The men in my life

I realize that many of my posts start out with "Daniel Alan Champion is amazing..."
This is no different.
He really, really is.
Seeing this man as a father has only made me realize how crazy awesome he is.  This past week we have all been able to stay home as a family and I have gotten the chance to see these two dudes have long conversations about hockey, family, and life in general.
I love my boys.

D.A.C

I love this boy.
Seriously.

Good looking, hard working, understanding, loving, manly man- you are the bomb.

Tres Anos!

Wonderful things come in threes. Amigos....
3 legged races....

Three years of marriage.

Oh yes, there are many wonderful things that come in threes.

A horse of a different color.

Sometimes we feel the effects of our lack of free spending cash. Sometimes things like this happen. Sometimes I revel in the beauty of being newly married, new homeowners, out of cash, and making my hair look as if it belongs to him. My deepest apologies for the sick faces but it was hilarious to us that fateful weekend.

Celebrity Look Alikes

A few months ago I did a "Which Celebrity Do You Look Like?" face recognition website at the request of one of the young women I used to work with. This was one of my results. Lovely.

BRUCE LEE. Along with several unattractive past politicians from Asia. Several of them were men.

Perhaps you think my celeb match was brightened up by this beauty. Nope. This is Danno. He is a pretty saucy Latina from time to time.

This is Danno's other match. At least it is a man. But we all know Danno can't grow a handsome mustache such as that.

I suppose our faces are too distinctive to compare to any Hollywood beauty. That, or we are really unattractive people. Either way-we're cool.

Back in the swing of things!

Well another year has come again and I am now three weeks into my second year of teaching. It has been wonderful doing this a SECOND time. The first year was so scary. But this year I am much more at ease starting school. I'm still no expert and I have already had a heart-to-heart with my class about their behavior, but I feel much more comfortable this time.

Danno and I were also able to celebrate our second year as married peeps. I am such an advocate of marriage. Who else would tell me when I have stuff in my teeth, listen to me cry about naughty children and dog poop, correct papers, buy a puppy and home with me, tell me my outfit is cute even when it's less than fab, and take care of me when I am all yucky and sicky? The answer is Danno. He is my best friend and I like him a lot. We went down to St. George and had a wonderful time! We saw Tarzan at the Tuachan, ate steak, went shopping and swimming, and lounged by the pool. I love Danno.

Yuki is still a baby to us. We love her most of the time. She is getting her sad surgury on Tuesday and will be sporting the cone of shame. Good luck Yuki!

Life is sweet.

Danno studying hard for finals

Although the Utah weather is throwing us for a loop, Danno and I couldn't be happier. Danno just finished his semester and is enjoying a little break before he starts his summer semester and my work is getting a little smoother. Danno is looking for drafting jobs and beginning his life in a grown up job [sorry RL-red lobster-you just suck sometimes]. He also thankfully passed his marriage and family class. And work for me is getting better. End of year testing starts next week and I feel like I am finally making some progress with some behavioral issues with students.
Danno and I are also in contract for a home in Sandy near his parents. We love it and hope everything works out. We were supposed to close in three days, but due to a snag from the seller it could be a few more weeks. We cannot wait to have a little home! Plus a little home means a little puppy.
However, it has been a hard week for my little heart. If you watch Lost and aren't caught up-this is your spoiler alert so stop reading or skip over this.
I'm pretty sure I cried harder when Jin and Sun died than when my dog died. I love tv. I always have. I used to draw pictures of my family and I would include the tv. I would draw arms and legs on it and we were always holding hands. Call it what you want.

This is how we roll

We celebrated today by going to the Museum of Natural History and then eating fondue. Woo Hoo!

2 years ago today...

Danno asked me to marry him! I naturally said yes. Here is the story for those who don't know it.
March 29th 2008.
Danno and I had been dating since he got home from his mission and had basically decided we were getting married (ok, we had completely decided we were getting married). Thus I knew a proposal was coming. We went with his family to Zions National Park for Easter. I had suspected something was going to happen on this trip because I heard his mom ask him if he was still planning on proposing (I'm quick like that :) ). However, Danno was so cool and collected I thought he had changed his mind about the Zions proposal. We had so much fun and I just forgot about the potential proposal!
We began hiking Angel's Landing at 6:30 am with Aunt Cheryl, Uncle Datus, and cousin Ben. It was beautiful and a little scary. As we reached the top I saw Danno start to fidget and he kept touching his pocket. Then it hit me. I started to get all squirmy and jumpy! The others let us go ahead and Danno put his arm around me as we looked out off the top of Angel's Landing and he said, "So, do you really want to do this?" I promptly replied, "what?" Quickly followed by, "Um, get married." I love this story! Danno may feel embarrassed but I love it! Then he got down on one knee and popped the question with this rock.Due to nerves and the overwhelming nature of the proposal, Danno didn't get to say everything he wanted to but he more than made up for it in a speech he gave at our wedding dinner. It made me, my sisters, mom and dad all cry like babies.

Gaming

Danno's best friend Ian went to Washington DC for spring break and let us borrow his Playstation 3. This is what we did for spring break. Gotta love those bare ankles.

Daniel Alan

I told Danno that I did a post about my loves during Valentine's Day and he immediately asked: "Did you talk about me?" Although he was joking, I realized that I didn't mention him. Oops. But don't be fooled, our marriage is not in trouble and I like him lots and lots. Here is why:

Danno has been cool since day one. I remember our first encounter in middle school when we wore matching outfits for picture day [zip polar fleece vests were a hot item that year].
He now makes my lunches, works late hours, goes to school full time, hugs me when I'm sad, gets me flowers for fun, cleans the house, corrects papers, and he always lets me know how much he loves me. He is the best husband ever!

LOVE
Danno won my heart our senior year of highschool. We had lockers near eachother and he always dressed so trendy and smelled so good. We started dating in October of 2004. Twist alert: I had a boyfriend at the time but Danno was just so cute and the boyfriend was hunting so I went with Danno and BJ to the movies. Danno and I held hands [scandal!] and from there it started!
On my 18th birthday my mom came and checked me out to go to lunch with her. On my way out the door, Danno grabbed my hand and asked if I could wait a second. He went to his locker and pulled out a cd. He made me a mix and wrote explanations why the songs reminded him of me. In true teenage fashion, I got all annoying/excited/teenage-ish but I really decided I loved him then. My love for him has changed from the teen/twittery love to LOVE LOVE now, but I still get that twittery feeling whenever I see him. He is the bomb. There is no contesting that.

Daniel Alan, you're my hero. [exerpts of that quote taken from Ferris Buhler's Day Off]

Going WAAAAAAAAAAAY back

Being here in Virginia and pretty much alone most of the day gets a girl thinking. Lately I have been thinking about how funny my life is and much of it is tied somehow into Danno. So, here is little insight into our lovely love.I am in the front row folding my arms reverently and Danno is being escorted off the stage by his father. (Note: One of my besties Suzi is concentrating very thoroughly on the far left)

Danno and I began at the very beginning. It's a very good place to start.
Miss Jackie had a charming little preschool where she nurtured young minds, but ultimately we only remember cinnamon toast and sitting in the table with the hole in it. That is correct! We started in preschool, but needless to say, we didn't date until a few years after that.
Sadly, Danno and I didn't meet again until middle school where my first impression of him was, "Man! That kid and I have the same vest on." Twas a lasting impression. We were awkward brace faces together and shared little waves and smiles in the halls but nothing ever came of it. I was painfully shy and awkward looking as my body went through several waves of ugly. Danno had identity crisis issues as he identified himself by duct taping his shoes, waving Canada flags, and bleaching his hair. Middle school is rough fellas. My dear friends Cassie and Annie were in love with my future boo and spent their time driving by his house in hopes of catching a glimpse of his toned...braces?
We got through middle school and I started coming out of my tween funk. High school brought fizzies and jitters as the world of dating opened its pearly gates. The first one at those gates was Daniel Alan Champion! It happened, oh yes it did. As my first date, my parents were on high alert. They admired his promptness in getting me home on time and proclaimed, "We like that boy. He's nice." From then on its history.
Silly high school moments swirled in and out of our pseudo-relationship but ultimately, he came home from his mission we watched Transformers and held hands. Now we are committed to only holding Champasaki hands.

we love it.

Spring Fever Brings Lovey Feelings

I'm a lucky girl. Clearly, he is a lucky man.
I found this and thought it was silly.

This is Danno before he left on his mission.

Top Ten Reasons Danno is the Manno:
10: He plays on "Expert" in Guitar Hero and Rock Band. Rock on baby.
9. He plays my little games. Why only two days ago he pretended to play duets with me on the keyboard for 20 minutes,
8. He helps me get get dressed in the morning. Sometimes finding an outfit is an awful predicament and he humors me with patience as I rummage through my threads.
7. He is a FUNNY man. I don't think anyone ever created can make me laugh like him. The young women in our ward tell me how funny he is, I tell them he is cute.
6. He is incredibly considerate. He will do little things for me like leaving notes on the bathroom mirror, making me cd's, cleaning, and lots of hugs when I lose my cool and curse the teaching profession.
5. He loves puppies...and kids. For us, these are running under the same category: too expensive and no one to take care of them. But when we do get a beautiful puppy or a furry little baby, he will be amazing. I know it.
4. He spoils me a bit. Danno still plans surprise dates, buys flowers, or gets me a cute outfit (He just got me one for my interviews!) even when we are busy and married.
3. He is cute. Well, he is.
2. He is an amazing example for me, our families, and friends.
1. He loves me.

Picture this: It's a cold December day and your first birthday with your husband, as husband and wife. Perhaps you have images of hot cocoa, fluffy pillows, frosty windows, and breakfast in bed. Well, picture this: It's 7:30, the windows are frosted and you have to brave the winter weather as you head to school until 6 p.m. This was my birthday. I was a little bummed that most of this day that my husband took work off for, would be spent in a stuffy classroom. However, he drove me to school, promised much fun and fine dining later, and kissed me goodbye. When I got home, he let me get ready then swept me off for sushi. We ate lots of yummy food and then Danno gave me my present! He gave me a cute hat, scarf, and BODY WORLD tickets! I was so stoked, even though some people I'm a creep for being so excited. We went and it was amazing. We were in awe of how intricate the body is and how unreal the displays were. We highly encourage you to go. It's worth it. We talked his parents into going and are anxious to see their reaction. It was such a fun birthday!

Top Ten

Danno and I have been bored in Logan. Its rainy, but too cold to just walk around in it. And its not snowy so we can't play in it--a double edged sword if you ask me. We have a very small mall with a (drum roll) AMERICAN EAGLE! Its basically like we live in the fashion capital of the world. Only we don't. So here we are, in plea, with some of our blessed talents to entice you to A. hang out with us or B. give us something to do.

Top Ten Reasons we are the Big Cheese:
1. I was a mathlete.
2. Danno won a regional competition in bagging for the great Albertsons family grocery. He even got to go with the number one checker from the store.
3. Danno beat me in a 5k. Although when he was "training" (meaning he ran once) he threw up on the side of a road in front of an old woman.
4. Children grab my stomach and ask where the baby is.
5. We watch Paris Hilton's New BFF religiously.
6. We both have SBO sweaters...not SOB sweaters as was the joke.
7. We successfully held feet, with interlocking toes. It hurt, but it was worth it.
8. We spend a lot of time sitting at a bar where we never drink. He makes the drinks while I study.
9. I can't catch anything thrown towards me.
10. We are the Champions my friend.

He did it!!!

Well after weeks of monotony, I finally have something to report! Danno got his acceptance letter to the University of Utah. We are so excited! Well, I'm getting a little bit worried about leaving Logan. I'm so happy to be moving closer to family but my life has been in Logan for 3.5 years now, PLUS I really like our apartment. Hopefully our new one isn't completely made of cinderblocks...
I would also like to report that Danno and I are loving being married and still haven't fought yet! I know we are still in the newly wed stage when I asked Danno to do some chores while I was at work and he only did the ones he wanted. Somehow, when I got home and had to finish the chores, I thought it was cute. I told him this phase where I always think he is cute would pass, and one day he would have to clean the fish bowl. But for the meantime, I still think he is cute.