January 4th, 2023

Florida Training Trip

Florida is known for its warm weather and sunny days, so when I heard that we were going to Boca Raton to train I was ecstatic. The pool that we swam in was an outdoor pool and it was gorgeous. We had to wake up fairly early to go to morning practice, and when we were swimming we were able to watch the sunrise which was amazing.

Between practices, we either hung out at the hotel pool or went to Deerfield beach to hangout and soak in the sun. As swimmers, we are always near the water! Deerfield beach had super soft sand and low rolling waves which made a low maintenance and relaxing experience compared to some of the beaches in California that I am used to.

We didn’t just spend time near the water, but also with each other. I definitely believe that I got to know my teammates a little better and got to grow the connection with some of them. We did a lot of fun team bonding experiences, such as sandcastle building, lip-sync battles, and a little shopping together. It was a great time and I really hope that we get to do another team training trip next season!

February 15th, 2023

MVC Championships

The Missouri Valley Conference is our end of season meet, and it is something that we prepare ourselves for all season. All the countless mornings were we wake up super early, cheer eachother on in practice, and have eachothers backs, mean so much more when we are all together at this final meet of the season.

It is a four day, prelim/final meet and it is not for the weak. By then end of it, we are tired, sore, and most have chlorine-burn rashes on our bodies. However, it is the most exciting meet all season. Our team thrives off eachtoher's energy and is constantly cheering eachother on. We bring ourselves up to the block, not because we have to or that we are forced, but because we want to. The feeling of competing at this meet is so great, and it's amazing to know that all our hard work will pay off.

This year I competed in the 50FR, 100BK, and 200BK along with a few relays. My favorite race is the 100BK and I got to do it three times this meet. It is really accomplishing to put myself out there and do my best. It is something that we all do. #AKB

March 21, 2023

Spring Break - 2023

For spring break me and my boyfriend, Kodiak, went to Dallas - Fort Worth, Texas. We stayed at his grandparents house and they are seriously some of the sweetest people ever. They were such great hosts and I swear his Granny made some yummy food!

We left on a Saturday and it was a five hour drive from Little Rock to their house. We stopped at Bucc-ee’s on our way, we got some tasty snacks and took a little walk around and, wow, that gas station is HUGE. Once we got to his grandparents house I introduced myself and then we just settled down and had a chill rest of our evening.

Sunday we got a little surprise from his Granny, she got us tickets to Six Flags! I have never been there before and it was super cool. I haven’t been to an amusement park in ages and I forgot that roller-coaster feeling. Kodiak’s younger cousins came with us and it was fun meeting them as well, they are sweet girls. Kodiak and I actually ended up getting one of those unlimited drink cups too which was awesome because it was hot outside and if we didn’t have that we probably would have spent a lot of money on water and stuff.

The last big thing that we did that trip was going to Texas Tulips. Unfortunately it ended up raining that morning and it was extremely muddy so I am glad that I wore my cowgirl boots. Other than that, I think it was one of my favorite parts that whole trip. I have had going to a flower field on my bucket list for a while, so it was really awesome that he surprised me with that little adventure. It being spring, there were so many fun types and colors. I captured a lot of photographs on my little film camera too! I am super excited to get that roll developed.

Overall, spring break was great and I was so glad that I could go somewhere new and get to share that experience with him!

April 1, 2023

Pinnacle Hike - 2023

After our end of season meet (MVC Championships), we our now in off season. We are now only required to meet 8 hours of real season training. Our coaches thought that it would be a super fun idea if for one of our practices, we should hike Pinnacle Mountain!

Instead of waking up at 6am and hoping in the pool, we woke up at 7am and and climbed a mountain instead haha. We got up early and I had my little headlamp on, and I was the first girl up! I honestly really love hiking and being outdoors, so I really enjoyed the hike. We made it just in time for the sunrise.

It was a really fun little practice and I hope we get to do more stuff like that this upcoming season.