First off, this is Jonathan. :) He's the guy I can do crazy, silly, stupid stuff with and he keeps me around anyway. Ya, I kinda sorta like him a lot.
For our first date he took me to the Gateway Mall where we stuck clothespins to people, praying they wouldn't notice until after we took off. Who does that? I knew he'd be a keeper if he was up for crazy stuff like that.
Next up: the Disneyland TinkerBell Half Marathon!
Holy cow, this was an experience I'll never forget. I ran, and ran, and RAN! I was just praying I'd cross the finish line rather than be picked up by the golf cart and be carried across. I started out with the mindset of "just run for the first mile, then you can take a short walk break", but instead I was pushed along with the others. I didn't want to look like a quitter. I kept running with the pack! (Plus, the millions of encouraging words that hit me from all sides helped out a bit as well!) I kept running and running. I probably didn't stop running for 5 miles before it was time to slow down a little.
The course was amazing. We got to visit some of my favorite memories... We ran backstage, weaved through the park, and tore through downtown Anaheim, including right past my old apartment building. As the sun came up and we got a little toasty we didn't stop. We wouldn't stop! So what if we're exhausted? So what if we get a little red? We kept running strong!
Mile 11: The longest I had run previous to the race. It became my most hated enemy. My feet started to hurt, but was I going to let that stop me? No flipping way! I had come so far, there was no way I was going to let a little thing like pain slow me down. I pushed through the pain. I ran harder! Mile 12: One more to go! Push it, girl! Mile 13: So close! Just a teeny tiny bit more now! 13.1!!! FINISH LINE! I crossed with my head held high, and my feet on fire. I had just accomplished something that not many people can say they've done and some people can and will never be able to do. All it took was a little faith, trust, and pixie dust.
And I didn't just finish. I came out 6789 of 10213 finishers. My goal was 3 hours 30 minutes, but my official race time came out 3 hours, 3 minutes! Definitely one of my best memories that I will cherish for an eternity!
So what have I been up to since then? I've been doing a lot of pondering about the upcoming summer and next school year. I have decided to keep living in Provo, rather than moving to Salt Lake. I've been looking for a new apartment, and I've found a great one. I will be living at Carriage Cove in a private room, paying almost the same amount as living at Raintree in a shared room. There are so many reasons to switch and I'm so glad I've found a place that will be so great for me.
Oh ya, one more thing: I just got back from ANOTHER Disneyland vacation. :) I know I'm spoiled. This year, because it was a leap year, Disneyland came up with an amazing promotion: "One More Disney Day". That one extra day of the year turning into 24 extra hours of Disney magic! The park was open February 29 at 6 am to March 1 at 6 am. (I wasn't one of those crazy people who spent the entire 24 hours there.)
My parents, 2 cousins (1 with his family), aunt, grandma, Jonathan, and I drove down to Anaheim, and spent 4 amazing days at the park. We saw the amazing fireworks, rode almost every ride we wanted (excluding the monorail, omnibus, and the swings), visited Mickey Mouse, watched World of Color, and my favorite: Fantasmic! (at a special showing at 1:00 AM!)
And it was even better than the typical Disney magic. I was there with the most amazing guy. We had so much fun! I'm glad I found someone that can be almost as crazy about Disney as I am (or at least that he supports my craziness). We had so much fun this week.
Now it's time to be back home, to get back to my "normal" life. Really, I know that my life will never be "normal". I have a wonderful life! I have a great family, an amazing boyfriend, and the best friends a girl could ask for. I love my life! I couldn't have asked for better, and I thank my Heavenly Father for it everyday.
