Archive for "Relationship"
Nineteen Years and Counting
Posted on August 19, 2021 by Ching under Relationship.
We didn’t have any major plans for our 19th wedding anniversary — just dinner and a ball game. We went to Carrabba’s, our “go to” place for celebratory dinners.
We ordered our usual meatball starter. It’s really good there.
Don’t mind the less than enthusiastic look on Brian’s face. He always looks this way no matter how thrilled he is on the inside.
I’m so glad they finally added the chicken piccata on the the menu. They offered it as a takeout entree during the pandemic but it wasn’t on the dine in menu so you couldn’t order it at the restaurant. Now I can finally get it there. Hurrah for that!
After dinner we went to catch a baseball game at Riverfront Stadium. It was our first time in the Evergy suite.
I’m glad we skipped dessert at the restaurant because they had these delicious brownies there. Actually, had I known there would be food in the suite, we could have skipped our dinner plans altogether.
The stadium is beautiful but I don’t think that many people are into baseball these days. Here are a few more pics that I snapped while there. It seemed pretty dead for a Saturday night.
The company in the suite was pretty good, though. (With the lovely Caroline and Chet Kelley in the pic below.)
This anniversary weekend was super uneventful, which is probably a good thing. It’s a far cry from our 9th wedding anniversary celebration ten years ago. That was a little nuts. Anyway, I’m looking forward to a fabulous year of traveling — now that Brian is finally fully vaccinated (best anniversary present ever) — starting with a trip to Jamaica in January. Details are listed below. Hope you all can join us!
P.S. When you book, tell Jay or Becca that Ching sent you so I can get referral credit. LOL. Until next time, GNG.
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Anniversary Weekend
Posted on August 12, 2020 by Ching under Relationship, Things to Do.
It was an interesting anniversary weekend. We didn’t really have any major plans because flying anywhere is out of the question right now. And then I had already committed to meeting up with Teresa and Ross for manis and pedis (we’ve had to reschedule our couples manis and pedis at least twice so we were all eager for this to happen) so we really couldn’t go on a road trip. We kept our anniversary weekend this year simple and low key.
We started by having some drinks at Bigs before our group appointment at Nails and Beyond. My friend Debbie had mentioned Bigs to me before because they would sometimes go there after Friday night pickleball at Nahola. This was before the pandemic hit. Anyway, I’d heard others mention the place but I’d never been there. Saturday was my first time. It was interesting.
Brian and I got there first and his first impression was, “Wow! We are the youngest people here by 20 years!” LOL. It’s definitely an older crowd. The drinks are strong and cheap, though, so I can see why people (including my friend Debbie) go there.
After a couple of drinks at Bigs, we were off to Nails and Beyond just down the street. We would normally have to wear masks but we were the only ones there during our appointment so they didn’t make us.
Teresa and Ross are so fun. I just love ’em!
After our manis and pedis, Teresa and Ross went back to Bigs. Brian and I went to the Belmont, this new restaurant at Happiness Plaza on Douglas, hoping to try it out but they had an hour and a half long wait.
We decided to go to Carrabba’s, which is our “go to” place. We’re never disappointed with the food or service, and Joe is always so nice to us. We still had to wait but it was shorter – only 30 minutes.
We ate way too much that night. We had our favorite small plate/appetizer, the meatballs and ricotta. We both had Caesar salads and ate way too much bread before our entrees even came. Then, we usually share a Chicken Bryan but I was starving that day for some reason so I decided to order my own meal.
I got the salmon topped with crab. On the plus side, I got broccoli with it, instead of pasta so it could have been worse. I ate every bit of it, though.
Here’s a picture of the Chicken Bryan.
We got two things of dessert to go because we are ridiculous. One was a giant slide of rich chocolate cake that Joe just gave to us. He is so nice!
The other is the “cannoli cake for two” which we still have some of in the fridge.
Our anniversary weekend this year wasn’t too exciting but we had some new experiences and a ton of fun as always. We have another adventure planned on Sunday but, other than that, we are happy to celebrate another wonderful year of marriage and look forward to many more to come.
Until next time. GNG.
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Happy Valentines, Baby!
Posted on February 13, 2019 by Ching under Relationship.
We’re not the most romantic people so we don’t really do anything fancy for Valentines usually. After being together for 20 years, Valentines Day is just another day really. It’s all the other days that matter. And, I must say, Brian does a great job of making me feel special and loved each and every day. Thank you for being not just the best husband ever but the best friend I could ever hope to have.
I love you, baby!
Here’s to another great Valentines together. May we have many, many more!
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Our Anniversary Weekend
Posted on September 8, 2018 by Ching under Date Ideas, Relationship.
Brian and I started our anniversary celebration this year with manis and pedis at our favorite local salon, Nails and Beyond.
I picked this one for my toenails because I liked the color. I took a picture because I thought the name was clever.
It’s sparkly but still kind of neutral, which is my style. I don’t really get into crazy nail polish colors or designs. I keep it pretty basic most of the time.
This is Brian getting an arm massage from Vanessa.
Here’s the finished product. I rarely (if at all) get my fingernails painted. We both usually as for the “buff shiny” treatment. It’s $5 more but the natural shine actually lasts a few weeks and you don’t have to worry about yucky, chipped nail polish.
We ended up going to Carrabba’s for dinner after. We were going to just eat at Taco Bell because I had this whole post planned about how you really don’t have to spend a lot of money or do anything fancy for anniversaries. I was trying to make the point that it doesn’t really matter where we are as long as we’re together. Anyway, I got derailed by a “happy hour all day” email from Carrabba’s. Of course, I would rather eat the delicious food at Carrabba’s any day. But the point is, if all we had money for was Taco Bell, that would be just fine with me too.
Love is all we need.
The next night Brian took me to a surprise anniversary dinner at Siena Tuscan Steakhouse. I figured it out as we were driving there. He said he wanted to go somewhere we’d never been before. I’d had lunch at Siena a few times before but never dinner. I guess he forgot that I’d been there. I told him dinner is different. This was my first dinner experience there. I was really proud of Brian for going out of his comfort zone.
We started with the bruschetta. It was delicious. I would totally go back just for this. The salmon had the perfect smokiness. I thoroughly enjoyed every bite.
Anyway, here’s a better picture.
We also both got Caesar salads.
Guess which one of us had the anchovy and which one didn’t.
Brian got the fettuccine bolognese. It doesn’t look like much but it was amazing! Next time I’m here, I’m totally getting it.
I had the grilled salmon, which you can’t really see too well in this photo. It was also very good but I really liked what Brian had.
We finished with a tiramisu, which they serve in a cute little mason jar and top with an even cuter mini macaron.
It looks even cuter next to Brian.
The one thing I found out that night that I didn’t know before is, much like the Ambassador Hotel in Kansas City, this Ambassador Hotel also offers complimentary parking and shuttle service to the shows when you dine with them. I told Brian I would make a mental note for next year. Also, posting it here on the blog in case I forget.
Traditionally, we always take anniversary selfies.
The next day, we continued the celebration by watching the Music Theatre Wichita production of the Little Mermaid.
MTW had several great shows this year but this was the first one that we’d been able to attend all season. Brian really wanted to see Pippin but we were in Orlando that weekend. Next year Chicago falls during ZINCON, which I’m a tad distraught about. I really want to see Chicago but I don’t want to miss ZINCON either. It’s quite a tough decision. I guess it will all depend if we end up with season passes.
Anyway, that’s pretty much our anniversary celebration in a nutshell. It’s quite low-key just like us. Happy 16th wedding anniversary to the two of us. Until next time!
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The Best of 2017
Posted on January 30, 2018 by Ching under Life, Relationship, Zumba.
Every year I post highlights to reflect on everything that happened — good and bad. I usually post it at the very end of the year or right at the beginning of the new year. I’m a little bit late posting this one because our weekends have been jam-packed with stuff. It’s been difficult to find a few minutes to write about an entire year.
First, here are links to past annual recaps to get you caught up:
- 2016 — Brian and I went on the first ever Zumba cruise where I met J. Perry (he sings many of my favorite Zumba songs) in person for the first time. I also got to meet Max Pizzolante at #ZINCON. I had the opportunity to tour Zumba Home Office. And I finally made 40 Under 40.
- 2015 — We hosted a Super Pi Day party. Brian and I completed Citizen Policy Academy. I got to visit New York for the first time. And we added a couple of new family members: Rex and Saki.
- 2014 — The year that I hosted my first Zumba World Party party. Brian bought a tux to attend our very first Wichita Heart Ball event. I went to both the Zumba Instructor Conference in LA and the Zumba Instructor Convention in Orlando. I actually went to both because I won a free registration for ZINCON at the LA Conference. I ended up getting pneumonia for the first time ever. This is also the year that I switched from being a die-hard Android user to my first iPhone, which I still have.
- 2013 — There was Cards for the Cure, a visit from the Orbases, a few appearances on Splurge! Mag, his and hers handguns, first time back at the Filipino ball, Leadership Elite, Brian’s parent’s 40th wedding anniversary, Cards Against Humanity, my first Zumba Instructor Convention, first trip to Minneapolis and Davenport, completed group exercise instructor training and started teaching Zumba for the Greater Wichita YMCA.
- 2012 — We attended a few weddings, most notably Cousin Tracy and Jeff’s destination wedding at Coral Cove Resort in Jamaica. I attended the Gina & Tanya Rock the Stage Tour. I got my Zumba Basic 1 License and I took Brian to Nashville for his 38th birthday. We celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary by closing on our house and then I ended the year with a thyroidectomy.
- 2011 — We started the year by getting stranded at McCarran International Airport (Las Vegas). That didn’t deter us from traveling, though. We traveled through the East Coast with the Dills that summer and had a lot of firsts. We also got to see James Taylor perform twice: once at Intrust Bank Arena and again at Tanglewood. I also had my first ER trip and my first biopsy.
- 2010 — This is the year that we spent a lot of time with the Dills. It started out when we rang in the New Year at Kansas City Power & Light with Jay, Becca, and Mama Dill. A month later, we were traveling with them again. This time to San Francisco. Lots of travelling!
- 2009 — We had a lot of firsts this year. We attended Zoobilee for the first time. Brian had his first trip to Germany. He also visited the Philippines for the first time. I completed Leadership Westar. Tita Sol adopted Molly.
- 2008 — Brian started working for Viega. I completed my MBA from Wichita State University. And, we dealt cards on a cruise ship.
So what happened last year? So much! Probably too much to condense into a single update but I’m going to give it my best effort.
We started the year off strong with a Plank Challenge and we were very optimistic about blowing our goals out of the water. However, it didn’t take long for us to succumb to life and being busy and we were back to our lazy selves in no time.
I hosted my first Zumbathon® and we raised a good chunk of money for Big Brothers Big Sisters, a cause that is near and dear to me. All of the crazy fundraising we did during the “For Kids’ Sake” campaign paid off. I was the top fundraiser at our annual company “Bowl for Kids’ Sake” event.
Brian and I attended more events this year than we ever have and were even inducted into the Society of 1895. I couldn’t make that luncheon but Brian attended for the both of us. Here are some of the other events we had the privilege of attending last year:
- The Wichita Art Museum’s Winter Opening Party
- 23rd Annual Heart Ball
- YMCA Annual Celebration
- Fundraising events KANSEL and Child Start
- Colors and Corks (a United Way YLA event)
- East Wichita Rotary’s Kentucky Derby Party
- Ritual and Desire exhibit opening (WAM)
- Symphony in the Flint Hills
- Andover Concert in the Park
- Zoobilee
- Ava’s Army Pub Crawl
- Home for Doc Gala
- Greater Andover Days
- Strike a Pose! (WAM)
- Haus of Brews
- Bloktoberfest
- ICT Millenial Summit
We also discovered a winery just South of Wichita. Besides selling great wine, they also host an amazing outdoor concert series every summer.
The Keeper of the Plains statue that Brian helped design was finally installed in our atrium at work. And, it’s magnificent!
I celebrated my 15th service anniversary at work. I also switched teams at this time. I’m still in Customer Care but now part of the Business Solutions team.
Brian and I traveled to two places we’d never been. First to Alaska over Memorial weekend, where we went to visit Sheryll and her family. Then, later in the year, we celebrated my 40th birthday in the Bahamas. Both trips were memorable in their own way and we feel truly blessed that we had the opportunity to go.
We hosted a couple of fun parties at the house. The one over Fourth of July weekend resulted in Brian finally completing the installation of the automatic garage door opener for our third car garage. The second one was the first Zumba World Party party that I’ve had in a long time.
Besides installing a garage door opener, Brian also installed a Nest thermostat and some smart switches.
Brian and I completed a couple of drink tours: the Wicked Brew Tour and the Carlos O’Kelly’s Summer Drink Tour. The former got us these cool, limited edition shirts from Visit Wichita. The latter got us really cool hand-blown glassware.
Besides the #DanceForKids Zumbathon that I hosted at the beginning of the year, I did a ton of Zumba. We had more Zumba in the Square events than ever. There was Zumba at the Relay for Life event, where we danced from Friday night into Saturday morning. I added a new class to my Zumba teaching scheduled — 5:15 AM on Fridays. And then, of course, there’s the annual Zumba Instructor Convention (aka #ZINCON), where we spend four days of nonstop Zumba.
Speaking of Zumba, I finally made Zumba Wear 3 Star Insider! My friend Missy and I made it during the same quarter.
Other firsts include visiting local sunflower fields for the first time and playing in a ping pong tournament with some friends. I have to say 2017 is the year that I saw my ping pong game truly improve.
This was a banner year for me because it’s the year that I left my 30s behind. Supposedly 40 is the new 30 so I’m looking forward to what this new year will bring!
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