Rebel Runner

I did it! 

I am a Rebel and I went against what basically everyone said and I participated in and completed the runDisney Rebel Challenge.

For those of you who don't know, I was basically on bed rest due to a torn peroneal tendon from October 14th until January 5th. I was given the okay to go back to work on January 14th (the day I flew to California) but had the race vacation already booked and HR let me go on as planned. 

The title of this post is misleading. I didn't run the challenge. I walked the 5K, the 10K, and the 1/2 marathon. There were tears and a LOT of cursing. I ended up back in a wheelchair for days but was able to return to work as scheduled. 

When I hit the wall during the half and felt like I just couldn't keep going, I thought about my mom. She had diabetic neuropathy and was in agony every time she took a step. She used to say her feet burned and had pins and needles and hurt but were numb at the same time and I didn't understand. Well, now I do. I realized that even when she was at the very end of her life she was in pain and yet she didn't give up and fought so hard to the very end. I knew that if she could have taken one more step she would have and almost felt that I owed those steps to her. 

I was never athletic growing up. I tried, but I don't really like to sweat and I have asthma and fibromyalgia and really really like laying down. My mom was an athlete. She played tennis against Billie Jean King. I always felt like I disappointed her a bit even when I was named captain of the cheer squad.

I don't think she'd be disappointed this time. 

What keeps you going when you just don't think you could take another step? 

Progress

This is a side by side of January 2009 and January 2014.

I have been on and off the weightloss bandwagon since 2006. I never really tried anything serious and always have up.

Being depressed makes it hard to follow through with things and being over weight makes me depressed. The cycle felt never ending.

To be honest, I've been sick since sometime in 2013. A few ER visits, CT scans, blood tests, ultra sounds, and a recent hospital stay over New Year's Eve with biopsies, surgical procedures etc and I still don't know what I'm sick with.

It's depressing. 

So instead of laying in bed and being miserable I decided to "look on the sunny side" and use this mystery illness as a jump point for my weight loss journey. 

I will find some photos that are a bit more recent to show you the real current progress with the weight but these photos serve a different purpose. 

Look at me on the left. I'm in Disney for the first time in over a decade and while I was ecstatic to be there Inhated having my picture taken. I think it shows. 

Look at me on the right. I look like a totally different person. 

I feel like a different person. 

I am on my way to being the LADY I've always wanted to be, MYSELF. 

I did it!

I went from being lazy to being a lady with a race medal!

This month I accomplished something that no one, including myself, ever thought I would let alone could do.

I ran. In a race. I finished. I didn't even come in last. The craziest part? I enjoyed it so much that I plan on doing more races and running further! 

What made it even more amazing to me was that I completed the race exactly 1 week after being released from the hospital. I have been sick. Not "omg I'm dying" sick, but sick enough that I have been having blood tests, ultra sounds, cat scans, and more invasive tests since September. I spent New Year's Eve and New Year's Day (as well as some time before and after) in the hospital.

Crossing that finish line was such an incredible feeling. There are no words that I know that can accurately describe it. The moment after I crossed the finish line and was handed my finisher's medal I became so overwhelmed with emotion that I cried. 

I want to thank all of you who have accompanied me on this journey. Thank you for the support, for the laughs, for everything. I hope you will continue on with me because I'm still lazy, and this lady still has a long way to go.

Personalized Disney Subway Art: Review & Giveaway

Hello everyone! I am running a contest on my other blog Lady In Wonderland.

It is for an awesome Disney inspired piece of "subway art" from Nicocallie on Etsy.

I fell instantly in love with this piece when I saw it on Etsy. It's so cute, modern, chic, and yet, classic in it's design and the Disney couples made me melt a little. I loved the idea of including Lord Hill and I in that roster so to speak.

For more pictures, and to enter to win your very own FREE custom Disney inspired frame, visit this post on Lady in Wonderland.

You can purchase your own personalized Disney couples subway art HERE. Mention the code Wonderland10 to receive 10% off the base price of the frame. 

I made a very big decision a few weeks ago. I decided to follow a star and take a chance on a dream. Maybe wishes can come true like my pal Jiminy Cricket says...

For years, I have been the "Disney go to gal" for friends and family (and even their friends) who were planning a trip to Walt Disney World, or who had questions about the parks and resorts in general. My family loving refers to me as the "Disney freak in the family" and I'm a self proclaimed "Disney Junkie".

I had started my Lady In Wonderland blog as a way to make productive use of my love and knowledge of all things Disney. It has been so much fun sharing my finds, deals, and photos with everyone. I love sharing our stories and experiences at the parks and hotels. Yet, it just didn't seem to fill the space I was looking for. I don't know how to explain it, but something just felt "off" or like it was missing.

Since my mom passed away I have been thinking a LOT about things I could have done, should have done, how life is so short, and that I'm wasting my potential and about how I wish I could have done something by now that she could have been proud of job wise.

Then, in a dream it hit me. I spoke to my husband as soon as I woke up, talked to some friends, and within days I had found my calling.

I am so excited, and proud to announce that I am officially an approved Disney Vacation Planner.

I'm an independent travel consultant for MickeyVacations.com. I finished the Disney training last week and ordered my marketing materials today.

I figured the best place to share this kind of news would be with fellow Disney lovers because you'll understand just how much it means to be "official".

If you have any questions about Disney World, Disneyland, the Disney Cruise Line, or Adventures by Disney, PLEASE do not hesitate to ask. If you'd like to book a vacation, I'd be happy to help, but if you just have questions, that is fine too. I will be sharing the special offers I receive over on my Lady In Wonderland blog as well as on my website and Facebook page. I would really appreciate it if you liked the Facebook page and told your friends and family to do the same.

Thank you for all of your support! I look forward to taking this next step on my journey and I'm glad you can all come along for the ride.

TWINS!! - (The surprise from last week!)

I'm sure that some of you are anxiously awaiting to see just what I was so excited about in this post from Friday.
I would like to introduce you all to the two newest members of our family!

Alice and Dinah are 6 weeks old and I am smitten with my new kittens. I bet you will be too.  Alice is the  orange/tortoise short hair(the one in the back) and Dinah is the gray long hair (the one in the front).

This is the day we decided to let the little love smooshies join our family. Can you tell that I am quite happy with this decision?

Princess Jasmine met her new sisters and is quite happy. Although, she is a bit too excited and doesn't realize how much bigger she is than them. We are trying to teach her that kittens, are not toys, no matter how small and squeaky they are. This lesson is proving to be difficult considering the fact that Alice's favorite spot to sleep is Jasmine's toy box.

 

Well, that's all for now. We're all a bit exhausted from our long weekend of getting adjusted. Sleep tight my pets!

 

Do you have any pets? If you'd like to show them off, email photos of your furbabies to me at fromlazytolady(at)gmail(dot)com and they will appear in future blog posts!

Lady In Wonderland

I'm very excited to announce the launch of a new project of mine.

Lady In Wonderland is my new Disney themed blog. I will be posting updates, travel tips, recipes, reviews, pictures, and more. 

I really hope you will stop by and join me on my adventure. I am also looking for guest bloggers for that blog.
Topics should be limited to a Disney theme but can include things like recipes, crafts, decorating tips, games, movie reviews, product reviews, travel tips, photo posts and more. Please contact me at fromlazytolady(at)gmail(dot)com, or on Twitter at @ladyNwonderland to discuss!

Can't Catch A Break

my poor mom, can't catch a friggin break. She is back in the hospital after having a very bad scare a few weeks ago. For those of you who are new to the blog, my mom is battling stage IV melanoma. She is participating in a drug trial that has had some amazing results. I couldn't be happier about how well that treatment is working.

Unfortunately, it is a chemo treatment and has weakened her immune system. She is in the hospital with shingles and will probably be there about a week if everything goes well. Hopefully she will be home in time for Easter dinner and if we're lucky maybe she will be home for Good Friday for our traditional shrimp dinner with the whole family.

Here is a picture of me, my mom, and my dad taken a couple of weeks ago when we were on vacation in Florida. This was taken on the Characters In Flight balloon ride at Downtown Disney.

Please say a prayer for my mom.

Blessed

It's so easy to sit around and feel sorry for yourself. To sit and say "oh my, I'm so tired, work is kicking my butt, I have no time for my friends, I have no time to cook, I have no time to go see my mom. Wah, whoa is me"

I would like to take a minute and say that I am truly blessed.
2010 was a really hard year for me. My mom's cancer, losing my job, losing Tango, family drama, dealing with fibromyalgia... you name it, it sucked.
I really let it get to me. I got to the point where I just couldn't take any more, had a major panic attack and almost ended up back in the hospital because of it.

2011 is going to be different. My mom still has cancer, I still miss Tango, and I'm still bitter about what happened at my last job. The difference will be with me, and how I respond and react to my life. 2011 is going to be about positive attitudes.

Thank God, I have a job.
Thank God, I have friends. Great friends. This might be the first time in my life when I can actually say that and mean it.
Thank God, I have food in my fridge and do not need to go hungry.
Thank God, my mom is still here. I am so grateful for every minute that God gives me with her.
Thank God, I have family that loves me. Drama or not, I never have to question whether I am loved.
Thank God for my daddy. He is my rock. 
Thank God for giving me the years I had with Tango. For letting me help him know what it felt like to be loved. For giving me a little ball of unconditional love in return. For teaching me patience. For bringing me to a point in my life where I would get Jasmine.
Thank God for Jasmine. Without her, I may never have gotten out of my funk last year. She has given me a reason to get out of bed every morning.
Thank God for Petey and Bella and McDuff. My children.  Fur, or feathers, paws, or claws, my loves.
Thank God, for Disney World. For at least 8 days a year I get to just be. I get to live in my fantasy land, and be the Princess I know I am, see the world, and be a kid again.

Thank God for my amazing husband, who can always make me laugh, and makes me feel like a princess every single day.

What are you thankful for? Do you think your attitude can impact your future?

Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

I know that I've been MIA lately. I promise it's for good reason. As much as my blogging has suffered, my routines have suffered more. That ends tonight. 

My sink is shined. 

My lunch is packed.

My clothes are picked out.

My purse and work stuff is at my launching pad.

I am now drinking a cup of sleepy time tea and will hopefully be drifting off to sleep soon.

I have a few giveaways coming up. One of which isn't what some would call exciting, but it's health related and I think it's super helpful.  The other is for a company I have worked with in the past and am very excited about working with again.

I'd also really like to get some book reviews posted but I have the memory of a goldfish and if I don't write down the points I want to cover while reading the book, they rarely get written at all. I was thinking maybe I'll just post a quick personal review of why I did or didn't like a book and a really brief synopsis maybe even stolen from the publisher so at least you have some information about it. What do you think?

Lord Hill and I just got back from Walt Disney World. It's my home away from home. I always hate having to leave there and find myself feeling homesick when we return. Jasmine spent the week at my parents' house with my dad babysitting her. She LOVES him. He didn't think she'd want to come back to us! But she did. She is the cutest. Here's the most recent photo I have of her:

I want to start a Disney related blog but I'm worried I would spend all of my time writing about and researching Disney and then never get anything else accomplished b/c I'm THAT obsessed with it as it is. I can see it in my future... would you like to see my future?

 

Oh Spaceship Earth how I miss you....

Okay folks. That's all I've got for now. I'll be sure to make some posts this weekend and maybe even write a few in advance. I miss all of you and I'm trying to keep up with everyone's blog. If you have a post you think I must see or you want my readers to see please leave a link in the comments section!

Trendy Treehouse Shutter Love Tuesday - "Vacations"

Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Speak No Evil