Adventures

I feel that this year has been quite an adventure for Gabe and I. It all started with the best days of our lives; our wedding day. We were so caught up in the stress of the wedding planning and being on cloud nine that we did not realize what direction that life was going to take us. For our honeymoon we were able to go to Hawaii. It was the best experience ever. We had a nice time sitting at the beach and celebrating our new life together. Following the honeymoon we had some drama with Gabe's green card and trying to change his status to permanent residency. We had to pay tons of money, fill out forms, hire an attorney, get fingerprints and on top of it all have an interview with immigration to prove that our marriage was not fraud. I must say this was not the funnest adventure. There were many tears shed throughout this process. But like all things, it finally came to an end.... 5 months later. In the meantime we went to L.A. to get my VISA to go to Brazil. Went to Las Vegas for my birthday. And I am happy to say that even though it seems like a busy year, we have one last adventure for 2011. That is right, next week Gabe and I are going to Brazil. I am so so so excited. It shall be interesting with me being in a foreign country without speaking Portuguese, new food, and meeting family. It will defiantly be exciting. Gabe is excited to see his family again, and be home for little while. It is going to be an amazing experience of a lifetime. It is such a great way to end a wonderful year and start a new one. I cannot wait to see what 2012 brings for our little family. I hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!!!

Thanksgiving

I am not sure what it is about the holidays that makes everyone start thinking. You start thinking about the shopping for Christmas, parties, decorations and all sorts. But Thanksgiving is the holiday that  we start thinking about all the things that we are thankful for.  I have realized that this year that I have a lot to be thankful for. I am so grateful for my amazing family. They are always there for me and support me in whatever I do. They mean the world to me. I am also thankful for my wonderful amazing husband. It has almost been a year since Gabe proposed. This time last year, Gabe and I were planning a wedding. Gabe is an amazing man, without him in my life I am not sure what I would do.
This Thanksgiving was a lot different. This time last year my uncle Jim was very ill.  On Thanksgiving we went to my aunt's house. My uncle was so ill that we ate dinner in stages so that there was always someone with him.  Then the day after Thanksgiving he passed away. It was really hard for the family. So this year for Thanksgiving we went  to dinner. Its was  a rough day for my aunt and cousins  it was best that they were not  at home. It was  very different not to have a traditional dinner but it was  great. After dinner we all went up to my cousins house to have pie and to just spend some time together. My girl cousins are so funny. Every year after we eat, they sit down and go through the ads in the paper. They each make their own list of what they are going to get at each store and then they make an itinerary. I have never in my life been black Friday shopping but have always wanted to go. So Gabe and I were just looking through the ads and Gabe noticed this camera on sale at Target.  It was only 100 dollars and he has desperately wanted this nice of a camera forever. I know that he really wanted to try to get it. There was some boots that I wanted and a jump suit that I wanted to get for Brazil. So I said what the heck we will go. Target opened at midnight so by the time that we left my cousins and took my parents home and got on the road. It was like 1135. I told Gabe that we should just go to the Centerville Target.  We parked the car and went to get in line. It was a disaster. They started the line at the non grocery doors and it wrapped around the entire store and we were close to the end of it. The line moved quick once they opened the doors. I told Gabe to head for the Camera and that I would get everything else. Once we hit the doors Gabe went running. I went and got my boots and the went for the Jump suit. People were nuts. They were grabbing stuff, there were young girls doing the army crawl. I could not believe it. No wonder you hear all those stories about people getting killed. Well withing 20 mins Gabe calls and says that he got the camera. I was in shock. There had to be a least 1000 people in front of us and he got it. He was so happy. So he had to stand in line at the electronics dept well  I went and got in the check out line to buy my stuff. The line literally weaved in and out of the grocery isles. There were 23 isles that I had to weave in and out of. I was in line for an hour. So needless to say that we did not leave Target till like 2 in the morning. I was so pooped. We came straight home and went to bed. On a brighter note. Gabe is now a permanent resident. We went to the immigration office on Fri and they accepted him. I cannot tell you how relieved that I am. We no longer have to worry about paper work or money. It is all settled. Now in 3 years Gabe can be a citizen. I am so proud of him. We are truly grateful for what this year has brought. And we cannot wait to see what the coming years have to offer.

Happy Birthday!!!!

Well here it is October already!!!!!! This last week was my birthday!!! And Gabe being the amazing man that he is surprised me with a trip to Las Vegas! Gabe is not much of a road trip kind of guy, so we flew down. We flew out on Tues and came back on Fri. It was a short trip but we had so much fun. In music class in elementary school we studied the Phantom of the Opera. Every year I looked forward to this lesson because I loved the music and I loved hearing the story. Ever since then It was always a desire of mine to see it. Well on my birthday, we saw it. We had bought the cheapest tickets and of course they were at the back of the theater. When we got there the greeter said that she had 2 seats closer to the front and that we could have them if we wanted. We of course jumped on that and our seats were eight rows from the stage. These seats were 300 dollars and we got them for 80.  The show was fantastic.  We sat by the pool, and ate amazing food. It was such a good trip and it was so nice to just spend time with Gabe. It was one of the best birthdays that I have ever had. I cannot believe that this year is passing by so fast.  And that I just keep getting older.

The Wii!!!!!!

Add caption

Well I must say that this last weekend has been somewhat of an adventure. It was supposed to be a very good weekend. Filled with lots of things to do. If anything this weekend turned out to be the worst that I have had in a really long time. I worked on Wed and Thurs and was going to be off the entire weekend. Gabe and I both decided that we both needed a date night. We both have been on edge and needed a date night. So we planned on doing that on Fri. On Sat we planned on going to my aunt's boyfriend's for a BBQ  and games. Sun was going to be lie any other day and go to church and just relax at home. On Mon my other aunt and uncle were coming down with my mom and dad and were going shopping and spend the day together. So let me back up on Fri Gabe and I went to dinner at the Sizzler because we had a coupon and we do anything to save money and then we went to the movie. We went and saw the The Help. It is about these servents before the Civil Rights Movement and how they tell their story to a journalist which at that time was against the law. Anyway, the story gets published and then the Civil Rights Movement. Gabe wanted to see it because we all know how much he likes shows like that and I just thought that it would be interesting. It was a great movie and it was a great date night. Anyway on Sat we went to the grocery store. And then came home and got ready for the BBQ. We had a nice time eating and talking. Well then my aunts boyfriend said that it was time to get our groove on. So we played this dancing game on the Wii. We danced for a while and then decided that maybe we watch a movie. Well then they decided that we should bowl on the wii. So we began to bowl and the next thing you know it was my turn. We were on the eighth frame and I was getting tired so I was glad that we were almost done. I got up got into place, swung my arm back, swung it forward, bent my knee just a little and POP. That is what my knee did. It popped and I fell to the floor. My knee was on the other side of my leg and when I hit the floor it went back into place. I was in so much pain. The pop was so loud that everyone in the house no matter where they were came running. I could hardly move it. I sat there in shock for a while and realized that I should go to the hospital. So they helped me into the car and Gabe drove me to the U er. I waited for awhile and they took x-rays. When the doctor came in he told me that I had dislocated my knee and that there was fluid on my knee. So they put me in a moblizer for a week and on crutches with no weight bearing. I have to go see a sports med doctor on Mon to see if I need surgery. This has been a big pain in the butt. Gabe is taking great care of me, but I can do nothing on my own. I lay here and that is about it. My fun weekend turned into a shamble.

Busy Busy!

Well I cannot believe that August is coming to an end. It seems as though this month has gone by so quickly. Gabe and I went to L.A. last week. We had to go to get apply for my Brazilian visa. We figured that if we were going to spend all this money to fly out there that we might as well make a vacation out of it. It has been a little crazy and we sure needed the break. So we went. I felt very guilty in going because my grandpa had been really sick the last month or so and we knew that it would not be much longer before he passed. But this was something that needed to be done and we had already made the arrangement's.  So we went. We got there at like 7 in the morning on Thurs. We could not check into our hotel until 3 so we had to entertain ourselves. We went to breakfast at Denny's. By the time we finished it was only like 9. I had worked till 11:30 the night before and we had to be at the airport by 4:30 and I had not gotten any sleep. So we decided to drive around for a lil bit and see where things were. Well Gabe wanted to go and do things and I was like I am so tired that I am not even going to enjoy anything unless I get some sleep. So we called the hotel and they said the soonest that we could check in was at noon. So we went to the hotel and slept in the car for an hour till we could check in. We finally checked in and I crashed for a few hours. We then got ready had some lunch and then went to the wax museum. It was fun walking around Hollywood. And just relaxing. We went to the consulate and applied and enjoyed the rest of our trip. We came home late Sat night but right before we left I had called my mom to see how my grandpa was doing and she had said that the nurse told her that he would not make it past the next 24 hours. When we got home we went to bed and I got a phone call from my mom Sun morning saying that my grandpa had passed. We of course hurried up to Ogden to be with family. It was so sad to see him go. He seemed so happy. He had been without my grandma for 30 years and he missed her. But we were missing him. It is going to be hard not having him around anymore. The funeral was beautiful and he looked amazing. I am not sure what it is about funerals, but it makes you realize what you have and what you need to be grateful for. School started today and life keeps getting busier and busier. Gabe is going to L.A. for the day tomorrow he is going to go pick up my visa. I will be so glad when all of this  is over. 

4th of July!!!

Well I cannot believe that it is already the 4th of July. Time seems to be flying by so fast. Today was such an interesting day. We did not do very much. All the stores were having great sales. So Gabe and I went to Sears. I have never had my own set of luggage. I thought that since we are going to Brazil this Christmas that I needed to buy some. They were having great sales at Sears on luggage. We went and spent a good amount of time looking. Who knew that buying luggage was so difficult. Anyway I finally found a 3 piece set for a great place. I am so excited. Then we went to lunch and went grocery shopping. We BBQ some Chicken and made s-mores. It was a fun and relaxing night. This week has been very eventful. On the 2nd Gabe and I celebrated 1 year of being together. It is so weird to think that a whole year has gone by. I remember when we first met. Our first date was at the Gateway. We went to dinner and walked around and got to know each other. I knew at that time that he was the one that I was going to marry. So on Sat Gabe said that we should go out. We went to the movie and saw Larry Crowne! Then we went to the T-mobile store to get me a new phone. I got an Android! It is so much fun. I think that Gabe is more obsessed  with it then I am. Then he took me to Applebee's for dinner. It was so much fun. It was good to get out and to be able to spend quality time together. I feel that we don't get out much. Now as we celebrate our Independence Day I think of all the things that we have to be grateful for. I am so glad that we are able to live in a country where we are free. And I know that Gabe is even more grateful for this country. He is so happy to be here and to be able to make his dreams come true. I am grateful that he is able to be here as well. This year has been so exciting. Gabe and I met, got engaged, and married all within in the same year. I could not be happier!

Sleepover!!!!

Well I must say that it has been a very interesting 24 hours! My brother and sister in law's anniversary was last week and they wanted to go somewhere over night and Gabe and I were supposed to take my oldest niece Noel for the night. But things did not work out and we were both a little bummed that we were not able to watch her. But we decided on Sunday that we would take her last night for the night so that my sister in law could get things done. She is such a doll. We had so much fun playing last night and had dinner and watching a movie. She went to bed at 8. Gabe and I decided that we should go to bed around 10:30 because we knew it was going to be an early morning. Sure enough at 3 am little Noel had a nightmare. So we were up till 4 trying to calm her down and putting her back to sleep. And then at 8 this morning she was up. We had a good day  filled with shopping, playing and McDonald's. Funny story....  We went to Smiths today and when I was getting some fresh vegetables there was this lady with a child in her cart. The child was bald and wearing some mutual colored clothes. She told me that my child looked just like me. I just smiled and said thank you. If anyone knows my brother you know that he and I look alot alike and Noel looks like my brother so much. That Noel ends up really looking like me too. So she is easily seen as my child. But on the other hand she looks nothing like Gabe. Ha ha. Anyway so the lady proceeded to ask how old Noel was. I told her that she was sixteen months old. The lady said I am so jealous your child has way more hair than mine. So being the idiot that I am I turned around and said " oh and old is HE?" The woman gave me the dirtiest look I have ever seen and said " Well SHE is sixteen months as well!" oops insert my foot into mouth right at that moment. And of course Noel is smiling and waving at this lady and I all I could muster out was " Well that is nice. She is a cutie." Needless to stay I told Noel to stop waving and pulled Gabe over and said let's get out of here. It was so embarrassing.  Watching her was so much fun and Gabe is so cute with her. Noel just loves him I think that she loves him more than me. Looking at Gabe with her I knew that he is going to make a great father. But after just dropping her off at home Gabe and I are exhausted. It just makes the choice of having kids right now that much easier. We are just not ready but we are enjoying just watching our nieces and playing mom and dad for awhile.
The other exciting news is that Gabe and I are going to Brazil!!!! I am so so so so excited. We are going for New Years and I cannot wait. Gabe's family is so excited to see us and we are so excited to see them. I miss them a lot. I know that Gabe misses them too. I am excited to meet the rest of the family that I was not able to meet at the wedding. It is going to be one of the best trips that I have been on. I really need to get working on learning Portuguese. Well that is life of Dani and Gabe this week.

Wedding Bells

Well it is offical! Gabe and I are finally married. We have been for two weeks now and let me just say that it is loads of fun. Gabe's family  flew in from Brazil. His grandma, mother, brother, and step dad all came in. His mom is so cute. We were able to spend  the whole week together and had a ton of fun. Everytime we went shopping she always bought me things. Such a sweet lady. And I fell in love with his grandmother. She is adorable. Although she did not speak any English so it was a little difficult for us to communicate, but she was so sweet and loving. Gabe's brother is just a teenage boy. He is super nice and such a cute kid. I love his family so much and I am so sad that they do not live closer so that we could see them all the time. Our wedding was the most amazing thing ever. Everything went really well. The temple ceremony was so beautiful and thank goodness  is it did not rain. We got finished with all our pictures without there being a down pour. After Gabe and I left the temple that is  when the rain came. We felt that we were lucky. It was a mad dash to the  reception center in Ogden. We had to get ready for the ring ceremony that we were holding. It was so adorable. But I am not sure if this happens to all new brides but that day I have no idea as to where my brain went. My sister in law called after the temple to see what time we wanted her at the reception to help get me back into my dress. The whole time that she was on the phone I had to keep asking her who she was and why she wanted to talk to me. Ha ha do not ask me where my brain went cuz simply I do not know! Anywho we had the reception and everything went so well. Gabe and I got a free room at a B&B up the Ogden Canyon. It was amazing. They gave us this really nice room with a jacuzzi tub and they served us breakfast in our room the next morning. The next day we woke up and off to Hawaii it was. It took a really long time to get there. But it was so so so much fun. Neither one of us had ever been to Hawaii. It was beautiful and romantic and it was so nice to be there with my new husband. (It still is a little wierd to call him that) Although, we spent way much more money then I thought that we were going to we had an amazing time. I literally cried on the way home and begged Gabe to not allow me to go back. Although I did not want to come back it has been really nice to be in our own little house. We got a lot of great things for our wedding and are slowly putting our house together. I love being married and I love my husband. Life is amazing!!!!

One Week!!!!

Well it is official. It is exactly 1 week from today that Gabe and I will be married. I am so excited if you could not tell. And I am so sorry if all of my posts lately of the wedding but in one week it will all be over. Just a little update since I last wrote. Gabe and I went through the temple last week. It was such an amazing experience. I must say that it was a lot better than I thought it was going to be. It was such an amazing to see Gabe in the temple. It was at that moment that I realized that this was all a reality. I was really getting married and I was doing it in the temple.  It is such a good feeling. It has been a very busy and crazy week. We are very excited for what the next week will bring. Gabe's mom, grandma, and brother went to New York this past week and will be flying here on Mon. I am so very excited to see them. I have only met his mom once and I have never met his grandma and brother. His stepdad will be flying in the day before the wedding. It will be nice for Gabe to see his family again and for me to meet the family that I am about to become a part of.  Everyone keeps asking me if I am nervous. But to be honest I am not nervous at all I am just so ready!!!! I know that marriage may not be the easiest thing in the world that you have to work on it. But I cannot express how excited I am to have Gabe by my side all the time. I also cannot wait to have a real vacation. It has been a really long time since I have had a real vacation. It will be so much fun to be with my husband with me. The next that I write a blog I will probably be a married women. I hope to see you all at the wedding and I will post pics as soon as I can!!

Getting Close!

What a relief!!! Gabe and I finished the last of our invitations today, and mailed them all out!!! It is such a relief to finally have those big boxes out of my way and not have to worry about them anymore. Things are coming along really well. I can hardly believe that the wedding is like 3 weeks away!!! This past week has been so great. I finally got my temple recommend and Gabe finally got his last night. After much bugging and a lot of running around he finally got it. It almost seemed like he was never going to get it. But I am so proud of him. He got his priesthood on Sunday and he is now a elder. He was so excited!!! He told me the other day that anytime I wanted a blessing I should just ask. He is darn cute!!!!He has come such a long way in the church. He has such a great testimony of the church. Sometimes I think that he knows more about the church then I do, and I have been in it my entire life. All my life I have always wondered what it would be like to go to the temple and to be sealed to my family and now it is here. I am so grateful that I have a man that is worthy to take me there.  We are having our new bedroom set delivered tomorrow. I cannot wait. Gabe has been moving a few of his things in at time so that we don't have to move so much later. When I look around and I see all his stuff the reality of me living with a man is kinda scary. Do not get me wrong,  I am excited but it's going to be definatly a change. Life is good, we are so happy and I just want it to be here already!!!!!!

Bridals

Last week I got up at the crack of dawn, and went to Layton. I got my hair done and then went to my parent's house. I then got into my wedding dress and was off taking my bridal pics. I must say that it was a little wierd being in my dress. It felt that I was really getting married Ever since I was a little girl I have always imagined what it would be like to get married and now it is here. As I was standing there all dressed up and watching my mom cry her eyes out, I knew that this was reality. I knew that prayers had been answered. I had been given such an amazing man and I was getting married to him. It has been a very emotional few days. This last Saturday, my good friend Annie threw me a bridal shower. It was so much fun. We played a game where Annie had asked Gabe some questions about himself and I had to answer them. If I got them wrong I had to put a piece of gum in my mouth. By the end of the game I had 7 pieces!!!!! I felt a little sick and I was determined that Gabe had made up some of the answers so that I would get them wrong. ha ha.  We got a lot of things for the house and it was great. I also got some unmentionables that was fun as well. I am so grateful for the good friends that I have and that they care about me  so much! Then on Sun when I walked into the church the 2nd counseler came running up to me and asked if I had gotten my temple recommend yet? I was not supposed to get until next week but I guess they are rearranging all the wards and the stakes soon and they wanted to get it all done. I was not prepared for this. I have always imagined that I would get married in the temple. It is something that I have always wanted. But this was it. I knew in my heart that I was ready, but I was not so sure that I was ready in my head to answer the questions. When sitting in front of the bishops office my hands sweated and i could not sit  still. Gabe leaned over and told me that everything was going to be alright. I was going to be just fine and that there was nothing to worry about. Well needless to say that he was right. I am going to go see the Stake President tonight to get everything done, but I was so glad that I got the recommend. I am getting married in the temple and I am so excited. Gabe and I are going through on April 30th. It is my dad's 60th birthday and he said that we could not give him a better gift then to go through the temple. I am so excited and  everything seems to  to be happening so fast. 31 Days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Invitations

So, we are down to less then 2 months till the wedding. It just keeps getting closer and closer. But it still feels a long way away. We got our invitations in the mail the other day. They are so pretty if I do say so myself. We had a few invitations made in portuguese so that we could send them to Gabe's family. We thought they perfect until we noticed that the portuguese ones had the wrong date. Whoops.... that was our mistake. So we are just going to send them out and put a little insert with the right date. We are super excited as always and I just want the invitations to be sent out and for the day to be here.

Engagements

So yesterday was probably one of the funnest days that Gabe and I have had. We had to get up early and be in Layton by 8:30. A family friend of mine was doing my hair. I did look so beautiful if I do say so myself. But in Gabe's words, "Pumpkin you  look HOT"! And Gabe looked amazingly HOT! But what else is new? He always does. I know I know I maybe a little biased but it is okay to be biased about your honey! So went to the Union Station in Ogden. For those of you that have never been there it is a very historic place. The building is very old fashion. There are several old trains that are there and it is just a fun place.  We have been praying that it be good weather. It was a little over cast but perfect for taking pictures. I must say that I have never had to stand in so  many uncomfortable spots in all my life. We then went to another location that just had beautiful structures. We took several pictures and are going to have them back in just a few straight weeks. We then are just waiting for the invitations to get here and we will be all set. I know that it was just 3 months ago that Gabe and I started planning a wedding. Now, we are almost done and the big day is arriving. It is weird to think that in 2 months that I will be married. Reality has not hit me yet and I don't know if it will for awhile. The other day I went to Ogden to help my sister-in-law with the kids and when I returned home Gabe had a gift for me. It was not my birthday, it was not Christmas, it was just a regular day. It was for just because he loves me so much and was thinking about me. I was so shocked and so excited! It had made my day. And I knew that this is why I was marrying this man. He loves me with all his heart and I could not ask for anything more!!!!

First Purchase!!!!

Well I feel that this has been an ongoing dilemma for us. We have been searching and searching for a bed. You see, I have always had just a twin bed since I moved out of my parents house and so Gabe and I knew that we would have to purchase a bed sooner or later. I cannot even begin to tell you how many bedroom stores we  have been to. Laying on every mattress in the store. We have found several that were perfect but then we looked at the price tag, and gave up on trying to find a bed. Who knew that beds were so dang expensive. Finally, the other day Gabe and I decided to venture out once again and decided that we were not going to stop till we had purchased a bed. Well.... we found one!!!!! It is the most beautiful most comfortable bed in the world. Not only did we buy a mattress but we bought a whole bedroom set. I know I know it was a big jump from just buying a mattress to a whole set. But it was on sale for a great price and we are super excited. The sales man showed us several different styles and I saw this one I knew it. I knew that this was the one that we are were going to buy.  I must admit though, I was a little scared to make the purchase. This was our first big real purchase that we had ever made together and I knew that meant that we were adults. I still am scared about the whole thing but I am beyond excited. Not only about the purchase but also that we no longer have to go to every bedroom store in the entire city and look, freak out over the price. I guess that this means that we are really getting married and that it is coming faster and faster. We finally got the invitations  ordered last night and they will be here in about 3 weeks. It has been a very exciting week for the both of us!

Excitement!

So today, Gabe and I went to go register for the wedding. We went to Target and found several things for the house. I guess you could say that I went a little crazy. There was so much to choose from and I was not sure what we really needed or what was going to be very useful, so i jut registered for it all. lol We spent a good two hours walking around the store scanning everything. Although we were only about half way done the scanner decided that it was going to die. I think that was a sign that we had already registered for too much and that we needed to stop. We did not let this get us down, we got a new scanner and continued on. It was a very eventful day and we had a lot of fun. I can't believe how fast the wedding is coming. We have about 93 days!!!!!! I feel like it is so far but when I think about all the things that I have left to do it is not enough time.  Who knew that when planning a wedding there is so much detail? I can honestly say that I am so ready to be married. Gabe and I are going to live in the apartment that I currently live in. It is a cute little apartment and very close for Gabe to go to school. I am kicking my friend Wanda out of the apt for Gabe to move in! It is going to be so different living with a man. It will be an adjustment but so worth it. I love him with all my heart and cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with him.

New Year!

Well here we are again, starting a new year! It is hard to think that 2010 is already over. 2011 is going to be a great year. The wedding plans are coming along very nicely. We have the reception center, temple booked, cake, and I even got my wedding dress! Gabe and I are both so excited. Gabe is currently on his way home from Brazil right now. He will be here in just a few hours. It feels like he has been gone for an eternity. He will be happy to return home and to start another semester of school.