101 in 1001 Update #3

It’s been a while since my last 101 and 1001 Update back in November 2020 (feels like a lifetime ago), so I figured it would be a great time to do an update! Now that it’s been over a year and a few new life updates, I’ve had more time to spend on my hobbies, including this blog.

Original Post

Update #1: August 11, 2020

Update #2: November 15, 2020

Personal

1. Read at least 10 books (COMPLETE)

I am surprised by myself that I COMPLETED this goal!!! I spent more time last year reading than I have in a few years (embarrassing, I know). In a previous post, I listed 10 books I read in 2020. Since my last update, I read The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides, The Guest List by Lucy Foley, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and many more (I’ll do a separate post on books I’ve read so far in 2021). I joined a book club this year so that’s helped me make progress on my reading goal.

9. Build our 6-month emergency fund (COMPLETE)

I’m also proud of us for achieving this goal. We’ve been saving for the past 3 years since buying our house and we were finally able to build our 6-month emergency fund. Now we can focus on saving for other big milestones in our life (ie. maybe a new car or more DIY???).

Professional

2. Get a promotion! (COMPLETE)

I DID IT! After 5 years at my company, I received a promotion to Audit Manager!! It has been a long road to get here but I feel very thankful and proud to have made it to this point in my career. I also switched roles and now work in the Audit Innovation group – think software development!

4. Write 3 weekend trip posts (COMPLETE)

Due to COVID-19, we haven’t been able to travel much. However, we did manage to go on a weekend Getaway (pre-vaccination), made a trip to Washington DC (post-vaccination) and went on a girls trip to San Antonio. We also went to Fort Walton Beach, Florida back in May, Denver in September, made a few trips to Austin, and spent a weekend in Galveston. I’m planning on making separate posts for those trips!

6. Share my blog with the world (COMPLETE)

As of a few weeks ago, I shared my blog with the world! It has been a long time coming but it has been a fun passion project of mine to post my thoughts in my corner of the internet.

Marriage (and Gordo)

1. Send Christmas card (2020, 2021) (COMPLETE)

We missed the mark on 2019, but we successfully sent out our 2020 (and really a big GOOD RIDDANCE to 2020) and 2021 Christmas cards. Our 2020 card featured our family of three on the front and a fun blooper on the back featuring my dad. We used our Thanksgiving photos this year, but one year I’d like to get professional photos done. For our 2021 card, we had a mini beach photoshoot with the family (Gordo included, DUH) during my dad’s birthday weekend in Galveston!

4. Celebrate our 4th wedding anniversary (COMPLETE)

Drew and I didn’t do anything big for our anniversary this year. October is always a busy month for us so we kept it low-key and went to a new favorite restaurant – Brasserie 19. They surprised us with a *sparkling* cotton candy martini dessert!

7. Celebrate Gordo’s 3rd birthday (COMPLETE)

For our baby boy’s 3rd birthday, we went to our new favorite dog bakery, Three Dog Bakery, and let Gordo pick out a birthday bone and got him some baked treats. We also found our old high school friends’ bandana line, Miller and Me, at the store so had to purchase a birthday boy bandana in Gordo’s signature color – blue!

13. Collect ornaments for each city we visit (Making progress)

We couldn’t visit Wimberley, Fort Walton Beach (see Travel #7 below), or Washington DC without getting an ornament! There weren’t many options in any of those places, but we settled on something simple just to commemorate the weekend.

Family & Friends

2. Host 4th Annual Halloween party (COMPLETE)

After a one-year hiatus from our big annual Halloween party, we finally got the gang back together and threw an EPIC party. This year, Drew and his friend transformed our driveway into a haunted house filled with hydraulics, blacklight, and special effects. Our hallway had a spooky surprise that was fun to walk through and see guests experience from inside. It was a party to remember and our favorite way to celebrate our favorite holiday!

6. Play mahjong with both families (COMPLETE)

Drew and I hosted our families for a DIY eggroll dinner and a night of MAHJONG! We have been trying to get this set up for literal years. My dad made the filling (which takes a couple of hours, including cooling time) and the rest of us prepped and rolled the eggrolls. Drew and my dad were on the (double) frying team. Everyone LOVED them. After dinner, we played a few rounds of mahjong!

7. Send house-warming presents to at least 5 friends (Making progress)

My best friend bought the cutest house during the pandemic and I got her a few house-warming presents (including a hand-painted watercolor portrait of their new house)! I also finally had a chance to visit some middle school/college friends since they bought their new house right before the pandemic and was able to meet their pup for the first time! It was so great to see them and MAN DID I MISS MY FRANDS. I also had a co-worker purchase a house during the pandemic and got them some cute matches and *you guessed it* a hand-painted watercolor portrait of their house.

9. Host a New Years Eve gathering (COMPLETE)

This year was oddly a year of hosting (family) events for us. We had my dad, my sister, and her boyfriend over for a *fancy* dinner, surprise concert, Mario Kart, and NYE countdown for New Years’ 2021. We each made a side dish (smashies, honey glazed brussels, salad, garlic bread) and Drew grilled pork chops for everyone! Then Jennifer’s boyfriend serenaded us with his acoustic guitar skills (SO GOOD). While we were waiting for the countdown, we took photos on my instant camera (cuz duh) and reminisced on our younger years (ie. duck face, amirite?).

Home

10. Set-up our Christmas tree (2020, 2021) (COMPLETE)

One of my favorite things to do is set up our Christmas tree! We always try to get an ornament in each city we visit (see Marriage #13) so it’s nice to reminisce on all of the places we have visited in the past. 2020 was the year I realized we reaaaaallyyyy love Disney World…

13. Revitalize our unhealthy plants (COMPLETE)

Surprisingly…our plants made it through the Texas freeze! We have been more diligent about watering our outdoor (thanks to the recent rain) and indoor plants. I got a cute watering can from Ikea to inspire me to water them. Thankfully my indoor places seem to be invincible and have survived even through the worst conditions (oops).

Travel

1. Renew Global Entry and TSA pre-check (COMPLETE)

I can’t believe it’s almost been 5 years since I first registered, but I was finally able to renew my Global Entry and TSA pre-check! Now that more people are getting vaccinated (including us!!!!), hopefully, we are able to travel internationally soon. Also, shout out to my Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card for having a $100 credit (aka free) toward Global Entry.

5. Annual summer weekend in San Antonio (2021) (COMPLETE)

I finally made a trip to San Antonio in July with one of my good friends from work (and now life)! She had never visited so we made sure to stop by all of the San Antonio classics including the Riverwalk, The Pearl Brewery area, and the Alamo.

7. Visit at least 5 new cities (Making progress)

While we haven’t been traveling much this year, we did visit a few new cities! As part of our dog-friendly Getaway trip back in November, we visited Wimberley, Texas. Our Getaway was based in Wimberley and only 15 minutes away from the town center. A few main blocks of the main city were filled with boutiques, ice cream shops, and restaurants. More recently, we spent a long weekend in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. I will have to do another post on our trip there (re: visiting Florida during the pandemic).

8. Go on a girls’ trip each year (2020 – Removed, 2021 – COMPLETE)

Because 2020, ya know? But also, my annual San Antonio trip (see Travel #5) was a fun girls’ trip so YAY!

12. Couples weekend in Washington, DC (COMPLETE)

One of my best friends and her hubby live in Washington DC and we finally made a trip this summer to visit! Drew and I haven’t been to DC since 2015 so our trip was long overdue. One day we’ll make it out there for the cherry blossoms!

Houston

1. Go to the Rodeo each year (2021) (REMOVED)

Another year bites the dust…due to the pandemic.

2. Go to the Bayou City Art Festival each year (2021) (REMOVED)

Same though 🙁

4. Watch the Nutcracker by the Houston Ballet (REMOVED)

WE WERE SO CLOSE TO COMPLETING THIS – but COVID had other plans. Drew got us tickets to the Nutcracker as my Christmas present this year, but he tested positive for COVID right before so we had to quarantine. We gave the tickets to my dad and sister (who enjoyed the show) but I was bummed Drew and I weren’t able to make it. Hopefully next year we can finally see it!

6. Try at least 10 new restaurants (BONUS)

Even though I completed this goal back in November, I figured I would add some new places I’ve tried since then. I mean we live in Houston so there are plenty of new places to try; here are a few of my new finds: Eloise Nichols, Shell Shack, The Republic Grille, Cafe Benedicte, Killen’s, The Kitchen, TRIS, Avanti Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar, Tan Tan Restaurant, Lucille’s, Unicorn Disco, Tres Amigos, Pling, ACME (I’ve been to the one in New Orleans, they just recently opened a location in Houston), da Gama, and Rakkan Ramen to name a few.

Some new places I’ve visited outside of Houston: Community Pizza & Beer Garden and Wimberley Cafe (Wimberly, TX – see my Getaway post), Ninety Six West (Brenham, TX), AJ’s Oyster Shanty and The Shack (Fort Walton Beach, FL), The Warehouse, Brasserie Liberte, and Bagel Uprising (Washington DC), and Toulouse and Dive In at The Village (Dallas, TX).

Full Disclosure: Since originally drafting this post, I have probably visited a dozen more new restaurants. I’m planning on doing another post of new restaurants I’ve tried this summer!

8. Go to Lights in the Heights (2020, 2021) (REMOVED)

I was holding out that some form of Lights in the Heights in 2020 but unfortunately (but maybe also fortunately) it wasn’t held. For 2021, Lights in the Heights happened but I was sick during that time so ended up staying home for the weekend. Hopefully next year all things will be in our favor and we can make it out!

9. Try 5 restaurants during Houston Restaurant Weeks! (COMPLETE)

We tried a few new places for Houston Restaurant Weeks in 2021 – Fegen’s, Kin Dee (go on Tuesday, they have live music and beautiful Thai dance performances), Harold’s Restaurant, Bar & Rooftop Terrace and Brasserie 19. This brought our total across 2020 and 2021 to FIVE – marking this goal as complete!

10. Go to Zoo Lights at the Houston Zoo during Christmas (COMPLETE)

Our trip to the Zoo Lights event was a surprise late last year! It was actually Brew Lights, aka an adults-only evening at the zoo with drinks and treats. We went with a few friends on a random Thursday in November (okay fine, not during Christmas but anytime after Halloween is Christmas in my book). It was a great getaway with friends, especially with not having traveled anywhere for the entire pandemic.

11. Have a beach day in Galveston (COMPLETE)

My family spent a day in Galveston on the one-year anniversary of my mom’s passing in January. It was a surprisingly wonderful way to spend the day celebrating and remembering her <3

Just for Fun

3. Watch a movie at the Rooftop Cinema Club (COMPLETE)

We finally tried this! Drew planned a date night one night in October – dinner at North Italia and movie at Rooftop Cinema Club. We had a wonderful meal and took the elevator to the roof of the parking lot to watch Hocus Pocus! Our seats were in the back section but I would recommend getting the Adirondack chairs. Seats within your section are first come first serve but everyone gets their own personal headset to hear the movie. Snacks and drinks are available for purchase but I would also recommend bringing your own blanket if it’s cold or to use as a seat cushion.

4. Figure out a creative way to display our travel souvenirs (COMPLETE)

I finally figured out a way to display and organize our travel souvenirs. As most people know, I love traveling but only the truest of friends know that I love having keepsakes. Throughout our travels, I have kept souvenirs and documents to remember the details of our trip. This includes boarding passes, maps, brochures, postcards, and even receipts (ok – this may be borderline hoarding AMIRITE ERRRR, but IDC). I also keep wedding invitations, Christmas cards, and birthday cards! I purchased these binders and page protectors and “scrapbooked” them using cardstock (nothing fancy) to “display” everything. Anything that doesn’t fit in the binder, I place in a decorative storage box. I’ll do a separate post with specifics!

8. Go to 5 concerts/festivals (Making progress)

Surprisingly I was able to make progress on this goal in 2021 – although I’m expanding this to include “shows”. This year, we went to a candlelight string-quartet show (with Halloween-themed songs), The Remember This Tour by the Jonas Brothers, and the Vaccinated and Horny Tour by Chelsea Handler. I’m going to The Justice World Tour by Justin Bieber next year so I’m hoping this goal can be achieved by the end of my 101 in 1001!

9. Take a candle making class (COMPLETE)

For my 28th birthday, Drew took us to a candle-making class in Rice Village at Love & Make! We each picked out two candle canisters and were able to create our own scents. They had over 25 scents that we were able to mix for our custom candle scent. I went for one floral scent and one “holiday” scent. There are a lot of intricacies of making a candle, but they had “chandlers” (that’s what candle makers are called) that walked us through the entire process. I would highly recommend it and definitely do it again!

10. Finally balayage my hair (COMPLETE)

I have been too scared to do anything “creative” to my hair but I finally tried it out for the first time! I’m fairly low maintenance with my hair. It turned out a little lighter than I expected, but it’s something new and will take some time to get used to.

Looking back on this past year, I’m proud of everything I’ve been able to accomplish and all of the memories I’ve made. I’m looking forward to 2022 and making new memories in my last year in my 20s!

Happy new year!

Vivian