Washburn Soccer’s Big Win and Our Quick Weekend Adventure

Game Starting

Last Thursday, before heading to the Washburn basketball game that evening, we decided to take a quick trip to St. Louis to watch Washburn soccer play in the NCAA DII Elite Eight. We booked a hotel, ordered tickets for the game, and scouted out some places to eat after Saturday night’s match. It was a quickly planned trip, and we had a great time!

We left early Saturday morning to make it to St. Louis by the 1 p.m. start. We arrived with plenty of time before the game started, so we found a wonderful spot for lunch—Russell’s Café & Bakery. After finishing lunch, we headed to the soccer game with time to spare.

Ticket Punched!!!

Washburn started strong, going up 2–0, but early in the second half, the score was suddenly tied 2–2. The Ichabods battled back and won 3–2 over the University of Missouri–St. Louis. It was exciting to cheer on Washburn in their NCAA DII Elite Eight appearance—and even better to leave with the win! We were able to make the game because everything came together perfectly for this spontaneous trip.

President Mazachek and me

Up next for the Ichabods: the Final Four in Colorado Springs, CO, on Thursday. If they win, they’ll play for the National Championship on Saturday, December 13.

After the victory, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for the evening, which included a speakeasy and then dinner. The speakeasy—None of the Above at City Foundry—was a new spot for us. We love speakeasies, and this one did not disappoint! After a few drinks, we took a Lyft to our dinner destination: Paul Manno’s Italian Restaurant. We had been there a few years ago and were glad to return for another great meal.

Following a long day, we made the wise decision to call it a night by 10 p.m. On the way back to Topeka, we stopped at another favorite spot in Columbia, MO—Shakespeare’s Pizza. We arrived home late afternoon and had an early night.

Drinks and Fun

It was a fun, quickly planned trip to St. Louis to follow Washburn women’s soccer. Everything worked out great! Congrats to the Ichabods on their win and advancing to the Final Four. I’ll be following Thursday’s game via stream instead of in person.

I was a day late posting this update since I went to bed early Sunday night. Until next time, have a great rest of your week!

Greg’s 50th: A Surprise Weekend in Tulsa

Last week, I shared a bit about our trip to Tulsa and some music highlights (see post). This post is all about the trip itself—and what a weekend it was!

We had a great time surprising Greg for his 50th birthday. He had no idea where we were going when we left Friday morning. All he knew was that he needed to pack a suit. Leading up to the trip, Carrie and I kept the surprise alive by pretending we had a long day of work ahead, along with weekend plans and Sunday commitments.

Carrie and I got up early so we could head over to Erin and Greg’s place. We wanted to hit the road early, and Greg still had no clue what was happening—or that we were even coming. After dropping Oliver off for his staycation with Joan and Eddie, we made our way to Erin and Greg’s. We told Greg we were just dropping something off from Joan, but he saw through it pretty quickly and was excited to see we were joining the adventure.

We loaded up the car with luggage and snacks and hit the road, heading north on Gage and then onto Highway 75. Greg was still in the dark and commented that it was an interesting direction. When we turned off onto a side road, he thought we were stopping at Love’s for snacks—but we drove right past it and continued on toward our friends Laura and Jason’s house.

Laura had been in Dallas that week, and while Greg knew Jason was home alone, he had no idea we were picking him up for a road trip to Tulsa. Once Jason joined us, we finally told Greg we were heading to Tulsa for a birthday weekend celebration. He still didn’t know where we were staying or what we’d be doing for meals, which added to the fun and suspense.

Our first stop was Ron's Award Winning Hamburgers and Chili. We’d eaten at a Ron’s a few years ago with the Shirron family on our way home from Texas and loved it—so it felt like the perfect place to kick off the weekend. The chili was just as good as we remembered!

Since we couldn’t check into our VRBO until 4 p.m., we needed a place to hang out. We landed at Crawpappy’s Bar and Grill—an interesting spot! None of us realized smoking is still allowed in some Oklahoma bars, so that was a surprise. Once we got used to the smoky air, we settled in with a beer. After that, we headed to Big Whiskey’s, which was a great place to relax until check-in time.

Greg still didn’t know the full plan until we pulled up to the house where we’d be staying for the next two nights. The house was fantastic—great layout, a pool, and plenty of space to enjoy the evening. We chose to stay in that first night so we could relax by the pool. Laura arrived later from her road trip from Dallas. Greg had a hunch she might be coming, but it wasn’t confirmed until she walked through the door.

Saturday was all about the pool. We spent the day relaxing, listening to music, and splashing around. We had dinner reservations that night at Mahogany Prime Steakhouse. While we originally planned for a 7 p.m. reservation, Greg suggested moving it earlier so we could get back to the house and enjoy more pool time and games. We were able to adjust the reservation and had a fantastic dinner in a private room. Carrie and I had never been to Mahogany Prime before, but the others had visited different locations. It lived up to the hype—dinner was amazing!

After dinner, we returned to the house for more pool time and then played games into the night. It was a packed and fun-filled weekend.

Sunday morning, we had to be out of the house by 11, so we hit the road and headed home. Once back in Topeka, Carrie and I were in bed well before 10 p.m.—we definitely needed to catch up on rest after such a great weekend.