Two Year Wedding Anniversary

Exactly two years ago, Steve and I got married.

I realize that everyone probably says this, but our wedding was one of the best days of my life. In front of our friends and family, we got married at a church in Glendale, California, and had a outdoor reception at the University of Southern California.

It's been a wild, fun and wonderful adventure, and I am excited for many many many more years of marriage.

Here are the last two years in pictures:

Our wedding day, June 17, 2006, in Los Angeles.

On our honeymoon in the Caribbean.

In Hawaii, double-fisting our wine in the classiest way possible.

Day trip to Reno. It's a nasty city...don't go.

Visiting family in San Diego, California.

Upside Down Man & Lucky Cat, Halloween 2007.

Enjoying big goblets of cerveza in Mexico City.

Cousin Bethany's high school graduation party.

My brother Adrian's wedding day.

By the way, my brother's wedding was beautiful. The weather was perfect, food was delicious, and we all had a great time celebrating the day. There was also a 100-person game of freeze tag, inflatable boxing, a Battle of the Rock Bands (in which my husband sang Red Hot Chili Peppers' Dani California while wearing a pair of MY old jeans), and multiple minor injuries.

You can see more photos here.

My Flashy Bridesmaid Dress

Only three days until my brother's wedding!

I'm excited for many reasons. First, I love my brother and future sister-in-law, and can't wait for them to start this new journey together. Also, there will be lots of family and friends who are coming from out of town. And c'mon, who doesn't love a wedding?

The wedding also means that I get to wear the pretty, yellow, flow-y bridesmaid dress that I bought for the occasion. And my cute gold sandals and matching earrings.

The other day, I tried on everything - dress, accessories, shoes - because that is what EVERY woman does before a dressy event. Lo and behold, the dress didn't quite fit! I should have realized that, since I purchased the dress in March, and have since lost about ten more pounds. Oops. The top of the dress hangs loosely on my bust and shoulders. Luckily for me, the dress has fabric that crosses in the front, and ties. So if I tie the fabric suuuuuper tight, it can work. I am praying that we don't have a sister-of-the-groom-flashes-the-wedding-guests situation, you know?

Although I suppose that would make the celebration highly entertaining.

Summer Break, Baby!

I think I've literally sent over thirty emails today. Is that normal?

My eyes hurt from staring at my laptop screen, my back hurts from being hunched over as I type, and all my brain can concentrate on is the purpose for all of this butt-busting work. I am urgently trying to finish up loads of tasks for one main reason: SUMMER BREAK. That's right. I get to do all sorts of fun things this summer, which means that this week I am practicing the discipline of delayed gratification, and attempting to tie up loose ends before the fun begins.

Before I describe the items o' fun to you, let me first say, don't you wish you had my job? I'll bet many of you are thinking, man, I really should have gone into the college pastor field. Yeah, that's what I thought.

Okay, so the summer plans. Here goes.

• Fun Thing #1: five-day trip to Catalina Island. Steve and I actually go there a lot, but it still counts as a fun thing. We'll be there with friends, basking in the warm sun, and enjoying lovely things that are hard to come by here in Los Angeles, such as clean air, trees, and visible stars.

• Fun Thing #2: my brother's wedding. My younger brother and his fiancee are planning an outdoor wedding with the coolest reception ever. Don't believe me? It's going to include classic BBQ grub, athletic gear and Rock Band. I get to be a bridesmaid (or is it now bridesmatron since I'm married?), and wear a lovely yellow summer dress.

• Fun Thing #3: month-long trip to Europe. Yep, you read correctly...a month. Steve and I will be visiting England, Italy and Spain. Some of the trip is work-related, some will be vacation. All of it will be awesome. I have been dreaming about visiting Europe for years, and am delirious with excitement and anticipation for all our adventures. Pictures and tales will follow, I promise.
  

So for the next few weeks I will be hard at work. And trying to decide what to do with the blog while I'm away (guest-posts? advance posts? blog from Europe?). And purchasing some new post-weight-loss clothes (because a baggy swimsuit is just wrong).

And the Winner Is...

The winner of The Great Coloring Book Giveaway is...wait for it...Morgan from Miss Priss!

She will soon receive a free autographed copy of The Road to Hana coloring book, mailed directly from the author, Renee K. Coates. Congratulations, Morgan!

Even though her name was chosen at random from the pool of entries, Morgan had a great description of her ultimate dream vacation. Said Morgan, "My dream vacation has been Paris since I was about 10... I better not have taken 4 years of French for nothing! Hubby better deliver on one of our upcoming anniversaries." Love it. And I love her blog, which is devoted to all sorts of fun and girly things, from fashion to pregnancy hormones. Go check her out and say hi!

The rest of you also had great ideas for your dream vacation - a family trip to the Australian Zoo, food-tasting in Japan, a trip to South Africa with friends, snorkeling in the Maldives - wow! You guys should plan my next vacation.

Have a great weekend, folks!

* Also, for those who didn't win the free coloring book, Renee has a special offer for you all: a 20% discount on the coloring book! Just go here and enter the coupon code QHYE9CCG when you place your order. Note that the code is only valid at the above link, and cannot be used at the amazon site.

I Dedicate This Blog to...

I am intrigued by authors' dedications. Whenever I pick up a book, I immediately turn a few pages, and find those few lines that sum up who the author deems worthy of honoring. It's such a beautiful, timeless way to thank and bless the person or people in one's life.

Though I don't have a book (maybe someday!), I do have this blog. I've been thinking about who was deserving of a dedication of this blog. Who would I thank? Who would I attribute this blog to? The answer came easily. There is one person in my life who has shaped me more than any other thus far. One person who really does embody the characteristics of this blog. So here is my dedication:

To my mother, Terry.
A woman of courage, humility, compassion,
and many other qualities of indefinable worth.

How about you? Who would you honor with a dedication?

Extra Extra: Free Ice Cream and Other Little Joys

• Happy Free Ice Cream Day! If you like ice cream and free stuff (and truly, who doesn't?), head on over to your nearest Ben & Jerry's. Today is the annual Customer Appreciation Day at the fabulously hippie ice creamery. Free scoops of cold, creamy goodness for everyone! By the way, while we're talking about Ben & Jerry's, I have a bone to pick with those guys. They used to have a flavor called Pulp Addiction (does anyone else remember that?). It was a delicious blend of creamy orange ice cream and chocolate-orange ice cream with a splash of orange-flavored brandy liqueur. I ate it throughout my freshman year of college, and then it was sadly discontinued. Bring back Pulp Addiction, Ben and Jerry! It tasted far better than that nasty Phish Food ever did!
  

• I received my first ever blog award! In case you haven't realized, bloggers have a wonderful little community in which we love to shower each other with affirmation and accolades - awards like this make a blogger's day. Thank you to Clueless Cat at Twentysomething and Clueless for the award! Stop by her blog and say hello - she's splendid! In return, I present this award to (wait for it...) everyone on my blogroll! Seriously, go peruse the list for yourself. Every single blog there is awesome.

• I also received a Bloggers Choice Award nomination from the crazy, cool (and fellow LA blogger) Margot at marGOt To Bed. She graciously nominated me for Best Food Blog. I feel so honored! Go vote for me here. Maybe I'll end up with more than two (you guessed it...from myself and my husband) votes.

Date Day & Counting Crows

These fellas make for a great date.

Steve and I have Date Day once a week.

Most married couple-y friends of ours also have regular dates with their spouses, which is great, in my opinion. "Hey! You can keep the fire burnin' post-wedding! Who knew?!" For us, these times are extremely valuable. When you and your spouse share the same job and workspace, it is absolutely vital to schedule consistent time to connect, minus the thinking and talking about work.

Date Day will be anything from trying a new restaurant, to walking around one of our favorite areas in the city, to staying at home and watching Heroes on Netflix's Instant Viewing (have you Netflix-ers tried this yet? ADDICTING.). They are always fun, and remind me why I love love love being married to Steve.

To be honest, though, no other Date Day compares with yesterday.

Yesterday, we went to the Grove for a free Counting Crows concert. Free concerts can often be sort of lame, but this one was amazing. The band played a long set, which included some new stuff from their just-released album, Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings, and some of their older classics. Interspersed between songs, Adam Duritz (whose dreads were all I had imagined them to be) took the time to talk about their new album, and do some q & a with the audience.

It was my first time seeing Counting Crows live, and it was grand, I tell ya. Don't get me wrong, any date with my wonderful husband is fantastic. But him AND the Grove AND the Counting Crows?! Splendiferous and scrumtrillescent.

And yes, I am aware that those are not real words.

Hope your weekend is also splendiferous and scrumtrillescent!

Celebrating My Irish Culture

Yes, you read that correctly. My Irish culture. Since I am now married to a part-Irish man, I've decided to claim Irish heritage as my own this year. Which means I get to spend this weekend

cooking this...
and drinking this...
and wearing this...
Happy St. Patrick's Day to you all!* Hope your weekend is magnificent.

*in the best Irish accent a Chinese, honorary-Irish woman can muster

Happy Chinese New Year!

It's officially the Year of the Rat.

According to the Chinese zodiac, this year is a time of hard work, activity and renewal. It's supposed to be a good year to begin a new job, get married, launch a product, or make a fresh start. That seems to bode well for my friends and family, since many are jumping on the marriage and baby trains this year. Whoowoo.

I really miss being at home with my family to celebrate Chinese New Year. After living in Hawaii for a few generations, much of the Chinese culture within our family has been lost, or evolved into more of a Chinese-Hawaiian-American blend of tradition. But Chinese New Year was always celebrated with pride and fervor. Probably because it revolves around the important things - family and food.

In my experience, no other holiday can beat Chinese New Year in its ability to overload the senses. In a wonderful way, mind you. There are the greasy smells of roast duck and sticky rice from the kitchen. The sounds of mah jong tiles being moved around the surface of the table. The rough texture of the red lai see envelopes filled with money that grandparents dispense to the grandchildren. The view of extended family and friends gathered together around the dinner table, celebrating each other and a new year to come.

Gung hay fat choy, everyone!

The Larissatini

The Larissatini, your classy and exotic beverage for the evening.

Last night we celebrated my birthday with a little cocktail party (which was much lovelier than my actual birthday last week). We had some friends and family over, and partied it up. My husband, who is a rock star in the bar tending department, kept the drinks flowing till the late night hours.

The Larissatini was the specialty and favorite of the evening, so I thought I'd share it with you all. Because let's face it, everyone likes a good martini. The recipe calls for lychee, which is an Asian fruit that can be found in the ethnic foods aisle of most grocery stores.

Enjoy one (or three, like I did), and let me know what you think!

Larissatini
2 shots light rum
1/2 shot vermouth
1 shot lychee syrup

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake well, strain into a martini glass, and garnish with a lychee.

Aging Like a Fine Wine

Wheeeee! I'm twenty-seven today.

To celebrate this spectacular day, I spent the day groggily wrapped up in my comforter. That's right - not only am I still horrendously sick with the flu, but SOMEONE decided to give me pink eye for my birthday. Thanks for that, Disease Gods, or little boy who touched the grocery cart before I did, or whoever you are. It made for a really fantastic birthday.

But before this turns into a complete pity party, I must say that I'm quite excited by the notion of getting older.

I suppose that with age, one might gain a few lovely and coveted qualities. Such as wisdom, self-confidence, and maturity. Maybe I'll gain more patience and grace with the people around me. Maybe I'll learn how to relinquish a little bit of my desperate need to control my life. Maybe I will grow in being able to take more risks rather than fearfully sit on the sidelines. It's possible that I'll get a little closer to being the person I want to become. One can hope, right? If all of that comes with aging, I'm all for it.

Check back with me in a year. Hopefully next time I won't be in bed with pink eye.