the weather forecast. It’s changed many times over the past few days, and I’ve yet to see a chance of rain less than 50%. There’s nothing I can do to change it so I’m going to go out and make the best of what’s handed to me. As long as I finish upright and with a smile on my face, that’s all that matters.

By the way, did you hear that Deena Kastor is running the Rock n Roll NOLA Half Marathon? I had the honor of watching her compete in the Marathon Olympic Trials of 2012 in Houston, Tx and I can’t wait to share (part of) the New Orleans race course with her!

Speaking of the race, here’s my outfit…



I’m wearing a Sparkle Skirt and it’s a beautiful purple – perfect for rocking the streets of New Orleans!



The crazy “sneaux storm” also allowed me to spend plenty of quality time with my friend the Rumble Roller. I say “friend” lightly – we are still learning to like each other.



Did someone say friends? Cause this King Cake and I made fast friends on Wednesday. It was still warm and fresh from the bakery. Mmhmmm mmhmm good! :0)



Madalynn and I were becoming quite stir crazy, so we headed outdoors for a 2 mile run on Wednesday. The amount of treadmill running I had to do over the past week was making me craaazy and I couldn’t wait to run outside again! We both enjoyed my last run before the marathon!
Finally, I leave you with my latest favorite…



…Disney Luxe Collection sleepwear from Dillards. I am obsessed with pajamas and when I saw (and felt) these, I immediately fell in love! I purchased a pair after Christmas and couldn’t help myself when I came across these yesterday! Can’t wait to wear them! :0)

What are your weekend plans? What’s your latest favorite thing?