Engagement Photos October 2011

So in love are we two just can't wait to say.... "I do"

Al and I decided it was time. We have been talking about getting married for a few months now. I think we both know what we want and we are more than ready! I know that he is who I want to be the father of my children. I know he is who I want to commit too. I know there are a million corny cheesy cliche things I can say. All I know is I have never been more sure of anything. He is the one who I want to share my life with, he is what matters most, he is the "one". Love you babe!

Everything for our engagement came at a time when my best friend is getting ready to marry her guy! Al and I had were planning on waiting until right after their wedding to make our announcement. I just saw no reason to mention it quite yet since their wedding was a week away. I felt like it was her time and wanted all the spotlight on her. At Wendys Bachelorette party, I mentioned to a friend of ours that Al and I were getting engaged but we were keeping it hush hush. Wendys parents and her fiance Lee's family were all arriving in a few days for her shin-dig and I know she was super stressed! They had only 3 months to get everything put together for their wedding, plus having out of town visitors!! I was pretty excited since it was my first time being in a wedding; I wanted to make sure everything went well! We had a big rehersal dinner at a friends house. The dinner was really nice and we all got a chance to meet each other and over all the wedding plans. Much to my disapointment, a friend of Wendys got wind of our news and decided to spill the beans at dinner. I was actually so angry and embarrased that he would do that. He joked about saying it earlier in the evening and I repeatadly told him not too. It was not the time or the place. I also wanted to be the one to tell her. When he started to announce it I was in total shock. This was my news to annouce, while his intentions were really good. I knew Wendy would be upset. I have known her for along time and I know that was not how she wanted to hear it. I was actually really bugged by this for a few days and even felt like I owed them an apology. I really don't like how you have something all planned out the way you want it to go and you truly have the best of intentions, but it gets all screwed up. So instead of getting upset I just decided that whatever happens...happens for a reason. I just truly felt it was not the time or the place to make an announcement like that. However we are all in love and happy soo who really cares in the end. All that matters is love...right?

We picked out our rings about a week before and I was dying to wear mine!! We made the announcement "officially" the next day. We are so very happy. Our life is wonderful and more than I have ever imagined. It's so many simple things that bring me such joy! I love our decision that we made together....to spend our lives together always.

7/14/2011
Wendy and Lee Wedding Girdwood
The wedding was so great. All the stress and work they put in sure paid off. Even though we were gluing jewels on shoes the morning of; it all turned out perfect. I haven't gotten to spend much time with them as a couple but they really seem happy. I have known Wendy literally forever. I think her and Lee have so much to look forward too. They have had some really tough obstacles to overcome....like a freakin ocean between them for over a year. If they can make it through that then it must be love! I am going to let them enjoy their married life for a bit, but hope to see them more in the future. It was really cool to have her parents here too. I haven't seen them in about 8 years! The photographer, my fiance, was so great! Their pictures turned out so amazing! Here are a few....

Kodaik Crab Festival

We are heading to Kodiak! I have been wanting to do this trip for a long time. It was on my Alaska bucket list. I am actually crossing off things on my AK bucket list way too quick! I have been more places here than most people that have lived here their whole lives! Kodaik is pretty well known for it's heavy rain so we were expecting the worst! The morning our plane landed it was drzzling. We took a $20 cab ride to our B and B. There is a hillside area above Downtown with about 20 houses on it. Ours was at the top! The lady who owns the house is the sweetest person! She got us all settled in. We decided to head down and get some breakfast since it was only 9am. We walked down the Mcdonald's. Mmm what a treat. We don't ever eat fast food! After that we walked through the downtown area. We found a visitors center and the grocery store. There isn't much there. Oooh I almost forgot the best part. The sun came out around noon and didn't leave almost the entire weekend!

The trip was awesome except for one little flaky kayak lady. I booked a month in advance for a kayak trip to see whales. We woke up at 6 am all dressed in rain gear and headed to the stop I thought flaky lady was picking us up. We waited for 1/2 an hour and no sign of her! We trudged back up the hill and got back into bed. I was pretty bummed because this was the one thing I wanted to spend my money on while we were there! She totally flaked out!! Argh! Oh well there is always next time! We saw some fun music, ate lots of crab, and watched a cool Coast Guard demo! One day I will come back with our kids to enjoy this fun weekend again!

Vegas, Utah, Oregon!

Our vacation was so awesome. An entire 10 days spent with my love. I turned 29 in Las Vegas and spent some time with some awesome friends. We drove to Zion National Park for 3 days and had so much fun! On our way home we stopped in Oregon for a quick visit with Al's family. I really love Oregon, maybe we will live there someday. I was excited to show Al Vegas because he ahs never been. We stayed at the Luxor which was kind of a dump, but who cares? You never spend time in your room anyway! We went to a Cirque show and the Knights at Excalibur! We also saw a topless show at the Excalibur, which was actually my favorite show. There was a hilarious comedian and the host was an awesome singer! We ate yummy food, got our Yogurtland fix, and fought through the crowds. 3 days in Vegas is MORE than enough.We even managed to win a little money! We got our rental car and headed for Zion national Park in Utah. We stopped the "The Valley of Fire" which was pretty cool! My friend Ashley also took us too Red Rock which I liked better. The drive to Zion was pretty long. We passed through a pretty big town called St. George Utah which looked pretty neat. It was starting to get dark when we finally arrived at the entry way to the Park. I figured our place had to be getting close. We stopeed to ask someone along the way how "close" we were. We were told that our ranch was on the other side of the park and we were still an hour away. I was sooo tired and couldn't believe ti would be another hour! We trudged on through the park. Luckily the last hour was one of the coolest drives I have ever been on. The park was so beautiful and there are long windy roads all through it. It was dusk and the sunset on the mountains was beautiful! We finally arrive at the ranch around 8pm and are starving! The next few days we spent hiking around and exploring the park. It was a blast!!! I love exploring new places! We took tons of pictures! Al is quite the photographer!

We headed back to Vegas for one last night. Al really wanted to see Penn and Teller so we stayed at the RIO (where their show is). This hotel is an all suite hotel and $50 bucks a night; it will be my choice if I ever go back! We went to a Seafood buffet and ended our Vegas experience with Penn and Teller. They were Ok. Off to Eaugene Oregon we went at 5 am!

We grabbed our rental car and drove to Al's Mom's house. We had a great visit with her! We drove to Kings Estate Winery out in the country. We did a wine tasting and bought some to take home. Later that night we took Sue (Al's mom) to the movies. We saw "True Grit" and it was fantastic! We visited a bit with his Grandparents too. Back to Alaska we go. Until next time we meet! So thankful for everything and everyone that made our trip special!

29 years have passed.....

Well I made it to 29 a week ago. Alfred and I celebrated my birthday in Las Vegas. We also went to Zion National Park and stopped in Oregon as well. We always have the most wonderful time on vacation. I think it's mostly because we enjoy each others company so much and vacation means no work to distract us from each other. I also got 3 glorious weeks off from work which I desperately needed. My most wonderful friend from San Diego drove over to see me in Vegas for my birthday. I have knowen her since 9th grade and it is always nice to see her! I also have a good friend that lives there who was nice enough to let us all stay at her house! Ashley is a friend I met in Alaska a few years ago. She is the sweetest person and a huge animal lover. We enjoyed playing with her Chihuahua's and Sphynx cats! Her husband Steven is in the military which is why they moved to Vegas! Love this couple and am thankful to know them! We all went to lunch at The Yard House and had a great time. Birthdays aren't quite as fun as you get older, but it means a lot to see people that I don't get to see that often. It was a really nice trip and I am so glad we went!

Christmas and New Years 2010

What an end to a fabulous year, the best year ever in fact!! Let me try to list some of the cool things that happened. Bought a house, met the man of my dreams (and beyond), bestie got engaged, took 3 amazing vacations, kept up with working out all year. The weird part is the year started off on lonley note. However, it quickly became the most amazing time of my life. I am so proud of the choices I have made to make myself a better person. I plan to continue and set some new goals for 2011. Christmas was nothing short of wonderful. Alfred and I had dinner at his new house on Christmas Eve. We spent the entire day cooking and enjoying the new puppy. I haven't blogged in so long that I forgot to mention that we got the pup!!! He has been lots of work, but we love him. Hopefully he can have a sister soon! We made an amazing Prime Rib for dinner and had a few of Al's family/friends over. I really miss my family at the holidays, hoping to maybe go home next year for Christmas or Thanksgiving. Al and I exchanged gifts Christmas morning and had a blast. I really loved giving gifts, but the best part was getting to spend the day together. Alfred put so much thought into his gifts for me. I loved everything and I love him even more. I could go on and on about how wonderful he is and how lucky I am, but I will try to restrain myself for now. New Years was pretty cool we went to see Black Swan which was generally strange and weird and kind of interesting. The cool part was that the municipality of Anchorage let everyone shoot off fireworks in town this year. We came out of the movie and it was like the entire city was a fireworks show...they were EVERYWHERE!! So cool. We tried to make some plans to go out, but it is just so much of a hassle. We stayed in, made some drinks, and snuggled on the couch instead. An awesome end to a truly awesome year. I truly feel like everything is perfect and I am honestly happy. I can't wait for the rest of my life...I feel like it's just beginning and I am ready to get started!! We have a pretty amazing 2011 planned so far. Starting with a trip in March Oregon, Utah, Vegas!!! Summer is going to be awesome. I am hoping to buy a travel trailer for camping adventures. We have tickets for the 2011 Kodiak Crab Fest!! We are going to be working out hopefully a little harder getting ready for our runs and maybe a triatholon or two next summer. I really need to be more diligent and spend more time at the gym. I am stuck on 170lbs and would like to lose 10 more. I have a feeling it means longer harder work outs :(, but I am ready! Well, I guess that's all for now....ADIOS 2010...you will always be remembered.