Photos
Information about the venue and start time
They have been mailed
Group rate for the hotel and points of interests
Chris told Lynda he thought Thu was cute. Lynda told him that Thu would never go for him because of their age difference. Chris said “watch me”. Chris started his quest to win Thu’s heart. Chris “casually” asked Thu to grab lunch at Wahoo Fish Tacos when she worked in Lake Forest. While he was driving, the song “So Contagious” by Acceptance was on; Thu’s mind was racing and thought “omg, is he trying to tell me he likes me?!”. After many AIM sessions and late night phone calls, Chris and Thu couldn’t get enough of each other. They went on a couple of dates and hung out often. By the end of November 2005, Chris and Thu made it official as boyfriend and girlfriend!
After dating for about 6 years, Chris and Thu made the decision to move in together! They shared their first home in Santa Ana where they spent 6 months furnishing the home and played house. Santa Ana didn’t last long because they packed up their stuff and moved to Garden Grove where they really made it home for 3 years.
Chris and Thu took a big leap of faith and moved to San Francisco with the Morenzes. Thu was very nervous about moving far away from her family and friends but Chris knew it was the right move for them. They sold their furniture and packed the rest of their belongings and made San Francisco home Memorial Weekend of 2015. Chris entered the mecca for web developers and engineers and Thu found a job in the Tenderloin of all places! Luckily, Thu escaped the Tenderloin only after 3 months and continued her work as a victim advocate.
Chris and Thu talked about marriage for a long time but Chris wanted to make sure they were both very stable in their careers before getting married. They had the opportunity to travel the world together and spent many days and nights talking about their future and what it would look like. On Christmas day, Chris devised a plan to have Thu’s sister and cousins annoy her during the big family pictures to catch her off-guard. He knew it would be easy because Thu gets annoyed and frustrated every year when she tries to organize the group photo. As the family photos came to an end with “funny” pictures, Chris turns around on one knee and asks Thu to marry him but she was in shock and muttered nothing. She managed to nod her head “YES” and the entire family erupted in cheers and tears.
Chris and Thu and along with their families and close friends celebrated their engagement on April 6th with a traditional Vietnamese Tea Ceremony. By 12/7/19, Chris and Thu will be together for 14 years and they can’t wait for their family and friends to join them on their next journey as The Nguyens!
Lynda and I met freshman year at UCSB. She was the one-happee-gurl I didn’t know I needed in my life. She loves K-Pop/K-Drama & eggs; she is easy going, carefree, and loves to travel. She once fed me moldy bread so I could sober up (that’s how caring she is). She introduced me to K-Pop (EXO) and loves thit-kho trung as much as I do. She continues to be my number one supporter in all aspects of life. I couldn’t imagine my life without her.
Thy is my smart and adventurous sister. We’re two years apart and grew up wearing the same outfits with the same permed hair. She loves to take risks, snowboards and enjoys traveling in the RV with her little family. As kids, we fought all the time but we got over our fights really fast. I mean, how can you not get over it when your sister lets you sleep in their bed with them; all because you’re scared of a little thunder? That’s real love.
Believe it or not, Stephanie is my aunt! We grew up together as if we were sisters. She was lucky enough to share the same permed hair look, thanks to my mom. Stephanie is one of the hardest working, selfless and caring woman I know. I’ve been lucky enough to share many deep and meaningful conversations with her throughout my life.
Joyce is my “I’m sorry” (but not sorry) friend. We met at UCSB through our sorority. She is one of the most supportive, creative and talented person I know! She has become my go to girl whenever I need a good talking; her voice of reason is disgustingly wonderful.
Sha was and will always be my co-pc! It’s hard to share the BOSS title with another person but with Sha, I didn’t mind it at all. Sha and I have similar personalities: Type-A, demanding and caring. I could turn to her for any silly or important life moments. She has always been our number one supporter as a couple.
Gee was one of the first persons I met in Santa Barbara. I couldn’t escape her contagious laughter and her happy-go-lucky attitude. She has the sweetest personality and as the baby of the Psi-sters; she always made sure are hearts were full.
Jen is my “help-a-sista-out” friend! Like Lynda, Sha and Gee, we met in Santa Barbara through the best sorority [“Chi Delta Thettttaaa, what what?”]. Jen is one of the most amazing and selfless friend I have. After college, she helped me get my first job! Through the years, I could always count on Jen for funny dances, a ton of laughs and heartfelt/teary moments.
Sandy and I met through Chris. We shared a pound of Bakers fries and little did we know, it was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Sandy is my free-spirited, fun loving, let me bass in the sun friend. She is always down to play and have serious conversations while eating the best food!
Wes and I met in our freshman year at UCR, where it was love at first sight. In each other we discovered another kindred weirdo, where we could talk about anything that crossed our minds, including, but not limited to: historic battles, quantum theory, games of “would you rather”, and spirited conversations on politics, life, and love.
Joe and I also met each other at UCR, but through the Engineering program. Joe has always been the whetstone that I’ve sharpened myself against. He is brutally honest, but that is one of the things that I admire most about him. We’ve shared many a beer where we bonded over work issues, celebrated our wins, and commiserated our losses.
I met Robby later in life, after I had been working for about 3 years. He technically came in as my boss, but he never treated me as anything less than his equal. He gave me my first real chance to shine in my work, and I’m forever grateful to him for helping me navigate not only code, but office politics as well. I can always count on RobDog to make me laugh and put life into perspective.
Bryan is not only one of my fraternity brothers, but one of my roommates at in Riverside. He has a love for life that is unmatched and I can always count on him to make me laugh. He’s the very definition of work-life balance, and Work Bryan is someone I very much admire for his dedication to being the best, and doing the best job possible. Weekend Bryan is someone that is always ready to go and always puts a smile on my face.
Charlie is excitement personified. I can always count on him to be excited for everything unwilling to wait a minute longer. But the real reason I love him is because he’s also loyalty personified. He will always go the extra mile for you. Charlie cherishes nothing more than the relationships that he’s made in his life and is the real life ride-or-die. He somehow balances the traditional and the modern and makes it cool.
The Larson Special, I’ll never forget it. Josh’s kindness is tempered by his wildness. Although he’s the pickiest eater I’ve ever met, he’s never been afraid to try new things, even though he knows he won’t like it. I admire his ability to keep on going on and his capacity to love his friends and family. He truly has a boundless amount of love to share, and he’ll share it with you, whether you want it or not.
Ryan may act like an angry guy all the time, but underneath it all, he’s actually an angry Korean man. That isn’t to say that he isn’t a good person though. He will pick up your phone calls at 3am, even though he knows it’s just his drunk friends calling him to tell him he sucks and that they love and miss him. I know that underneath it all, he knows he’s also a kindred weirdo with me and Wes, even though he may talk tough and deny it. He’s part of the reason that I stayed sane throughout university and helped shape the person I am today.
My little brother. We were always hyper competitive growing up and we always wanted to win. When we got older and he started actually beating me, I’d tell him that Mom told me to let him win because he was complaining too much. But through it all, I still love him and miss him. He’s a grown man now and has his own family, but I’d still do anything for him at any given time of day. We grew into our own people when we both went off to university, but I’m very proud of that man, the father, and the brother that he is now. He was, is, and always be a major part of my life.
