16 Years

February 10, 1996 - The day we got engaged - Valentine's Dance, UW Madison HASA Party

Today is our anniversary.  Sixteen years ago I married my soul mate and best friend.  Well, I can say that now but back in 1997 I almost called off the whole thing.  Ask me about that story another time.

I remember meeting Kong on a gloomy day in April.  I saw him on the back side of Bascom Hill in front of the commerce building after our Accounting200 test in 1994.  We had met a few times prior but the timing had not been right.  Even before that day, what I always remembered about Kong was that he never asked me dumb questions like, "What's your favorite color?"  or "What's your lucky number?"  We always had really interesting conversations.  We talked about things that mattered.

From that day forward we started studying accounting together.  Eventually studying spilled over to spending time together outside of class.  We quickly became friends.  I schooled him at pool, he introduced me to blues, I exposed him to theater, he taught me how to ride a motorcycle, and so much more.  Most importantly it didn't matter what we did, we just had a great time doing it together.

On June 28, 1997 we made our friendship official.  We tied the knot.  Our time together hasn't always been as fairytale as it appears but the good has out weighed the bad.  We have stuck together through thick and thin.  The one thing that has helped us through the tough times is knowing that neither of us is perfect and that until we found each other, no one loved us completely, as whole individuals with all the good and bad.

Here's to 19 years of being together and 16 years of marriage.  I couldn't imagine being on this journey with anyone else but you.  Thank you for loving me and always thinking I was the bomb even when I wasn't.  For not seeing the 40 pounds I had gained or how thin my hair has gotten.  I love you with all my heart.

Badass Kong on his bike.  Circa 1992.  Loved riding that with him though initially, it scared me to death. 

 

Kaohly, Circa 1992.  Big hair-check, see through sleeve dress-check, cheesy girl pose-check.

June 28, 1997.  Thanks for selling your most prized possession (the above pictured motorcycle) to come up with your portion of our wedding fund.  Note for the record that the funds were not used for a bride price but for our wedding itself.  Also note that I paid for a larger portion of our wedding then Kong did.

This is the loving through thick part.  I know it's going to be hard to believe but this picture was taken just 1 year after we got married.  I have no idea how much weight we gained but we look like totally different people.  If weight is an indicator of happiness, then damn, we must have been really happy!

16 years later we are a little wiser, a little healthier and a whole lot happier.  We have actually been told by people that we are aging in reverse.  I hope the trend continues.

My parents: Joua Yang and Tsuchue Vang on their wedding day

Kong's Parents:  Zoua Lo and Cher Tou Her on their wedding day

This post would not be complete if we didn't acknowledge the people that got us here.  For their generation, our parents were people ahead of their time.  In today's terms they would be considered radical/liberal/outside the box thinkers.  Our parents were unique for they married out of love (not arranged/forced).  Had they not set this example for us we would never have known that we had the right to choose and that love matters.  Thank you mom and dad for trailblazing for us.