Wordless Wednesday- Happy National Hug A Runner Day!

All of the miles and miles of training is worth a sweet hug from this fella!
Happy National Hug A Runner Day!
#DopeyChallenge

It's a HOMERUN for #OnTheRoadToDisneyParks Atlanta!

 Welcome to Turner Field runDisney!! Home of the Atlanta Braves....
You've hit a homerun today!!!
 #OnTheRoadToDisneyParks

 runDisney #OnTheRoadToDisneyParks

 This is what I see when I check in....I am in LOVE!!!
runDisney has come to ME. OMG!!!!!

 runDisney and #OnTheRoadToDisneyParks Atlanta....Score!!

      On a score from 1-10, I give the "On the Road to Disney Parks" and the runDisney Atlanta Meetup/Tweetup a PERFECT 10!!!!!!  When runDisney announced that they were going on the road and that their first stop would be Turner Field, Home of the Atlanta Braves... I nearly flipped out!! This is practically in my back yard and I knew I wanted to try to get in on this!! I was one of the lucky 100 people chosen and I could not have been more excited!!!

     I had really high hopes for this event and of course my pals at runDisney and Disney Sports did not disappoint!! The event was full of great speakers, a couple of surprise Mice guests, a great two mile run through Turner Field and lots of friends!!!

     As we walked in to Turner Field, I noticed that runDisney was on the big screen and the stage was set!!! OH MY GOSH. runDisney has taken over Turner Field....YES!!!!!

 runDisney takes over Turner Field.....LOVE it!!!!!

 Early morning pic in Atlanta!

 The iconic Braves Baseballs in the front of Turner Field.

     On display at check-in was this fabulous display of runDisney bling...I am proud to say that I will be earning at least 9 of these medals during Dopey and Glass Slipper Challenge. I could look at these day! And this medal rack....Can I put this on my Christmas list PLEASE????

A beautiful display of runDisney bling...I want them all!

     After checking in and changing into our most awesome runDisney/ESPN Wide World of Sports/On the Road to Disney Parks Atlanta Tech Shirts, we are ready to meetup with friends and run! We are welcomed by the runDisney and New Balance Crew where they go over some "Good Form Running" techniques and we're ready to run!!

I have a feeling this wont be the last pic that we'll have together...Rikki is a runner! :)
You can check out Rikki on BeOurGuest Podcast.
(photo courtesy of runDisney)

     We can choose which group we want to run with, either the "Run straight through group" led by runDisney's own, Bob Hitchcock or the "Run/Walk group" led by Olympian Jeff Galloway! I chose to run with Bob...so here we go!

     We start out on Hank Aaron Drive. Really?? I'm running down Hank Aaron Drive?? Just the name and the location of this street is a really cool icon all in itself!

 We ran down Hank Aaron Drive...How cool!

     Up next, we ran underneath the 1996 Olympic Rings......WOW! I've driven past here lots of times but never thought I would be running underneath them, much less with runDisney. I'm still in awe.

 Seen on my run. The Olympic Rings!

 I scrapbooked my trip to the Olympics...now I would blog it. :)

     As I was running underneath the Olympic Rings, I was remembering some of the times from when I was able to attend the 1996 Olympics. This was the scene of the Olympic Village and Turner Field! It was PACKED with people! I was supposed to attend a few events and then the bombing happened. :(

 Scenes from Olympic Village and Turner Field

     I returned to the Olympics the day that we were able to come back after the bombing. Here' the pic that I took of the bomb site. Woah. This was a sad sad day.....

 At the Site of the 1996 Olympic Bombing. :(

 The Bomb Site Memorial

     In spite of the bombing and everyone not really knowing what to think about it, the American spirits were high and we had a GREAT time! I was 23 years old at the time and in college having the time of my life!

 1996 Summer Olympics with my BFF, Paige...I wore cutoff shorts! Oh my!!

     So back to the Meetup details....We passed by this Phil Niekro Statue and headed back inside Turner Field. We're in Braves Country!

 Seen on my run...Soon to be Vintage Turner Field!

 Running in to Braves Country!

 This was the scene as we ran back into Turner Field!

     As we went back inside Turner Field, we headed to the infield! We stopped for lots of pics.

 Being all by myself on the field at Turner Field...Priceless! 

I'm convinced that the most magical things happen when you runDisney. :)

 On the field with one of the best Team Moms...Angie from the Disney Parks Moms Panel.
She offers all kinds of great advice and tips when it comes to planning your next vacation and
 visiting the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
 Feel free to ask her any questions that you may have on the Disney Parks Moms Panel Website.

 Seriously. Do I REALLY have a picture with
Minnie Mouse next to home plate at Turner Field???

 On the field of Turner Field!!!

 #OnTheRoadToDisneyParks with Minnie and Carrie!
(photo courtesy of runDisney)

 The "Run" Group stopped for a quick pic with Minnie and then we were off to run again!

 Running through an EMPTY Turner Field with nothing but my runDisney Peeps!!!!
BEST DAY EVER!!!

     As we finished the run, we met back up with friends, had a yummy breakfast and were ready to hear from the guest speakers.

I was SO excited to see Mary Jo in Atlanta at Turner Field!
She's One of the Biggest Braves Fans that I know!!

 While we may not be for the same SEC football team,
we are totally on the same team for runDisney and Disney Sports!
Roll Tide DFreeeeezy! ;)

 It's Super Fast-Lead the Pack- Bob Hitchcock!

 I cannot help but to laugh when I see this picture..
This is a crew!
#WhyIRunDisney

 Team runDisney in the House!!
Wanna be a part of this super fun group?? Check out their Facebook page!

 I've had SO much fun getting to know THIS girl!!

 Breakfast is served!

Breakfast! My favorite...lots of fruit and Blueberry Chobani!

 Time for an ALL-STAR  LINEUP of guest Speakers!!

     The folks at runDisney let us know that they will be launching a new Hashtag to be used on Instagram for you to be able to tell YOUR story just why YOU run Disney! Make sure to hashtag your pics #WHYIRUNDISNEY. Bob Hitchcock just might come to your house and want to hear your story!! How fun is that?!?!!

     We heard from Warren Green at Runner's World Magazine and I want to participate in the Runner's World Challenge during Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend more than ever now!

Jeff Galloway giving us some run/walk tips!

     Jeff Galloway, the official runDisney Training Consultant,  always gives the runDisney runners helpful insight on how to maintain a good pace, tips about the run/walk method and is always so encouraging to everyone. He lets us know that "Anyone can run a Marathon". Love him!

 My Mom won the new Jeff Galloway Trail Running Book

     Listening to Tara Gidus speak is always a personal favorite of mine. I am fascinated by just how much nutrition, good and poor, affects your running performance. She tells us today why some people actually GAIN weight while marathon training. EEEEEK!!!  Find out more about it here on the runDisney website blog.

 runDisney's nutritional expert Tara Gidus explaining why we
might actually gain weight when we train for a marathon

     I think that we were the most excited to hear from this next speaker! It's Ali from New Balance!! Our friends from New Balance are here today to give us the official Sneak Peak of the characters featured on the new 2014 runDisney shoe. We were all dying to hear the news!! Watch the Sneak Peek of the new 2014 New Balance/runDisney shoe here!

 Ali from New Balance gives us the scoop on the 2014 New Balance/runDisney shoe!
She just announced that there will be kids shoes!! WOW!!!
There will be lots of happy little feet at the 2014 Kids Races!!!

 The Men's shoe will feature Sorcerer Mickey and the
Women's will feature "Pink Minnie" from New Fantasyland!

     And finally, saving the BEST for last....It's time for pics with Mickey and Minnie!!!! I'm still really in just in LOVE with the idea that they came to see me!!! As much as I love running through Disney Parks,  this was just the coolest. I'm hoping to see them on the road again real soon!

 I think this may be my most favorite picture EVER.
#MickeyANDMinnieSelfieLOVE

 NEVER thought I'd see the day when I was getting a pic with
 Mickey and Minnie in Atlanta with my Mom...BEST!!
#WhyIRunDisney

 Awww...Is this not the sweetest?!?!

See Ya Real Soon #OnTheRoadToDisneyParks!

     THANK YOU runDisney, Disney Sports and Atlanta Braves for a GREAT meetup! You guys are the BEST and I can't wait to run with you again in January!!

Happy Running and See you at the Castle!!!!

**For more information on future meetups like these and other runDisney events, please visit Disney Parks Blog, Disney Sports and  runDisney.com.

**For more information on Turner Field and the Atlanta Braves, please visit AtlantaBraves.mlb.com

Dopey Challenge Training Plan Update!

Woah. I just realized that it's been a few weeks since I've updated my training plan on my blog.  As of right now, I'm still on track! That's really hard to believe since I've had to tweak my schedule a zillion times over the last month. I had some really exciting things happen in my life, some run-related, some not.

I've got to make up for some lost mileage this week though as I'm traveling and decided last night to watch the CMA's, grab some sushi and NOT get on the treadmill. Eek! I'm not a fan of hotel treadmills.

Either way, I'm SO looking forward to this weekends 8.5 and 20-miler runs....I feel totally accomplished and on my game when I get those long runs in.

Week 19
11/5   Tuesday-- 20-30 Minutes
11/7   Thursday-- 30-45 Minutes
11/8   Friday-- 3 Miles (Walk)
11/9   Saturday--8.5 Miles (Walk)
11/10 Sunday--20 Miles (Run/Walk)

Have a great rest of the week....Keep running and See you at the Castle real soon!

Cranberries, Cookies and Bogs...Oh My!

Ocean Spray Craisins--Proud sponsor of Disney Parks. 

  

   With all of the excitement surrounding the Cranberry Bog at Disney's Epcot International Food and Wine Festival, I decided to stock up a little more on one of my favorite snacks, Ocean Spray Craisins. I was hoping to make it to the festival  to be able to see the fabulous bog in person but it just didn't work out this year,  so cranberries at home it is!

Epcot®, Lake Buena Vista, Florida: September 27 - November 11, 2013

Ocean Spray will kick-off the magic of this year’s Bogs Across America tour at the most magical place on earth – theWalt Disney World® Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida! The bog will be open as part of the 2013 Epcot® International Food & Wine Festival from September 27 to November 11. Ocean Spray cranberry farmers and Disney cast members will be on hand with lots of information to share about how to make the cranberry a part of your healthy lifestyle.

Throughout the festival, Craisins® - the official fruit snack of the Walt Disney World® Resort and Disneyland® Resort - will be highlighted for visitors to better understand the opportunities that this delicious food has to offer. In addition to samples* offered bogside, Disney chefs will be demonstrating the versatility of Craisins® Dried Cranberries at theEpcot® International Food & Wine Festival. You won’t want to miss out on this!

     I knew that I wanted to make something sweet with these delicious berries so I looked up a few of their recipes on their website and even pinned a few to some of my Pinterest boards!! But then I thought...hey, wait a minute. They have recipes right on the bag! I'm going with that. Simple and easy.

So which recipe was on the back of the bag???

Oatmeal Crasins White Chocolate Chunk Cookies!

 Oh that sounds yummy. 

     I had all of the ingredients at home that the recipe called for except for the White Chocolate Chips. Whoops. I'm going with Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips instead. I KNOW my kiddos and hubby won't care!

So here goes...All of the ingredients mixed up!

    Next I popped the scoops of heaven into the oven. Yes, that's a Pampered Chef Pizza Stone that I've been using for at least 15 years. Hardly a day goes by that I don't use it.

     The finished product! I gotta admit...these cookies are DELISH!! The only thing that I will do the next time I make them,  is add more cranberries!!! I put in what the recipe called for but that just wasn't enough for me. I eat them by the handfuls right out of the bag! On my next batch of cookies, I'm not skimping!

The Nutritional Information for Ocean Spray Cranberries:

Here's the recipe!

Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Ingredients:

2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 5-ounce package Ocean Spray® Craisins® Original Dried Cranberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chunks or chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375ºF.

Using an electric mixer, beat butter or margarine and sugar together in a medium mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, mixing well. Combine oats, flour, baking soda and salt in a separate mixing bowl. Add to butter mixture in several additions, mixing well after each addition. Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate chunks.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack.

Makes approximately 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

**Have you visited the Cranberry Bog this year at the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival?

For more information on Ocean Spray Cranberries be sure to check out OceanSpray.com. 

**Disclaimer:  I was provided by Ocean Spray some of the ingredients that were used in this recipe review.

 All thoughts and opinions are my own.