Jeff Galloway helps me get across the finish line!

Okay, so as you know, I have big plans when it comes to runDisney races. I plan to do the Princess 10K and half marathon at Walt Disney World and the Tinker Bell 10K and half marathon at Disneyland in the same year so I get a ton of medals (really cool medals, too.) These two races have always been in February and January but I didn’t mind. I thought it would be an adventure to run so many races so close together. However, I was planning on doing them in 2015 so I had time to raise money for the trips and train for the races. I should have known better. Disney is always changing and now runDisney has made a major change, too.

The Tinker Bell Half Marathon Weekend has moved to Mother’s Day weekend in 2015. WHAT!!! Okay, okay. I am calm. I mean, it is not the end of the world. It will be easier having one race in February and the other in May. It’s just that I was really looking forward to running a race at Disneyland in January. I ran the Disneyland Half Marathon on Labor Day weekend and it was hot! But I can also understand. The Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend is in January so perhaps they wanted to spread things out. Logical.

While I understand I am also slightly disappointed. I was ready for the challenge and now the challenge has been made easier. I should have known. I always say that change is normal with Disney. If you want to do or see something you had better plan to do it soon. I guess I should have planned my races in 2014. But you know what? I’ll find another running challenge and just enjoy my plethora of Disney races. (Great Wall of China, anyone?) Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: I encourage everyone to run a Disney race at least once. They are so much fun and they are flat so anyone can do it. They also have a lot of 5K and 10K races so you get all the fun of a Disney race without killing yourself. If you need some guidance click on runDisney and check out the training plans by Jeff Galloway. I am using his 5K plan to train for a virtual 5K I’m doing January 25. Maybe I’ll have my husband hold up Disney stuffed animals along the way so it will feel like a Disney run.

Image from Disney Parks Blog

It’s Friday and the weekend is hiding right around the corner. What are your plans? I want to sit on the couch with a warm cup of cocoa and a good movie. But I’m not going to. I am going to go for a run.

Now I would be the first to admit that I don’t run because I like it. I run because I like to do races and I do races because I love the medals. RunDisney has released the new designs for the 2014 Princess  and Tinker Bell Half Marathons. I already have two Princess medals and I love the new designs. I won’t be running these races until 2015 but just looking at these medals makes me want to run.

So go outside this weekend. Run, walk, or hike, but spend time exercising in the great outdoors. And if a medal isn’t enough to motivate you  think of how delicious that cocoa will taste when you head back inside to the couch. Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: You may not be a runner, but I know you can walk, and if you can walk then you can do a race. Jeff Galloway, the official coach for runDisney promotes a run/walk pace for all races. By following his method anyone can finish a race and earn a medal.

Judy and Jennifer at the 2009 Princess Half Marathon

On Sunday I am running the Marine Corp Historic Half Marathon in Fredericksburg, VA. My brother gave me this race and trip as a present for my 40th birthday coming up in October. What a brother!

I plan to run a half marathon in every state in my lifetime. That should not be that hard to do if I don’t repeat states too often. And there lies my temptation. I love to do races in the Disney parks. I’ve already run three times in Florida and once in California and I will be doing more. That really cuts into the number of new states I can finish in a year.

Now that I think about it runDisney races should be separate from my 50 state goal. Instead I will try to do all of the runDisney races that I can. I have to qualify this goal because they add and drop races all the time. Still, I think I will like meeting this goal since every runDisney race includes a trip to a Disney park. Awesome.

Between races I like to listen to running podcasts and read running books (I train occasionally, too.) Recently I have found some runDisney resources that are fun to listen to and to read. I hope you someday complete a runDisney race. There is something for everyone. If you are not sure what is involved than check out the Mickey Miles Podcast. This is a low key podcast with a load of great information. They answer lots of questions and have plenty of advice for beginners.

If you want the complete scoop on Disney races than I would get a copy of Magical Miles: The Runner’s Guide to Walt Disney World. This book tells you all you need to know to run a race at Walt Disney World and have a fun vacation at the same time. Running at Walt Disney World involves more planning than running at Disneyland and this book can give you the confidence that you won’t miss anything.

I hope to run my fastest time this Sunday with my brother pacing me. If I need musical motivation I’ll listen to the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse soundtrack. I always run faster to the Hot Dog Song. I guess every race I run is a Disney race in my mind. Happiness squared.

Goofy Quote: (Jeff Galloway is an official runDisney training consultant. I follow his run/walk/run program. I like this quote and think it is just as true for half marathons.)

“The marathon is one of those experiences that people tell me allows them the confidence to be able to do a lot of other things in their life that they thought they could never do.” Jeff Galloway

I already told you about the Dumbo Double Dare happening at Disneyland on Labor Day 2013. A new race has come to Walt Disney World and along with it two new challenges. A 10k has been added to the Princess Half Marathon weekend in February 2014. If you run both the 10K on Saturday and the half on Sunday then you will earn the Disney Glass Slipper medal along with the medal from each race. Awesome!!!

As if that wasn’t enough, starting in 2014, if you run the Tinker Bell Half Marathon at Disneyland in January and the Princess half marathon in February 2014 then you receive a special Coast t0 Coast medal. It looks like the traditional one but the ring is pink instead of blue. Super awesome!!!

If you are interested in earning these new medals plan to sign up as soon as registration opens in June. These races are going to fill up fast. Since I will be doing the Dumbo Double Dare in 2014 I am planning to do these new challenges in 2015. Who wants to join me? Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: When you sign up for a RunDisney event you save a lot of money on your resort rooms and park tickets. This savings can be used for anyone in your group, whether they are runners or not, so a race weekend is a great time to invite lots of friends and family to play in the parks with you.

5 ways that planning ahead saves money:

1) You can use discounts. If you know you are visiting in June and you start planning in January than when Disney announces a discount, like 30% off resort rooms, or a free dining plan, you’ll be prepared to use these discounts. If you wait to plan until just before you leave you’ll have missed a lot of savings.

2) You can save money when buying gift cards. A great place to buy Disney gift cards and park hopper passes is at the major grocery stores. I wait and buy these when they are having fuel sales. If I can save 40 cents or more for each gallon of gas I pump (that I would have bought anyway) and get cards I will use in the parks this is a win/win for me.

3) You can save at Disneystore.com. Throughout the year Disneystore.com has sales. They just finished having one on official Disney park merchandise. These items don’t tend to go on sale in the parks so a great way to save money is to buy them online. If you plan to buy your group matching t-shirts to wear in the parks the discount can be all the more valuable.

4) You can sign up for an event. One great way to save a lot of money on resort and ticket costs is to do a RunDisney event. There are races at most of the parks throughout the year of varying lengths, but they tend to fill up quickly. The 2013 Disneyland Half Marathon, that is happening on Labor Day Weekend, is already full. It you want to have fun running through the parks and save a lot on your trip then plan ahead and sign up as soon as the event opens.

5) You can get discounts on your photos. A great deal any time is to sign up for PhotoPass+. You get unlimited photos taken by Disney photographers and all your attraction photos for one price. With this package you can save over a hundred dollars on photos. If you buy this package at Disneyland it is $99. If you buy it at least two weeks ahead of time online it is only $69. Plan ahead and save $30.

There are lots of ways that planning ahead can save you money. Feel free to leave a comment with your ideas. Together we can all have a low-cost stress-free vacation. Why not start today? Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: I am not connected to this company and I get nothing for suggesting this, but I have a Disney credit card through Chase so I know how good the savings can be. I earn points that I trade in for Disney gift cards. I pay this card off every month so these points are free. If you are going to have a credit card anyway why not have a card that allows you to buy free stuff on your Disney trip.

For great tips that you can take with you on your tablet or smart phone download the Kindle app and buy a copy of Goofy Tips for a Happy Disney Vacation. For 99 cents you’ll have hundreds of great ideas for visiting the Disney Parks only an app away.

There are two types of people in the world – those who get lost and those who don’t. I am the former. If I have a map and I am paying attention then I can get anywhere. But my mind tends to wander and I am easily distracted (squirrel!) so I often find myself somewhere other than where I planned to be. While this usually isn’t a problem and I discover many wonderful things sometimes I really am trying to get somewhere at a certain time. How do I keep myself on course? I use landmarks.

This is especially easy to do at the Disney parks because there are many distinct objects that can be used as landmarks. When I was staying at the Disneyland Hotel last summer I often forgot how to get out of the hotel area and into the Downtown Disney area. The hotels are very tall and hide the outside world. Luckily, there was a handy landmark. Between our hotel and Downtown Disney there was a large sorcerer’s apprentice hat covered in stars. All I had to do was see this hat and I knew which way to go. It was nice to be able to wool-gather and not get lost.

I try to use landmarks wherever I go. If you are like me and often wander off the beaten path, try finding your own landmarks. And remember, not all who wander are lost. Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: If you are a runner, or have ever wanted to run in a Disney event then I have ultra-fun news for you. Disney has added a 10K to the Disneyland Half Marathon weekend that takes place on Labor Day weekend. Along with the 10K they have created the Dumbo Double Dare, a special medal for people who run both the 10K and the half marathon.

This is a similar event to the Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge that takes place at the Walt Disney World Marathon weekend. To earn a Goofy you have to run the half marathon on Saturday and the full marathon on Sunday.

I think the Dumbo will become a coveted medal. In fact, the all the spots for all the 10K, the Dumbo, and the Disneyland half marathon for 2013 filled in 26 hours. I finished the Disneyland Half Marathon in 2012, but now that I know about the Dumbo Double Dare I will be signing up in 2014 the moment it opens.

The Norway Pavilion has one of the few rides in the World Showcase, Maelstrom. It is an exciting boat ride ending with an interesting movie. The pavilion also has a giant troll in one of the stores and great architecture. The hidden gem that I find intriguing is a statue of a woman running in a corner of the pavilion. Who is so famous in Norway that they get to have a statue at Walt Disney World?

Her name is Grete Waitz and she was a record setting runner who won the New York Marathon nine times. When she wasn’t running she worked with Special Olympics and other charities. There is a statue of her outside the Bislett Stadium in Oslo, Norway, and the statue in the Norway Pavilion is a duplicate. I have completed several half-marathons at Walt Disney World and I think a statue commemorating a runner is unique and cool. Grete Waitz was known for being generous with her time and gracious with her advice so she is a great role model for everyone. A definite gem.

Goofy Tip: I have mentioned running races at Walt Disney World in other posts, but I wanted to present a challenge to all runners and could-be runners (that is everyone). If you run a half-marathon at Walt Disney World and then run a half-marathon at Disneyland in the same year you earn an extra medal. It is called the Coast to Coast Race Challenge and the medal has Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse on it. Talk about a gem! So if you need an excuse to visit both Walt Disney World and Disneyland just explain that you are working toward a Coast-to-Coast medal. Who can argue with you?

Why not make a happy resolution? Why not make a Disney resolution?

It could be something big like visiting the parks in 2012 or going on a Disney cruise. Or it could be something small like signing up for the Disney Parks blog or finally memorizing all the dwarfs names*. These goals won’t change your life, but they will make you happy and I think that adding more happiness to your life will definitely improve it.

Goofy Tip: If you want to make a serious goal, you could always combine it with a Disney goal. Want to lose weight or get fit? Why not start running and sign up for a race at the Disney parks? RunDisney puts on races throughout the year. Their newest one is the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 10 miler on Sept 28, 2012 at Walt Disney World. It is a night run with lots of Disney Villians to help? you.

* The seven dwarfs are named : Sleepy, Dopey, Sneezy, Doc, Happy, Bashful, and Grumpy. If you want help remembering their names just memorize this sentence. Seven dwarfs swifty dig hard bright gems. Each word starts with the same letter as a dwarf’s name. This will help you figure out which one you are forgetting.

Picture provided by www.disney-clipart.com