Off to the races

Miss me? Sorry for the dry spell. I’ll get back to the toys & gear in just a minute, but first some exciting news. I just came back from Orlando, where we inaugurated our newest Magic Beans initiative, Team Beans at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend. I, along with my father-in-law and sister-in-law ran a half marathon, while my husband conquered twice the distance. We ran under the Magic Beans banner, and we raised nearly $10,000 for the National MS Society.

A year ago, if you’d told me I could run 13.1 miles, I would have laughed. Until April, I’d never run in my life. Many miles later, I’m still learning the ropes, but I’m having a blast. We joined an estimated 32,000 runners at Disney World, and the exhiliration of running in the midst of such a crowd must be experienced to be understood.

I want to recognize the people who made this journey possible, and who supported Team Beans during their first event. First, to Dara Kelly, who trained both me and my husband for the race. She is a dynamo and one heck of a great coach. If you live in the Boston area, you must check out her fitness classes for new moms – go to ppodfitness.com for more information.

Next, to all of those who sponsored our team, friends, family members and business partners. When we offered corporate sponsorships to some of our vendors, we weren’t expecting a huge response. But we were astonished by the eagerness and generosity of these companies. Our primary sponsor was Mountain Buggy USA. Valco Baby and Stokke were major sponsors, and Maclaren, Melissa & Doug, Mustela, Robeez, Skip Hop, Sunshine Kids and Tiny Love were all corporate sponsors.

And last, but certainly not least, to our families, many of whom came down to Florida to cheer us on, and most especially to Eli’s father, the veteran runner who inspired us all to hit the road, and my mother, whose ongoing fight with MS has made this experience so very poignant for all of us.

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