92/365

I didn't know how I was going to make it through this week. Lets face it, I'm not a patient person, especially when it comes to puppies. On Monday when we first decided to go ahead and purchase one, the whole thing was totally surreal. On Tuesday we were told the one we had asked for originally 'Spot' had been sold. My spirits were totally crushed. They offered us the last puppy, 'Zorro'.

We talked about calling the whole thing off. Just deciding to wait, because obviously it just wasn't meant to be. But we decided to give it one more try and go for 'Zorro'. Drex contacted the breeder, and all the puzzle pieces fell nicely in place.

In 24 hours I will be able to hold him, smell him, snuggle him. I get to leave all the stress and anxiety of not getting him behind. I cannot wait. I can't wait to see how he sleeps, what his bark sounds like, how him and Loosie get along. I can't wait to take him to the dog park, to throw balls for him, to teach him how to sit, come, lay down, and stay.

We also made another trip to the dog park today. Loosies' last day being an only puppy. I've been experimenting with my camera trying to actually take decent looking pictures. So here's my attempt. :)

91/365

Rain Rain...oh and some more rain! That's our weather lately. However rain or shine Loosie needs a walk, (and so will Nitro so we're getting into the habit of going ever day) So after work Drex and I braved the rain and even got a cute picture out of it.



I also got a new raincoat. It's lovely and black and was on sale at REI. I figure I'm going to need one with all the rain we've been getting.

MOVING UPDATE:

So there's no FINAL word yet...but I feel like that's kind of because they're attempting to figure out how to tell Brittany. They're starting the paper work and in a month it should be about finished. My dad would report in January where He would stay with my Aunt while looking for a house. Our house will need to be put up for sale pretty soon so we're doing some minor jobs around the house to make it sale ready. My mom, Britt and I would move into an apartment for the last few months of the school year and then join my dad as soon as the school year is over.

I think the biggest thing pushing them in the moving direction is me going to college and the cost of out of state tuition. My parents have a college fund for Brittany and I but it's not a ton of money. I know I'll have to take out a student loan my first year, but I also know my parents will help me pay off that loan. One year isn't bad. It's still a large sum of money, but not as unbearable as 4. However if my dad moves there in January, I only have to take a semester of out of state tuition which is great.

So we'll see what happens. :)

90/365

Preparing for our new family member.



-His first tag ever. We both love the name we chose, not to mention it looks awesome on his silver tag.



-Of course his first toy. We chose this for several reasons: He's a Border Collie which were bred strictly to herd sheep so the toy is appropriate.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-mr0NTFbVU&feature=related)

It's also yellow which happens to be my all time favorite color which means I love it. AND it has an awesome squeaker so he'll love it even more.



-His new food. We're switching him from what he's on (Iams puppy chow) to what our vet recommended for Loosie when she was a puppy.

(It's kind of a bummer because Loosie JUST switched from puppy food to adult food, so for a year they will be on different foods.)



-Last but not least, a collar and leash. We opted not to get him a retractable one yet because first he's going to need to learn to walk on one period and a non retractable is easier to train him on.

I'm counting down the days until we get him. I can't wait to watch him learn and grow. I'm excited to see him and Loosie play. To see how he sleeps, whether or not he snores. I'm excited for everything a new puppy brings.

89/365

Choosing a name for a puppy is hard work! I can't even imagine the stress that goes into a name for a child! Drex and I had discussed names almost non stop for a few days. We had come up with several lists and a few we especially liked. This morning we had decided on the name 'Arrow.' Unique but still Masculine. However, Drex would accidentally call him 'Bear' (this had been another suggestion and was on our favorites list). Anyways, I didn't feel like his name was truly Arrow and Drex didn't either, but we were beyond tired of trying to pick out a name. On the way to Pet Co to make his tag, thus making his name official, I saw a car and it had the word Nitro printed on it. I read it allowed and Drex was like "I love the name Nitro!" I loved it too. It felt right, was a boy name, and it was totally perfect. So his name is Nitro (Like Nitrogen) and we're both very happy with it.

88/365

So I am officially getting a border collie puppy on Sunday :) I cannot wait! He's 7 weeks old...and sadly still nameless. BUT I'm so ridiculously happy about it.



Such a cute baby.


I also got to hangout with my bestfriend for the FIRST time this summer. Kind of ridiculous. But we took cute pictures and had lots of fun :)



A good day of summer. :)

87/365

I am getting a puppy. That is all :)

86/365

So yesterday, after my not so awesome morning, we took the dogs out to Girdwood for a hike. We hiked crow creek mine, and it was tons of fun. We used the hand tram to go over a cliff/river (which was way higher up and scarier than it looked). We went a total of 3 miles in the rain and mud but all in all it was fun and good exercise.


(using the tram)



(me and my awesome hiking attire...I resemble my mom a lot in this picture)

Bonnie, Matt, Abby, and Bolty left tonight :( The trip went so much better than I had expected and I'm really going to miss them. On a positive note, now I get Drexy and Loosie all to myself :)

85/365

You know what's awesome?

Taking family pictures when no one wants to be there. AND while everyone is secretly pissed off at each other.

Or taking hours to do your hair for the pictures and after the first one getting breast milk spit all into it and on your clothes because someone doesn't know how to burp their child.

Or getting in a fight with your boyfriend because he left you to cry all by yourself.




I just can't decided which one of those things is the GREATEST moment of today.

84/365

One of the most rewarding things in life is sitting in the grass watching your family and puppies run wild. At that moment it doesn't even matter that the wind is blowing your hair in your face, or causing goose bumps to overtake your legs. The only thing that matters is them.

I got a hair cut today (eep!). I hadn't had one in over a year, so my ends were basically dying.



Ta daaa! I like it. I mean I loved the length it was at but it was sooo unhealthy and hard to do. So this is a nice change :)

83/365

So since yesterday I couldn't write...i figured I'd relay what occurred yesterday onto todays' blog post.

We woke up early and drove to Seward. Matt had never been there and Bonnie hadn't been there in 15+ years. The drive of course is gorgeous and the dogs behaved SO well! I was very impressed :) We walked around Seward, ate some gelato, went to the Sea Life Center, and ate giant cinnamon rolls. It was a very fun filled day.

This was followed by driving back to Anchorage, letting the dogs play in the dog park, giving them baths at Monster Wash, and eating a very very late dinner at Mooses Tooth.

Our dinner, consumed at 12:30am, was followed by me throwing up twice at Drexs' house, and once at my own. Such a lovely conclusion to a fantastic day.

82/365

I can't blog today...I wish I could, there's so much to talk about, but I can't. I've been throwing up and I feel so sick. So I'm being forced into bed...and i'm not going to fight it.

81/365

First day without a headache in which feels like forever! I used to never get them. Never ever ever. Until recently. And recently they've been awful. Recently all I can do is take advil and hope they go away. I've had to start a headache log, I've had to drink lots and lots of water. It sucks. First day of family time...was good. Surprisingly. I think it's way more bearable since the dogs are here. Plus I like Bonnie and Matt. Speaking of which...we're off to Seward early in the am so off to bed I go :)

80/365

Well Bonnie and Matt (Drexs' sister and brother in law), fly in tonight along with their two dogs Abby and Bolt. I'm having mixed
feelings about the whole thing...mostly because every other time they've been here it's for the drama that follows the family constantly. This time however they're here for us. I know it'll be good, fun, and an awesome week. But sometimes it's hard
to share Drex...I'm not used to him loving someone else almost as much as me, or enjoying spending constant time with anyone else other than me. It'll be okay. I know that. :)

79/365

It's been a long day. I mean a really long day. Originally I was scheduled to go into work today at noon which was fine, great, and fantastic with me. However...Lauren couldn't get a sitter for Gavin (her baby) soo she couldn't come in today. (Yet she can invite me to beer bong and throw a party at her house the night before?) Anyways, her not coming in meant me having to be at work at 10:30 (which means I got there at 10:15...I have this thing of always being 15 minutes early to work) and didn't get off until 6:30. Ech. The store was crazy, only Mel and I were working, and we're both new so it was total chaos at moments. BUT I survived! And now am ready to crawl under my new black sheets, (and comforter), and fall asleep. Which I plan to be doing shortly :)

78/365

Moving to Oregon?

Well that's looking like a very good possibility at this point. My dad got a call from a guy in Portland, OR that's looking to 'trade' jobs with someone in AK. My parents sat Brittany and I down today and told us. It wouldn't be until next spring probably, but still something to start looking into. My parents are praying about it, so we'll see what happens.

In the mean time, Journeys has been really good. I learned how to tie a Skate Shoe today! Something I was really proud of, since we're a full service shoe store meaning we tie the customers shoes and whatnot, so not knowing how to tie one of our most popular styles was a little uncool. :) Thankfully I have the greatest Manager in the world and she sat down and helped me.

Tomorrow...I get to work 8 hours :/ opening until closing. ECH. But oh well, I'll suck it up and smile. Especially since it's not as bad as Payless. Not near as bad. :) Alright, time to pay attention to the wonderful boyfriend who blogged for me yesterday! :)

77/365

This is Drex.

Ali is losing her motivation to blog. So I am as much as it pains me. Today she worked at Journeys again and apparently had a good time. Then we made dinner again at my house (buffalo chicken. again.) and then we went to fred meyer to buy essential kitchen items before finishing the first season of "Lie to Me", which is super good by the way. Now it's late and it's bedtime and Ali is climbing into bed. I hate you internet. Goodnight.

76/365

Oh happy daaayy :)

Today we shot Drexs' new rifle for the first time! Even I got up the courage to shoot it!



First time ever shooting a rifle :)

Other than that though it was a quiet, stress free day. We went grocery shopping, made a yummy dinner, sipped on some wine, and discussed Loosie meeting Abby and Bolt for the first time! :) Tomorrow though it's back to work...

75/365

Another happy day with Caden!

The past two times we've had him we've picked him up from his sitter and then met Emily for lunch. This worked really well last time because it meant we got more sleep, and he got a real nap, so we were all in much better moods for the rest of the day. So we stuck with that plan and met Emily for lunch at Mooses Tooth. It was, of course, delicious and filled with entertaining conversation.

Afterwards we had NO idea what to do. I was emotional and angry at my mother (and family in general) and on my period, sooo I ended up screaming at Drex because we were doing nothing and needed to be doing something. (I later apologized to Caden for our bad stress handling and problem solving skills) Anyways after Caden and I both cried all our moodiness out we were ready to have fun! We decided to paint Emily a picture, (using Cadens feet) and it turned out very well! A great painter in the making :)

Drex and I also realized we were on the same page about this whole food situation!

(Looking at the Mcdonalds area in Walmart)

Drex: You know...since we haven't eaten there in so long, it looks so disgusting

Ali: I KNOW! THAT'S WHERE I'M AT TOO!

I was pretty excited to discover he thought fast greasy food looked disgusting now as well!

74/365

Today was my do absolutely nothing day.

I woke up this morning with ridiculous amounts of pain. The little monster in my stomach was eating me from the inside out. Hours later, I get my period, and the pain intensifies. ARG! I hate being a girl. My periods really normally aren't that bad, except other than a few months out of the year. This being one of those months...with lots of icky yucky miserable pain. And it's only day 1. :/

So we spent our day taking photos of ourselves.



Can you sense the boredom?

Also this whole 'eating healthy and eating in' thing is growing old...quickly. It's so exhausting having to plan ahead what we're going to eat the next day, I mean I don't know what I'll feel like tomorrow so how am I supposed to know?! Like tomorrow, we're taking Caden for the day, which means lunch with Emily, which normally is easy. Decide where to eat, meet there, eat, and go on our ways. HOWEVER since we're not eating out now we have to decide WHAT to eat, since we have to make it ahead of time, and where to eat it. Which basically means we get to eat sandwiches, but what if I don't FEEL like a sandwich?! Then what? MUST PERSEVERE. Even when it sucks right? Oh poop.

Well tonight consists of...watching the Finale for the Hills...taking more Midol...figuring out what to for lunch tomorrow...and maybe if I get lucky, relaxing...we'll see how this goes. :)

73/365

First Day at Journeys! :)

And let me tell you....it was AWESOME. Seriously the greatest job ever! I also realized I don't do greasy foods anymore...sadly...to my dismay...I tried today...and for the second time it made me sick. Oh well, we're trying to eat better anyways so it's not a bad thing.

Dinner tonight...chicken wings, green bean casserole, and potatoes :) Yum Yum.

Alright this is going to be short, not really feeling the motivation. :)

72/365

So first we started the day with me getting up bright and early and buying a giant singing balloon, some cookies, and a card. I walked in, surprised him, and of course exclaimed HAPPY BIRTHDAY oh so loudly. Then I curled my hair and got ready for lunch at the brewhouse.





After lunch we went to Drexs' moms' house and he got to open his present. (He was very excited)



The gun he very much so wanted! And since he's 18, he can legally have it! whoo!



Cute couple picture!



Then I took him to the Double Musky for a nice dinner :)



He was very happy with his dessert! :)



All in all we had a wonderful birthday celebration! I love my 18 year old :)

71/365

Eating In...and Healthy.

Drex and I have developed the bad habit of eating out almost everyday at least once a day. This is mostly due to the convenience of fast food and not having to clean up anything afterwards. However, in order to conserve money since we're now on a budget, we went out to Borders and bought ourselves a good old fashioned cook book and then went to Fred Meyers for groceries. Now since we're eating in...we're also eating healthy. Buying organic what we can, watching the calories and sodium in foods, and mixing fruits and vegetables in with everything so that we're getting our needed servings of them. Tonights meal...Three Cheese Pasta Bake using organic pasta (which is delicious!) and some potato fries, using a real potato and adding a small amount of olive oil and salt. It actually turned out really good! I'm really excited about this whole eating healthy and making dinners together. I've actually lost weight this summer, and I'm excited to lose more as I change my eating style. :)

Rachel and Jordan came over and we all hung out for a little while, though he's on this mute high right now so he didn't say a word, thankfully Call Of Duty and facebook stalking made up for the silence :)

Tomorrow my big giant baby turns 18 years old...oh goodness. :)

70/365

Sunny Days at the lake :)




Not a cute picture but it shows how CRAZY my freckles have decided to be.



One happy beagle baby :)

69/365

This is my best friend



We've been to two different countries with each other





Guatemala and Russia.

We've been told we look the same...



But we don't really think so.

We fight. We make each other cry. We get mad. But no matter what, She'll always and forever be my best friend.

68/365

I quit my job today. Okay not technically, more like I'm not going to be showing up for my scheduled days. Nor will any of my coworkers (aside from one new girl). More or less it's in support for our beloved and amazing manager. I LOVE my manager, i didn't really know if I would or not...though I had hoped that I would befriend all my coworkers and get along well with my manager. Lucky for me, I have...(had?) the best coworkers I could have ever asked for, and the absolute best manager hands down. Thankfully my favoritest coworker (and good friend) recently (as in today) got hired at the Journeys at Diamond so we will be reunited in a few months! (can't wait!) Basically there were some issues with the whole thing, and my coworkers and I are...well not showing up again. I'm a little nervous about the whole...ditching on work thing....but I know it's for the best. Thankfully my manager will be moving to Journeys with me...well more me going with her...so it's not goodbye :) I have truly been blessed with extraordinary coworkers and an extraordinary manager.

So I say goodbye to my first job...it's not the way I planned on leaving, but the greatest things aren't planned nor expected right? I can say I have "work experience" under my belt, and I know my manager will give me basically the greatest reference ever if I needed it. We're the girls that tell each other they love each other on the phone, and make secret handshakes in the back room. I'm glad to be moving on...I feel like this change will be awesome, though I'm definitely a little nervous about the whole thing. However I know I have a million people ready to support me. Thank goodness for that :)

67/365

I miss this.



Sure, my hair looks awful, Drex looks like an idiot, and Tyler looks a little like a crow, but in this picture we all shared something. We were all in love with the person standing next to us. I miss this picture for my own selfish reasons. Sure, we all fought, but at the end of the day we were happy. At the end of the day we weren't wondering if we would be happy again, or who would come into our lives next. We were content, we were in love, we were happy.

I miss this.



I miss this glow, this sanity, this joy. I miss the feeling of new love that no one could take away. I miss knowing that no one was going to do something utterly and completely stupid. That at the end of the day no one was going to do anything unsafe. Because we were all full of happy.

I miss this.



I miss the days in which I didn't have to go to work, worry about waking up on time, planning things around my work schedule. I miss the days when I didn't look forward to my days off, when I felt like I had time for my boyfriend, my friends, my family, and myself.

I am happy, don't get me wrong. But I no longer possess the happiness that is carefree and light. I miss that.

66/365

Today has been one of those nothing exciting happened today AT ALL days. I simply slept until 1pm, got up, showered and got ready, aand went to work. Though upon walking in discovered our shipment guy quit this morning unexpectedly, and my manager due to frustration left early. Got to love working in retail right?

My throat has also been KILLING me this whole stinking day so I'm off to bed early. Sorry for the ridiculously short blogs! I promise I'll get better.

Danggit. Just remembered I have a stupid dentist appointment at 9:30am. Shittackeemushrooms.

65/365

Happy Birthday America :)

64/365

There a million things I've learned this summer, some are small and mostly irrelevant, others are not. I've learned that just because someone might carry the label "friend" does not mean they are one. I've learned that ultimately family is much more important than friends, and that when people say friends are essential, they are wrong. Family is essential. The members in my family are my best friends. Because no matter what I do, say, or don't do, they will ALWAYS love me, ALWAYS be there for me, and NOT post comments on facebook obviously referring to me. :)

Example:

A: I miss old times with all the girls.
A: Well some :p
B: hahahaha I know exactly what you mean.

(and blah blah blah)

But thankfully, in all my lovely lessons learned this summer, I've learned that I don't need people like I think I do. I've learned I'm okay with just being ME. My family has extended a lot in the past year, I have now have three sisters, instead of just one. I have one ultimate mom figure, but another that treats me as her daughter. I have a nephew, whom I love dearly, and I have a boyfriend who has helped me get through all my tears. That family, are the people I want and need most in my life. Those people are the ones I can't do without.

Last night Drex and I drove out to Eagle River to hang out with Emily. We got Caden an exersaucer



which he obviously loves. (Actually I bought Caden the excersaucer cus I love him more than anything!) I got to read him his bedtime story, and change his diaper, and help put him to bed :) Then we just hung out and talked to Emily about basically everything for a few hours.

I also forgot to mention Drex and I celebrated our 14 months a few days ago! We made quite the painting



I love my boyfriend so much :)

63/365

There are nights when I cannot wait to blog...and then there are nights like these.

It's not that I don't have anything to say, it is instead that I am exhausted, drained, and ready to slip into my bed and hide under my black down comforter and forget the world for a few hours. So that's what I am going to do...because sometimes thats exactly what I need.

62/365

This should have been yesterdays blog post...It should have been, but it wasn't. In all the chaos of the day, I forgot. I forgot to remember.

Yesterday I celebrated Drex's life. The life he almost didn't get to live. The one that was almost taken away from him. Yesterday 6 years ago, Drex walked out of a car accident and his dad didn't.

There will always be days when I feel helpless. Knowing I cannot change anything, cannot make anything better, cannot say or do anything to take away the pain. It is these days and nights in which we curl up together and cry. It is in these moments where we grow closer, stronger, and love each other all the more. We learn to depend on each other and to trust each other.

So thank you God. Thank you for sparing Drex. Thank you for protecting him. And thank you for bringing him into my life.