4 Years!

4 years ago today I married my best friend.  I love him even more now than I did back then.  He is such a great husband and I know he will be a great father too.  I was thinking and we have done a lot in the past 4 years...

• I finished college.
• We have each had 2 different jobs (post college).
• We have moved 5 times (and hopefully won't again for a very long time).
• Dan started his own company.
• We have found a place to live where we are both happy (we weren't sure that would happen... i like Utah, he hates snow... haha... very few choices there!).  
• We bought a condo and built a house.
• We've gone to Disneyland twice.
• And my favorite... we're expecting our first baby girl!

It has been a great 4 years and I'm looking forward to many, many more!  My sister in law tells her kids on their anniversary that it's their family's birthday.  I'm definitely stealing that from her (thanks, Katie!)... so... Happy 4th Birthday to our family!!!  I love you, Dan!!!  

3 years!

Happy 3 years to us!  I can't believe it has already been 3 years.  The time has gone by so fast.  We are still so happy and in love!  Maybe even more in love now than we were on our wedding day :).  You know how in young women's they always make you list those qualities you want in your future husband?  I feel like Dan is all of the qualities I could have ever wanted and more.  I don't know how I got so lucky, but he really is perfect for me.  Dan, you are amazing! Thanks for all you do for us!  You are truly my best friend. I love you soooo much!  Forever! :)  

We are celebrating tonight by going to a yummy fondue/steakhouse we've never been to.  It's not a place we would normally go to (b/c of the price tag)... so we're excited to try it out!  And our present this year is our new house.  I can't think of a much better present than that!

2 years

Today is our anniversary! Yay! It's crazy how fast the past two years have gone by. Since Dan has to work all day, we mostly celebrated on Saturday. This year we decided to go to Park City. We had lots of fun!

The first thing we did was got lunch. We ate outside on the porch because the weather was perfect... 75 degrees and sunny.

At The Bridge restaurant.

Then we decided to ride the lift up the mountain. Which ended up being fun, but took about an hour round trip and we both got sunburned!

High above Park City

We made it to the top! What a relief.

Our view of Park City on the way back.

When we got off the lift, we saw these people playing these horns. So cool!

Then we went shopping! I know, my husband rocks! We each got to pick out something we wanted.

I got these shoes! I love them. They are the most comfortable things ever. And if you know me, you know I don't like shoes. I wish I could wear flip flops every day. But the fact that I found shoes that I actually like wearing is amazing! I figure the weather will be getting cooler soon and these are my solution. I'm even considering getting them in grey too :).

Me showing off my shoes and my sunburn! The tops of my knees were the worst.

Dan chose golf stuff! Here he is sporting his new golf hat and golf glove. He looks so cute :). We actually didn't get the golf stuff in PC, he couldn't find anything he wanted up there. And check out Dan's burned knees! Ouch!

It was so fun spending the day together. I am so happy we got married 2 years ago! I know I could sit here and be all mushy and say how much I love Dan. But it's too hard to describe in words how much I love and care for my husband. He is my best friend and I admire him in so many ways. He truly is the perfect companion for me. The past two years have been so great and I look forward to so many more! Happy Anniversary Dan, I love you!

As for tonight, I've got a delicious dinner planned and even more presents! I love giving presents.

Love is in the air...

So my little sister, Noelle, just got engaged today!  I am so excited for her and Jared!  They are a super cute couple :)

She doesn't have a blog, so I figured I'd post the news on my blog.  Neither of them read my blog anyway, so they'll never know!!!  Here's a pic of the happy couple...

They are thinking of getting married the end of July.  Hooray!  I can't wait to help them plan :)

And other fabulous news... I got a lime ricki swim suit yesterday!  It's super cute!  We happened to be in SLC, so we stopped by the store and I picked one out.  Also while in Salt Lake, I got to hang out with some of my best friends from high school.  I love seeing them!  It has just been one great weekend!

picture time!

Last Saturday we went to my friend Alyse's wedding reception. At her reception she had the coolest thing ever... a photo booth! I've never seen one at a reception before, but apparently it is the new big thing for weddings. Basically when you walk in, you step into the photo booth and get 4 pictures taken of you. The pictures are then printed out in a strip like any other photo booth. The great part is, 2 strips are printed- one to go into a book for the bride and groom and one for the guests to keep! We loved it. Once it printed, they put it in the book and then let you sign by it. Another great thing is they put the photos online after the event. Here are a few of my favorites....As you can see we had a fabulous time- and the photos were unlimited, so we made sure to take lots. I love these girls! They are some of my best friends and we've known each other our whole lives! It's fun now that we are all getting married and luckily our husbands all get along too :)

Anniversary!

Saturday we woke up to a rainy morning. We had originally planned to go to Park City to celebrate our anniversary, but everything we wanted to do was outside! We sat around for a while and eventually the rain cleared up. Dan asked me what I wanted to do for our anniversary and I told him I wanted to go to Gardner Village because I have always wanted to go there and have never been. So we went! And it was probably the cutest place I have ever been, I LOVED it! I now have a dream of opening up a shop there and working there for the rest of my life :) It has all these cute boutiques, and little shops. We walked through all of the shops and had a fun time looking, however, everything there was pretty expensive. Even the clearance areas were expensive. Except, we did end up buying one thing. You see, we walked into a shop and it smelled so good! So I asked the lady what the smell was and she showed me these little envelopes that smell really good. You put them in your house and they make it smell good, the one I liked was called Orange Honey. It was only $2.95- so we got 2! :)

Here I am at Gardner Village with our only purchase. They even put it in a cute bag with tissue paper and a bow. Adorable!

And this is us with the big water wheel behind us at the Gardner Village.

After Gardner Village Dan took me to another craft store in Salt Lake that I have been wanting to go to. And he bought me these cute wood letters! Once we were done doing all the girly things, Dan picked the next activity. He decided he wanted to go to Boondocks, because neither of us have ever been there. It's a family fun center. We played mini golf and games in the arcade. Dan loves arcades! And did I mention the weather was perfect? It was probably in the 70's- basically unheard of for a Utah summer. It felt great to be outside and the mini golf course was the best one we have ever been to. And surprisingly, we've actually been to a lot.

Here we are at Boondocks, the sun obviously in our eyes. You can't tell, but we are on the mini golf course here.

After Boondocks, we went to Chilis for dinner. I love Chilis! We got their 2 for $20 deal, which is the best deal ever. You get an appetizer, 2 entrees, and a dessert to share, all for just $20. We then went home and watched "Night at the Museum". Ok, Dan watched "Night at the Museum," I fell asleep!

Then on Sunday, our real anniversary, we went to church. After church I planned a nice dinner for Dan. I made him steak! It's the first time i've ever made steak and it actually turned out pretty good. I was so proud of myself.

And here's the lovely table setup. Candle and all!

After dinner Ethan (Dan's brother) and Tiana (his wife), came over and ate dessert with us. We had plenty of dessert so we decided to share. We hung out with them the rest of the night.

It was a great anniversary! Thanks to my husband for doing all those cutesy things with me. He is the best!

Guess what happened...

1 year ago from today? This did:

Happy 1 year anniversary to us! It has been a really great year and it has gone by so fast. I have such an amazing husband and look forward to sharing many more years together. We have been celebrating all weekend long. I will have to write about it later. I love you, Dan! Thanks for such an awesome first year!

Our first valentine's as married people!

So Dan and I celebrated our first married person valentine's together and had a lot of fun. I decided I would blog a little about it :)

We woke up Saturday morning and Dan was sick! He came down with a bad cold, so he slept in while I talked to my mom on the phone. She made heart shaped pancakes for my dad for breakfast (something she has done every year since i was little) and asked if i was going to do the same for Dan. I was... however, we already had pancakes that week, so I decided to make german pancakes. Wanting to be a little more festive i added some red food coloring. Instead of coming out pink, they turned kind of orange and Dan asked me why they were a "weird" color. haha...

After breakfast Dan gave me my present and I gave him his. I got him this board game called masterpiece that he really likes. It's a game they no longer make or sell in stores anymore, so I had to be creative and get it off of ebay- luckily my brother, Mark, helped me out with this. I also got him a Mrs. Cavanaugh's chocolate heart with his name on it that i really want to eat! :) Dan gave me a game I wanted called Last Word, which i actually chose out for myself and opened last week! haha... then he gave me a surprise game, which was American Idol for playstation 2. It's pretty funny to play. Only we thought we would have to sing, but you just push buttons (or use to DDR pad) to make your person sing and if you do bad they sing horribly! it's kind of hilarious. Dan is always trying to find video games for me that i actually will enjoy playing.

Dan also got me flowers- which i picked out :) I wasn't going to, but I was at the store with him, so I just picked the ones i liked. Last year while we were dating Dan bought me gorgeous long stem pink roses and i loved them. But this year we decided we should save money and not spend a ton on flowers. So i didn't get roses this year, but i always love any kind of flower!

I was then supposed to go take a test for my language class, but who wants to take a test on valentine's day??? That's what i thought! So i stayed home and made heart shaped sugar cookies :) it was MUCH more fun. That just means i now have to take 2 tests on Tuesday morning.

That afternoon we went to the mall because I need professional clothes. We are supposed to dress up when we teach and I start teaching in a week, so I figured I might as well get a few new things to add to my wardrobe. I found some pants at American Eagle, but i am still on the hunt for some shirts-- any suggestions???

We then went to dinner at this place in Lindon called Wallaby's that I have been wanting to try. We thought it would be a nice sit down restaurant, but it was more of a cafe rio setup- where you just go through the line and then pick your own spot. The food was actually pretty good and it wasn't busy, so that was nice!

After that Dan was tired, so we came home. We had my sister Noelle come play games with us (we needed 3 people for masterpiece) and guess what? I won! I also won ticket to ride too- even though i kinda bent the rules just a little bit ;) but... Dan said I had to win on Valentine's day!

And that's about it. I loved spending time with my husband- i really don't know how i got so lucky... having Dan as my valentine! :)

the story of Dan & Michele

So my friend Britney did this on her blog and then I wanted to do it too :) thanks Britney for letting me copy you! It looked like fun and I haven't blogged in a while, so I figured I might as well put this up. Plus it is the month of LOVE now... so this fits perfectly :)

1. Where did you meet?
We were in the same singles ward for 2 years! The first time we ever really met and talked was at a ward prayer after i had been in the ward about 6 months. So we were just acquaintances for a while and then that summer Dan became my home teacher (BEST home teacher EVER). 2. What was the first thought that went through your head when you met?
Well actually, this is so random, but i remember seeing him the very first sunday i moved into that ward and i totally remember thinking he was one of the hottest guys in the ward :) but then heard he was dating someone else, so after that i did not think much about him at all. I then started to think he was pretty cute when he became my home teacher.
3. Do you remember what he/she was wearing?
when i first saw him? a suit. it was at church. i don't remember which suit though, i just remember thinking he was tall and handsome :)
4. Where was the first time you kissed this person?
we kissed in December 2007 in my apartment (we had been playing games w/ some friends, they all left and it was just me and him, so he kissed me goodnight- it was the perfect first kiss).
See, he was my home teacher all summer and then i moved to New York for 2 months. When i came back he had a girlfriend. And i became his "advice girl". Meaning he'd come over to my house late at night and tell me about his girlfriends and how dumb they were :) luckily! FINALLY after a month of this advising he asked me out! and then realized he needed no other girls :) hahaha and we shortly kissed after that.
5. Where did you go for your first date?
well.... this is quite the story. one day in November Dan and i were chatting on gmail and he was like "hey wanna go get some food?" in my mind, going to get some food meant Wendy's. so i was like "sure". so later that day we were in his car and he was like "let's go to Macaroni Grill." here i am a poor college student (thinking it wasn't a date and that i'd have to pay for myself) so i was like "uh... that's kind of expensive" and then Dan was like "well it's a date, so i'll pay!" (real smooth, Dan). Then i was like "ok, then Macaroni Grill it is!" However, we got there and it was super busy and we were super hungry. So then we tried Bajio and it was still too busy. So we ended up at a Chinese place called Shoots.
6. How long did you know this person before you became a couple?
Well i guess about a year... but that is just from us being in the same ward. Really knowing him and actually being friends, about 7 months.
7. How did he/she ask you out?
For our first date? I think that was explained above... But if asking me out means asking me to be his girlfriend, that never happened! He just kissed me and we've been together ever since :) No DTR necessary.
8. Has this person ever proposed to you?
Yep! I have the gorgeous ring to prove it! This is a long story though, basically we flew out to NY and he asked my dad for permission. The day after we came back he picked me up from work, played me a song that he had written for me (so cute!) and then as we got to his car he opened the door and there were flowers in it for me, i turned around and there he was on one knee! I totally thought he was kidding (because we were in the parking lot behind his house), but he pulled out the ring and then i started to freak out! he really wanted to surprise me, so he just randomly did it! i said yes about 100 times... then we went to Shoots for dinner and got ice cream sundays afterwards. Oh and i couldn't stop starring at the ring... i was speechless!
9. Do you and this person have kids together?
No not yet!
10. Have you ever broken the law with this person?
Nope! We are law abiding citizens :)
11. When was the first time you realized that you liked this person?
Well i started to like him when he was my home teacher. But when i really liked him was in December, i took him to Subway for his birthday and we had a lot of fun. That's when i really started to like him a lot. Luckily he kissed me 5 days later :) So he must have really liked me too!
12. Do you trust this person?
Yes! Definitely.
13. Do you see her/him as your partner in your future?
Forever!!!!
14. What is the best gift she/he gave you?
uh... tangible gift? I really like the dozen pink long stem roses he gave me last year for valentine's day. i also love my engagement/wedding ring. and my shark's shirts ;) haha seriously though, i am spoiled! it's hard to choose! it's like christmas all year round!
15. What is one thing He/She does that gets on your nerves?
corrects my grammar! either that or turns the heat down in our house so it is freezing! ;)
16. Where do you see each other 15 years from now?
well we will for sure be married and happy as ever! probably living in a gorgeous house in... dare i say, Texas? we will have some kids and i will be the perfect mother and dan will have a really great job.... probably a CEO of some company. or maybe dan will be a personal trainer and open his own gym- he would like that!
17. What causes the most arguments?
the thermostat :) j/k... i don't really know, we don't really argue. we discuss things, but nothing huge lately.
18. How long have you been together?
total would be... 1 year and 2 months. married is almost 6 months!
19. Are you Married?
YES! and we LOVE it!!!

2 fabulous months!

It was our 2 month anniversary on Thursday. I really can't believe we have been married 2 months-- it's gone by so fast! I came home from school and Dan had gotten me a bouquet of flowers (they were so pretty and he said he wanted them to match the table cloth- he did great!)

I decided to make Dan his favorite chocolate pie. I even called his mom for the recipe. I can guarantee it wasn't as good as hers, but i think it turned out fine! I could have done better on the crust... i'll be honest, i threw out the 1st crust i made and this was the 2nd one! Also, i was trying to hurry and surprise Dan before he got home from work, so i was pretty much running around the kitchen and it was a mess! But the pie tasted really good! I am definitely going to have to attempt another pie for thanksgiving though, until i perfect the crust. Anyway, it was a fun night!

Awesome Honeymoon!

I figured i might as well put up honeymoon photos too! :)

Wedding slideshow!

Day 1 of the blog...

So i decided to start a blog. I don't really even know what I am doing, but all of my friends have them and i think they are so fun to read! So i had to join the crowd.... i'll try and make it interesting. Thus far Dan and i have been married 6 weeks and it has been great! i love having a husband! Especially since my husband is the best ever! I figured to start off i'd put up some cute wedding photos. I think they turned out so good!!!