Forever A Disney Princess

One year ago...

Kari and I did the WDW Disney Princess Half Marathon!!! I can't believe it's already been that long ago, and how much has happened since then. I still haven't washed my Sleeping Beauty sweatshirt, although I think the last of the pixie dust has just about all fallen off :(

Tonight as I was going through old pictures, I was transported back to all the positively magical emotions from that weekend- seeing each other in the airport for the first time in months, trying on our princess costumes with all the pieces, meeting and carpooling with our "Disney moms" at 3 in the morning, running through Cinderella's castle, crossing the finish line holding hands with our arms held high...

I am still so proud of us for running the entire race. Minus stopping to take pictures, but we won't talk about how often that was and how it affected our final time, we ran every step!! Even the last few miles, we were the only ones running along in the rain and struggling up that blasted highway off ramp, and that's way more important than any time we could have tried to beat. We definitely earned that next day, experiencing Around the World at EPCOT. I really could go for some Mickey Mouse shaped food right now.

Princesses in the Airport

Pixie Dusting :)

Royal Manicure

Mickey Food (and a famous turkey leg) from Magic Kingdom

We conquered every. single. mile. together.

Traded in our running shoes for TOMS the next day :)

But we kept the crowns.

Rewarding ourselves justly the next day at EPCOT Center.

These are the times I never want to forget. The joy of seeing an old friend after a long separation, the pain and perseverance of exerting my body and mind for a long fought-for goal, the magic that a couple of twenty-somethings can still feel when they see their favorite Disney princesses, the fun of seeing random people in McDonald's at 4 am, the comfort and trust of being with someone knowing that we're still there for each other even when our hotel is overbooked and gets changed or she's making me drink ridiculous amounts of water to stay hydrated or I'm singing as loud as I can the last 2 miles to make sure we finish strong... These are the experiences I want to tell my kids about. I hope they're not afraid to go out and make memories and put their bodies through hell and really get excited about things. And most importantly, that they're not afraid to invest in and really love on someone, and be loved in return, so they have someone as awesome as I have to make some unforgettable memories with.