Hey everyone! Greetings from sunny Florida! Yesterday was the start of the Disney Princess Half Weekend, and I just had to be there on opening day of the expo! Since this is my first half marathon ever, I knew that I was going to go hard at the Official Merchandise tent plus I needed a sparkly red headband for my costume! We woke up at 5:30, left Savannah by 6:30, and arrived in Orlando by 11:00, only 1 hour after the expo opened!
It’s getting so real now!
I was absolutely shocked by how many people were there that early and I was honestly worried that things were going to be sold out already! Seriously, I have never seen that many cars before. I was almost running across the parking lot and dragging my husband the whole way! First stop was bib pickup in HP Field House. I was so excited and overwhelmed that I forgot to take pictures here, but there was no one in line for bibs and pickup was a breeze!
RunDisney was giving out “My First Half Marathon” pins at their expo booth! Totally wearing that all weekend!
I then ran over to the very small Official Merchandise tent in the middle of the Field House. There was a good selection of items (about half of what was available in the main Official Merchandise tent) but all I bought here was the 1/2 marathon full zip jacket because I was worried it would be sold out at the main expo! This is the #1 thing I wanted to get here and I’m in love with it! It fits perfectly and I can see myself wearing this all the time!
Cute saying on the back!
Next we walked over to the main expo building in the Jostens Center. It was totally crazy over here! Not only was shirt/bag pickup over here, all of expo vendors were here as well, including a much larger Official Merchandise tent! This is where all the crowds were!
View from the top of the stairs!
I made a beeline for the Official Merchandise area to stock up on as many princess items as I could find! And I think I did pretty well!
SO EXCITED to get everything I wanted! When I posted this pic on Facebook everyone mentioned how bored people look in the background! It was a loooooong line!
The coveted I Did It shirt!
The race route with mile marker crowns!
Official Disney Sweaty Band! They had at least 4 variations for the 1/2 marathon, this one was my favorite though!
I’m a sucker for large mugs and this one was so cute!
I managed to spend quite a bit of money but I seriously can’t wait to wear this stuff around after my half! I’m going to be that obnoxious girl wearing half marathon stuff all the time now! I did control myself though – there were also super cute travel mugs, wine classes, hats, Disney Bondi Bands, and race-specific drifit shirts. After waiting in line for about 15 minutes I paid and then headed over to the race shirt area. Once again there were no lines and I was even able to exchange my shirt for one that fit me better without any issues!
After taking care of all of the serious business, I took my time and slowly checked out the rest of the expo. I bought a Bondi Band and a Sparkly Soul red glittery headband for my costume, but was able to resist most of the other stuff! By that point my wallet was crying and both Andrew and I were starving, so we left around 12:30. I was impressed with my overall experience and was so happy with all of my purchases! If you’re headed there today/tomorrow have a blast and hopefully there’s some merchandise left!
One last thing: I ran my last pre-race run last night! It was a crazy moment because my next run will be my half marathon! I did 3.1 miles and even though I’m a little achey now, I’m thinking it’s because of all the sitting I’ve been doing over the last few days. At least I hope that’s what it is! I’ll be foam rolling like crazy over the next few days as well as hydrating nonstop. I drank so much water today but it’s definitely necessary in this heat!
Are you going to the Fit For A Princess expo? What’s your must-have item?
Get ready to wear your half marathon gear all the time! I’m currently wearing both my “I Did It” shirt and jacket that I got at the expo last month. Have a blast this weekend!
Yay! I’ll be wearing this stuff all the time! I wonder if I can get away with wearing my jacket to work…
Good luck on your race! You worked that expo like a champ!
Thanks! It’s thanks to everyone who wrote awesome detailed expo blog entries from past races! I knew I had to get there on day 1 and prioritize things 🙂
Good luck!!!!
I plan to have the same I-must-buy-and-wear-all-the-things-always meltdown at the race expo for my half Ironman in June. I’m sure the amount of swiping my credit takes will melt a hole through it, but it’ll be worth it.
Yeah I was getting frantic during the last 20 minutes of our drive. My husband was staring at me like I was insane but he clearly doesn’t understand. I need to wear proof that this happened!
I am so excited for you! I am also coveting that zip jacket! I hope you have so much fun and I cannot wait to see more from your trip!!
Thanks! Yeah that zip up jacket is the greatest thing I’ve ever bought.
That mug with the “Run like it’s midnight” is precious! How exciting!
I know right? I cut coffee out of my diet this past week to keep myself from getting dehydrated, so I’ll be drinking tons of coffee out of that mug in the next few weeks!
Good Luck! You’ll have a blast. I ran it last year and loved every minutes. Smart thing you got to the expo early. I went to the expo the 2nd day last year and everything was already gone!
Oh no! I don’t understand why they don’t just make more merchandise so everyone can get some?
The expo looks like so much fun! You deserve all those nice treats after all this winter training. You will do amazing in the race. Enjoy!
Thank you! I definitely used that as an excuse 🙂 I’m also planning on eating the most insane breakfast ever tomorrow because I totally deserve it!
I LOVE that sweatshirt! I love everything for that matter. Disney is so awesome. You are going to do so well! Just enjoy it and have fun!
Thanks! I’m trying to be less worried and more excited!
What a great expo and that jacket is BEAST! I love it! I would have spent way too much money too. That stuff is all so cute!
I know! I really had to resist some of the stuff because I wanted everything! I really wanted a car magnet but since my husband has to drive my car most of the time he drew the line at that 🙂 Which was fine with me since everything cost so much!
Good luck! You’re going to kill it.
Thanks!
i’m so excited for you! i would go crazy in that merch tent; disney and running things are two things i already over-buy separately, so put together would be amazing. can’t wait to hear about how the race goes!
I actually had to avoid the Raw Threads tent and a few other tents that also had Disney-themed running outfits because I couldn’t buy anything else! It was all so cute though!
Wow, you went to town at the expo. Looks like fun. We hit it up today. Have fun tomorrow. Beware the humidity. 🙂
I hope you were able to find lots of stuff! I am definitely worried about the humidity but I’ve been hydrating like crazy so I hope that helps!
I found the goodies I was looking for so I’m happy. I’m hitting the water like crazy also. It’ll all be good. 🙂
runDisney expos are the BEST! And I LOVE that jacket you bought! Super cute!