The Disney Chica

A frequent topic of discussion in my family during the weeks since Hurricane Maria ravaged my mother’s native island of Puerto Rico is the fact that, although I have been to Hawaii frequently in the last decade, I have never once been to Puerto Rico. I grew up my entire life listening to my parents tell stories about life in PR, and it was my dream to take the whole family on vacation one day when I finally "made it" so that they could relive their childhood and show us everything first-hand. I felt guilty that I have shared a decade of beautiful experiences with my daughter in Hawaii, where she has learned about both the native culture and American history, and I have yet to take her to the island where her grandparents are from. It was upon remembering this particular day in Hawaii at Pearl Harbor that I stopped feeling guilty about my travels to Honolulu and started feeling thankful and blessed for what I have been able to share with my daughter and what Hawaii has given us.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Great Mall. All thoughts and opinions are my own

My first race of Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend was the Disneyland® 5K presented by Cigna®. I was super excited and anxious about running with actor David Chocarro. He is a huge celebrity in my Latinx community and I was a complete bundle of nerves from the moment I received the news that I'd be running with him. I worried about the heat, humidity, my pace and whether or not David would be completely bored running beside me.

On Labor Day I returned home from an amazing 5-day Disneyland trip where I celebrated my birthday during Disneyland® Half Marathon Weekend presented by Cigna®. I was immediately forced to deal head-on with the stress of work & worry brought upon our family due to Hurricane Irma