Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Vacation highlights and the return of running!

After a week filled with mouse ears and churros I am happy to be back home! I was super sad to say good-bye to my sister and my niece, but I was missing my husband and kitty very much by the end of the trip. I actually got home on Thursday, but spent the weekend getting back on EST and catching up on my sleep. I don't want to bore you with the day to day details of our vacation (we ate a lot and rode rides!) so here are just some of the highlights.
Cutest little runner ever!
Saturday was the kid's 200m dash. Stella wanted to run with both Mommy and Auntie Heather, so this turned into a mini racecation for me too! The race was so much fun and so much adorable. I love being an aunt so much!


The rest of the afternoon was spent at Griffith Observatory. This was almost as much fun as the race. Gorgeous views of LA and the surrounding area (even the Hollywood sign) and a planetarium/science museum type thing. Stella is really into space right now so it was a good fit. There was also a large area for running around, which Stella definitely needed. We rounded out the day with a trip to Porto's Bakery and finally headed back to the hotel.

On her way to a 3 minute PR! Congratulations Colleen!
On Sunday I woke up extra early to wish my sister well before she headed to her corral and then grabbed a few more hours of sleep before heading towards the finish line with Stella to cheer for her. This was my first time just spectating a race as opposed to running it. I loved cheering on the runner's and seeing my sister set a new PR was amazing.

My favorite picture from the trip
Also on Sunday we rode the carousel in Disneyland. Specifically Stella rode on Jingles which was Walt Disney's favorite horse on the carousel.

Hugging after they compared their Sheriff badges.
The day we went to California Adventure a cast member gave Stella a sheriff's badge and "The Deed to the Toy Box." As sheriff, Stella was able to get front of the line access to Toy Story Midway Mania all day and have get front of the line access to the Toy Story character meet and greets. We ended up riding Midway Mania 3 times that day, and Colleen beat me every.single.time (but I finally beat her on our fourth and final ride of trip!).


I think the overall highlight of the trip was meeting Peter Pan. For whatever reason, there were literally no other kids around when Peter Pan was out. Which meant instead of standing in line, taking our photo, and moving on with our day, Stella ended up running around and playing with Pan for about 10-15 minutes. It was adorable.

Now that vacation is over and I am finally over the never-ending cold from Christmas, it is time to start training! After almost three weeks without running (excluding a 200m dash and one wild game of tag) I headed out for an easy 5 mile run on Friday. On the plus side, it felt easy while I was running, but the next day I was really feeling it. I took Saturday off and ran another 5 on Sunday. My plan is to keep all of my miles easy for the next week and start introducing some harder workouts in February.

12 comments:

  1. Looks like an awesome trip! So glad you had a good time and got to enjoy some MUCH better weather. Welcome back!

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    1. Thank you! The warm weather was definitely one of the most enjoyable parts of the trip.

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  2. Cute photos! You're making miss California. My children are almost old enough for Disneyland, but we want to make sure they will be able to handle a whole day on their feet first. I admire your restraint for not running the race as well.

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    1. Four year olds definitely can't handle a full day at Disney. We ended up renting a stroller a few times and most days included a break at our hotel in the afternoon.

      There wasn't actually any restraint involved. The main reason I went on this trip was to babysit while my sister ran. If I had been left to my own devices, I definitely would have wanted to run!

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  3. Awww this sounds like a really fun, relaxing trip. Congrats to your sister on her THREE MINUTE PR! That's so awesome!

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    1. It was so relaxing! And it definitely has me feeling excited for another Disney race in Florida!

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  4. Looks like a great trip!! I've never been to Disneyland, but I have been to Disneyworld many times. California is a dream vacation destination for me! Wow, congrats to your sis! Running races is exciting, but getting involved in cheering with the crowd can be even more exciting I think.

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    1. I had been to the Disney World previously, but this was my first time visiting the 'land. One that that really surprised me was how much smaller the castle in Disneyland is. It is tiny!

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  5. This trip looks like it was so much fun! Also, what is up with everyone getting sick over Christmas break? I got sick too and almost went crazy from not running! Glad you are feeling better!

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    1. If it wasn't for being on vacation I probably would have lost my mind. I was sick around Thanksgiving too and now a third round of colds is sweeping through my office. I'm avoiding all of my coworkers right now; must not get sick!

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  6. What a great trip! Looks like you had a BLAST!! And seriously - I was sick over Christmas. It was terrible! I think we all had it. Welcome back!

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    1. Thanks Allison! I am so over being sick. It feels like it has just been one cold after another since Thanksgiving.

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