August started off with me getting back into coaching at Dimond High School. This marks my 3rd season with this amazing program. I am now the C1 coach, which is a bump up from the C2 position. One day, I will coach JV. I have been blessed with talented girls again. We are now 3 - 1. The loss was against a non-conference team, Palmer. Since they only had one C-Team, they brought down half their JV to play our C1 team. Although, just recently, we played South High, which is our #1 competitor. My girls played so amazing with great dynamic on the court. I was absolutely proud of them. Below is a photo proof of our team picture from Fitzgerald Photography. I am awaiting my print copy :)
Cory was in Utah for the first week of August for more training. He was able to load live bombs, which was exciting for him. I am so happy he is home! Here is a photo of him he sent to me while he was flying in a C-17. He just so darn handsome!
I had 2 weddings to photograph in the first weekend of August. The first couple (Tasha & Brandyn), I did not know, but come to find out they were our old neighbors when we lived at the Alpine Apartments. The second couple (Roberta & Colton), I did know the bride. Roberta and I have known each other since 8th grade. We were best friends then. It was such an honor photographing her wedding. I had a blast at both events. I also squeezed in a couples photo shoot (Kelsey & Randy) and a toddler shoot (Izabella). Here are some of the photos I took.
When Cory returned, we celebrated our 3rd year anniversary by going on a day cruise out of Whittier. It was really relaxing. We saw some wildlife, like sea lions, otters and seals. Wish we saw a whale though! That would of been ultimate. I can't believe it has been 4 years all together. I hope our marriage continues to grow strong. He is a great husband and his loyalty is far beyond any other.
I also got myself some new ink. I finally got the tattoo I have been thinking about since last fall, thanks to Cory's motivation. I am very happy I did it. It is the sun from the Philippines flag. Simply marked my heritage. I have received compliments on how unique it is. Tattoo done by Lui Talo at lilusotattoo.com
I also started my final semester as an undergraduate. I can't believe it. I am very close to finishing my Mathematics degree! After I graduate, I plan on enrolling in the spring or summer admission for the Masters in Teaching program. That program will take 3 more semesters and then I will finally be certified to teach. Next weekend, I plan on getting my application in for the MAT program. Wish me luck!
We ended the month going camping in Sutton with friends. We took our 4 wheeler out and saw a beautiful waterfall in the deep part of the valley. It was a muddy 12 mile ride. Unfortunately, I think we overrode our 4 wheeler and it is currently in the shop. It died down on us on the way back to camp and our friends had to tow us all the way back. Thank goodness we had 5 rides total. Never go 4-wheeling alone. There was also one part where it was really steep and Cory and I tipped over. It was so scary, I was afraid the 4 wheeler was going to tip and roll back the hill. We jumped off in time and I am glad neither of us got hurt. We were able to tip the 4 wheeler back on its wheels and continue our journey. We really need to invest in some helmets too. But alas, it was a fun time! Exhausting, but worth it.
Yes we did, we bought a 4 wheeler and took it out with friends to Hatchers Pass. We went through rivers, deep mud, and prowled on rocks. I am so proud of this machine. Money well spent. Cory found this beast on craigslist and got a great deal on it. He has been wanting to get a 4 wheeler for awhile. Now that we have a garage to store one in, then we are set! We plan to get another one probably next year. It sure is great transportation to get us to beautiful places where no one has been.
We went clam digging for our first time in Ninilchik, which is 3.5 hours south of Anchorage. The first night Cory and I thought we knew what we were doing, but were totally clueless. We only caught 3 and the limit is 60 per day. We knew what to look for in the sand, it was just that we were not digging with the right technique. Well if we had done it right, we probably would of caught a lot more. We tried again the second day after camp and among the 4 of us we got 40. Yum Yum! It was a blast camping. I love camping and I wish we could do it more often. We took our 4 wheeler out again to get us to hot spots on the beach far away from camp. Here we are with our friends, Cory and Amelie Cummings. My friend, Crystal also came down and brought her new puppy, Sol. I wish I could go again when the tides are super low in August, but I will have weddings to photograph. It is just so fun digging for them. It is like a treasure hunt!
My colleague, Deanna, invited me to go hike Flat Top with her. I was absolutely glad to. I am proud of her for taking on this mountain. It was a fun time and it was my first time hiking my favorite mountain this year. I'd hike this mountain once a week if I had more time. It is a great work out and quite beautiful.
Julie, my cousin, graduated with her Medical Assisting certificate from the Alaska Career College. We are all so proud of her. She did this as a mother and working. She stayed up late studying constantly and on top of that finished with a high GPA. She is now applying for jobs as an MA and I wish her luck. Cory came to her graduation and had us all yell "GO JULIE" when she went up. Julie was chosen to speak for her class and her speech was heart warming and to the point. She even made her mom cry. Too bad Cory had to go back to work, but we were glad he came during his lunch break. Julie, you rock and keep it up. Keep inspiring our family.
Well this Saturday Cory leaves to Witchita, TX for training. He will be gone until the 28th, which is two weeks. Since we were dating, we have been so lucky not getting shipped away. This will be the first time apart. When he gets back from Texas, he will have 6 days at home and then he is off to Utah for a week for more training. Pretty bummed he will be gone for a third of the summer now. I plan on keeping busy while I am at home and I hope to catch a lot of salmon too!
Wow so June has been so so busy! First of all, we finally bought a house and got all moved in. Cory and I are so happy with our new 3 bedroom, 2 bath, and 2 car garage home! On top of that we met our "attached" neighbors and they are super cool cats. They are both in their late 20's and I am so glad we get along great.
Cory and I moved in June 15. That morning was spent packing up our little apartment and right when we got the keys we started painting the inside of our condo. Every wall was white and now we have nice colored accent walls. We have never painted walls before and I didn't realize how hard it is. It is just a repetitive process to get the right color. We had to put at most 3 coats on some walls. After painting, we grabbed a friend, my brother, and a U haul to move our belongings. I couldn't believe how much stuff we had and now everything is spread out in our nice condo. I am so proud of Cory for his hard work in getting us a home. He has done some projects already at home, like make shelves in the garage, paint more coats on some walls, added shelves in the office and what not. Here are some pictures of the inside of our home. This place totally beats our one bedroom apartment we lived in for 3 years. How rewarding it is to save money and finally buy a home of our own :)
Added shelves
Maroon master bedroom
Kitchen with coffee brown
Living room with painted orange fire place
Orange dining room
I ran the Run for Women which is a 5 mile annual race for breast cancer. It is a phenomenal event and I love running this course. I got my friend, Crystal, to do it with me. I am so proud of her for finishing. We had a blast and after we went to downtown to meet up with friends and my cousins at the Gay Pride festival. I have never been to the GP festival, but went because I was invited this time. We definitely got our carbs back eating gyros there. Yum yum! There was also a parade and people singing on stage, which were very good.
I also worked at NBC volleyball camp again, for my 6th year. It was a ton of fun as always. This year was different for me because I didn't coach, but instead was the directors assistant. I couldn't believe all the stuff involved behind the scenes. Like planning night meetings, planning intensity night, making sure the right of amount of supplies are on hand and etc. I was happy to help and loved giving back to NBC. This camp only lasts 5 days, but it sure feels like a month. Us staff are always on the go for the whole day! Super action packed and absolutely memorable.
A group of us drove down to Girdwood, which is 45 minutes south of Anchorage to hike the Winner Creek Trail. The trail ends at this beautiful gorge and a hand tram. Unfortunately, the hand tram was closed for repairs. The weather was great and so was the hike :)
On one of the super sunny days, Cory and I relaxed out with our little raft on Taku Lake. It was so nice to just relax and get out of the house. Oh yes, just got to take advantage of the sunny days. We also went to sushi right before this and it was super delicious! Our sushi spot is Haru Sushi because their rolls are the bomb!
On top of everything, I am taking two summer classes. One is an upper division statistics course called scientific sampling and the other is another upper division course called abnormal psychology. I needed one more upper division credit to graduate in December and I chose to take a fun elective, hence abnormal psychology. I am totally intrigued by both subjects. Once these classes are over, I will have 3 more classes to take in the fall and then I will receive my bachelor's degree. I cannot believe it!
My photography business has boomed this month as well with 5 weddings. Check out the photos here Epic Photography AK Blog. I love how I can still provide in our income by my business. I have been blessed that these strangers chose me to do their weddings. I have two more weddings in August.
This year has been a pretty eventful Memorial Day Weekend for us, which I am super happy for. Cory took Thursday and Friday off, which gave him a 5 day weekend. Work has been pretty demanding on him, in which he would of worked 12 days in a row (Reserves must work 1 weekend a month), but instead he cut that short. Which was good to rest.
The Premo Cabin
On Friday, we drove out to Kenai River where our friends, Banan & Crystal, knew a guy named Mark Premo to meet up with for some camping. Mark owns a very nice cabin out there right on the river. We loved his property and it gave us great ideas for a future cabin. They even had a pavilion to keep the fire going when it rains. When they first bought the property, 25 years ago, the spot had an outhouse and a small cabin, the size of a medium sized living room. It fits 2 bunk beds, which was where we slept. They use the original cabin as a guest house now. So, they later built a 2 story cabin next to the original cabin. That cabin was so nice and cozy. Gosh, it was perfect. It had a kitchen with bar counters, 2 bathrooms, and 2 large bedrooms. I was impressed when I heard they built and wired/plumbed it themselves, minus the frame work.
Under the Pavilion with the Kenai River behind us
Anyways, we had ourselves a good time for the first camping trip of the summer. We met Mark's son, Joe, and Joe's friend, Mike. They are school buddies. Very cool and chill fellas. We got to take advantage of a photo opportunity that was Cory's idea. They had a sweet, cute, yellow couch under the pavilion and Cory the idea to set it on the river rocks for a photo. Observe photo above.
My Bocce ball with the closest
they have ever seen next to the pallino
We had amazing steaks and vegetables that Banan & Mark grilled up. No lie, had to be the best steak I have ever had. No BBQ sauce needed since the seasoning was done so well. We mainly sat around the fire and played a new game to us called, Bocce ball (pronounced "baw-chee"). It is basically like shuffle board, but with these weighted color coded balls and a yard. The goal is to throw the weighted ball as close as you can to the pallino from a set throwing place. The pallino is a smaller, lighter ball that is usually a bright color for ease of spotting. First time to six points, wins the game. We played two sets in teams of two, minus Mark, who played solo. The team that lands the closest to the pallino obtains a point. You play to six points and the winner of each round gets to throw the pallino in a new spot. I found that game really entertaining. I will not forget how I impressed Cory with my throwing skills when I knocked Mark's ball out of the way to win a point.
The next morning (Saturday), lets just say we slept in until 11:00am. It is so hard to go to bed when your having fun and the sun is still up at midnight. We gathered our things and decided to pack up to head back home, hence the UFC fights were on that night. We thanked Mark for his hospitality. Can't wait to go back again with our friends.
Cory & Rovic haaving a blast on the trampoline
Chef Ken in the house
Well, my cousin, Junior, was having a BBQ for his birthday. He just turned 17 and he wanted a BBQ with the family for a celebration. When we got home from the Kenai, we unpacked, showered and headed straight over. When we arrived, there was lots of delicious food on the table outside. Ken had BBQ'd all of it and was still on the grill, impressive. Ken is my cousin's (Julie) boyfriend/babydaddy :) I was also happy to see "filipino-style" spaghetti on the table too that my Aunt made. The food was amazing and I ate so much, like it was Thanksgiving.
Cory jumped on the trampoline with the kids. It was hilarious. He was chasing them on all fours and the little kids were running around trying to stay away from him. From their screams and laughter, they were definitely enjoying his company. We also met Julie's new puppy, Reese's. Ken surprised her with a puppy just last week. So awesome to welcome that little fella into the family.
Cory ready to watch some UFC Fights with Reese's
We also ordered the fights there and most of us adults were watching the UFC fights. The fights were pretty good. Most of the cards were heavyweight fighters going against each other. It was like bulldozers colliding. We then called it a night and headed home. On the way home, we bought the movie, The Grey. Cory's favorite.. I swear he could watch that on repeat if he wanted.
So Sunday rolls around and we had planned to hike with our friends, Fiona and Larisa, out by Wasilla. Unfortunately, it was raining. We had to take a rain check on that one, which was a bummer. We were so excited to go hiking somewhere new. At least we have all summer. Instead, we did a couple things around the apartment. Cory took me out to a movie and we saw The Avengers, finally! I kid you not, we tried to see that movie twice before. Both times, there has been long long lines and we were like no thanks. So, now that the movie has been out for awhile, it was safe. Although, the theater still filled up slowly, but not like a chaotic opening week. I definitely enjoyed that flick. So much action! Plus it was comical seeing these superheros go into disputes, when all along they were supposed to work together. Great flick. We ended our night with ice cream in our laps and watching one of our favorite shows, Tough Love on VH1. Super entertaining.
Family
Cory giving Kadyn a lift
Monday we were welcomed to the sunshine and blue skies. What a great day to go fishing! Cory and I ate a filling breakfast, packed our chest waiters, packed a lunch, and then met up with Julie, Ken and "the kids". "The Kids" are brother and sister, Junior and Amanda, who are our cousins; Justin, my brother; and Kadyn, Julie & Ken's son. We were all bound to head south for hooligan dip netting aka hooligan fishing. The hot spot for hooligan fishing is about an hour south of Anchorage, near 20 Mile River. It was mine and Cory's first time doing this. There is a technique involved, which an older gentleman had to call us out on our wrong technique. In fact, he spotted us up at the parking lot near the porta potties. I went up to the porta potties and he calls for me. He discussed how me and "the man in the brown waiters"(Cory), were doing it all wrong. It was nice of him to tell me, but I found it funny. He probably thought we were so stupid.
So, we quickly learned it is not like dip netting for salmon, where you just set the net in the water, wait for a punch, and pull the net in. For hooligan, the nets are smaller, hence the fish are way small. You basically, dip your net and graze it with the current then lift your net up to see if you caught anything. You don't even feel the fish in your net because they are so light.
It got exciting when you would dip your net in and find a couple hooligans in your net when you pulled the net up. The most I heard someone catching in one dip was 33 hooligans. I just wanted 5 in 1, which I didn't get.. BUT.. Junior got 5 in 1, so yay. Anyways, Julie & Ken brought 5 nets total. Whoever wasn't fishing was grabbing hooligan out of the others' nets and putting in the bucket. The hooligan came in for a good hourish run, which was an exciting catching time. But later the run became very slowwwww. Overall, I had a fun experience. Although, I did get stuck in the mud flats and Cory had to pull me out. Conclusion, I got out safely, but I lost my shoes to the mud. It was hilarious. Later, Amanda got sucked into the mud and she lost a boot while Cory was pulling her out. Fortunately, we were able to dig that back up.
Hey, I got one and I have no shoes!
Cory, Kadyn, the puppy and I left early. We babysat Kadyn and Reese's until Julie & Ken were done fishing. Kadyn was getting bored fishing because all he did was grab fish out of nets. One day when he is bigger and stronger, he will definitely get to have the joys of dip netting. He's only 5, so much more room to grow. Unfortunately, for the 2 hours after Cory and I left, nobody caught hooligan. They only caught 1, but put it back. All together we did catch a bucket full of the hooligan. So we were definitely satisfied from the first run.
Oh, this weekend has been so nice and refreshing. It was great to spend time with Cory again, since he has been working so much. I've missed him and his time. I give this MDW a 4 stars!! I shall leave you with two videos. One is of Cory playing Bocce Ball and the other is of Cory chasing the kiddos on the trampoline.
Ok so, I am back to this blog! Things were so busy I didn't make time to write in this to catch you up. I even tried to make a new blog on tumblr, but that was a fail.
Anyways, life has been really good to us and I am very fortunate. Cory has been working for a month and a half now and he loves being a working, providing husband again. Our apartment complex has increased its payments. We started paying $840 for rent in 2009 and now we pay almost $1100. Now that we are ready to buy a house, we decided it is time to leave this place that keeps taking advantage of our bank account.
After a couple weeks of looking and with the help of our realtor, we finally found a condo we liked. We plan on making this investment into a business plan. Once I get my teaching job, we will rent this condo out and find "the home of our dreams". We are really happy with this plan. The condo we bought is 3 bedrooms, 2 bath and 2 car garage. Bye bye 1 bedroom, 1 bath apartment. We hope to close on the condo mid June. I am super excited to check out garage sales and craigslist for some stuff to fill our new home this summer.
Took Mom out for a pedicure for Mother's Day
I am also going to be taking 2 classes this summer so I can stay on track to graduate in December. My photography business will give me stuff to do and income to bring in. I have 5 weddings in June, which is awesome.
When August comes around, which is volleyball season, I will be back to coaching. The JV coach, Stan, resigned which bumped the two C-Team coaches. I will now be coaching C1 instead of C2. C1 is mainly sophomores and C2 is at the freshman level. I am very excited for this opportunity. We will be looking for a C2 coach that will be coaching by my side and sharing the gym. I hope we find someone great and amazing!
This summer just started and I hope to go on many adventures in Alaska. My family and I plan on going hooligan fishing with nets Memorial Day. It will be a great start to summer. Although, I have been walking, running or rollerblading the coast trail on sunny days. I can't help it, I must be outside :) I hope we get to go camping, hiking and more.
So, it has been 3 weeks in working out with Cory and I feel like my body has been making good progress. I feel like I'm getting stronger and my stomach is feeling flatter. I also, have more energy during the days, which is awesome. I don't think working out exhausts me as much as school does. I usually end up breaking down Wednesday nights because I am so exhausted from homework. My brain power shuts down, like running on empty. Cory always keeps my spirits up by telling me I am doing a good job with focusing on school so much. I want super good grades this semester, because last semester was rough coaching volleyball and going to school. He knows how important school is to me.
Anyways, Cory pushes and encourages me everyday we work out and I love it. I am currently super sore on my whole back. I have been sore before badly, but having your whole back sore, is something else. Especially when you use your whole back for pretty much any daily activity like sitting, standing, walking, etc. Tomorrow will be the start of week 4 working out together in the mornings. I am so proud of myself! It is nice to do something together everyday, since all I do is go to class and do homework during the weekdays. Cory will usually go to the gym again at night while I am doing homework, so the place is nice and quiet. Good for him :) He is an animal.
Every weekday morning goes like this:
6:30 or 7:30AM: Depends what day it is to wake up due to class in the morning
Breakfast: 1 toasted cinnamon raisin bread with crunchy peanut butter, honey, and banana slices on top with a glass of orange juice or water
Vitamins: Multivitamin, CLA, Flaxseed, probiotics
Gym time for an hour:
around 10 minutes of cardio for warm up
around 50 minutes weights
Post workout meal: Protein shake with eggs, orange juice, milk, yogurt, frozen fruit
So anyways, we started rock climbing last weekend. We went again this weekend too and we plan on going probably once a week during the weekends. It is so fun. It sure works you out though. My back and, especially, forearms get quite the work out. We've invited friends both times because it is just a great activity to do for all. We've mainly focused on bouldering, which is climbing without a harness, but you don't go very high. Bouldering is very technical. There are routes on the walls guided by tape color. Each route is marked in the beginning that determines what level that route is. The levels start at V0, which is the easiest of holds, to V16, which is pretty much tiny pinch holds. Right now, I feel pretty comfortable with V3 and I want to get better. As the levels go up, the more logic and skill is needed to climb such routes. We have been to AK Rock Gym and Cassell Rock. Our next place to check out is the APU rock gym. Each gym has a different aura and different routes marked. Although, rock gyms usually change routes, probably, weekly. Here is a sweet picture I photoshopped of us climbing. All Cory's idea, but my photoshop skills.
This weekend we also got to play some poker with our friends, Banan, Derek and Crystal at Banan's house. We went to dinner Friday for sushi and poker became a subject and we decided we should all play after dinner. Well this was my first time playing without any help. Thank goodness I took STAT307 at UAA, because that helped me memorize all the hands and in what order they go in. In that class we had to find the probably of each hand using fractions and combinations. It was pretty cool. The first time I have played was with Cory back in 2009 with his friends. He helped me out a lot, but this time, I was solo. He was proud of me for winning some hands, which was sweet! Sometimes it got pretty intense.
So at Banan's house, we played 3 games. We made out making some money in the first round, but the next two rounds we lost too much money. Woops! Should of stopped after round one. But you just get so excited and hope to win some more. I would love to play again. Eventually, you just have to start being a good liar because the probabilities are so low.
Poker night with the Tarrs! Banan making a silly face.
Well, now I will close. Time to do some homework. I pretty much do mathematics homework everyday. It never ends and some days it depresses me, because I'd rather be doing something else. Thank goodness Cory encourages me when I am down. 5 more classes to go after this semester. The goal is so close, yet so far! Oh, I forgot to mention it snowed like 18 inches this Saturday too.
Upcoming events:
- Gly is photographing a wedding on the 11th in Wasilla
- Cory has weekend duty 11th and 12th
- Going to Alyeska for a night on the 18th
As we were driving to the gym Monday morning, Cory asked me, "What are you going to work today?" and I reply with "I don't know yet, maybe just do a full body circuit.", then Cory suggests, "Why don't we work out together?" Well, that surprised me, because the last time I remember working out together was back in 2009, when we would run together outside on the Anchorage trails. I agreed to work out with him, but didn't know what that would entail. His workouts are that of cross training. That is where you lift weights, but have less breaks in between sets in a circuit. It works your endurance and strength at the same time, which is awesome for the body.
Anyways, I did 5 days in a row with him, Monday - Friday. I am proud of myself for sticking with him and I think I would like to implement working out together in our daily routine. I mean, Cory will workout regardless, but keeping up with him? That is something else. Plus, this will keep me way in shape and it's beneficial working out with your spouse.
For the whole week, Cory was the lead and I just did whatever workouts he had planned for us. He really helped me with my form on various workouts and introduced me to some that I don't regularly do. I am proud of him for being encouraging, helpful and patient with me. I did get frustrated at times, only because it took me a few moments to get the form right on some work outs.
When we work out, we work out with as much intensity as we can, because otherwise, you probably shouldn't be at the gym if you aren't going to work hard. We may not have conversations, but we still have fun doing the work outs together. Anyways, I know he has always wanted to workout together like this. It is about time we do this together. I don't know why we didn't make this a regular thing before. Working out is his FAVORITE hobby and if I keep doing this with him, I am sure it will benefit our relationship/marriage too :) I know for a fact he is enjoying working out together and that makes me happy.
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