Wedding Planning: An Update

It was another productive weekend. I'd say it was the third weekend in a row of non-stop craziness, but in the best way. It all started on Friday, when I got some amazing news while at a work meeting in Lansing. Rewind a few days- I had expressed interest in a position within my company for content marketing. A day later, I had an interview. A day after that, I had the job. I found out in the afternoon while I was with my fellow campaign coordinators and I could hardly contain my excitement. It was an awesome day. Needless to say- I'm very excited to start my new position next week. 

On Saturday, Steve and I wrapped up some finishing touches on our guest list. I had a headache the entire time we were working on it, but I'm so glad we got that accomplished. (If you didn't know already, I'm not your typical "Suzi Wedding" when it comes to planning). Don't get me wrong, I love that I get to spend the rest of my life with the most amazing guy on the face of the Earth, I'm just not big on creating lists, editing lists, hacking people from lists, adding more people again, and so on... but we're done. With that part of the checklist, anyway. 

Then during the evening, we celebrated my grandmother's 80th birthday out in Jenison. Along with spending time with family, we discussed some edits and updates to our custom designed wedding invitations by my remarkably talented cousin, Andrea. I can't wait to show you all what she has put together for Steve and I. We're so impressed and filled with joy. You can also check out her Etsy shop here: AndreaArch.

Then, on Sunday, we packed as much into one day as humanly possible. We headed down to Southwest Michigan to finalize some details on our wedding favors. (Sorry- no more spoilers!) And since we had nice weather for the duration of the afternoon, we made some stops at local wineries and breweries. Then, we sealed in our Pre-Cana date for our wedding prep so that we can get married in the Catholic church. WHEW. This past weekend is one for the books.


xoxo,
Laura

Toronto

I spent last weekend in Toronto since Steve had a gig at the Cadillac Lounge Friday night. Since I was in Canada two weekends in a row, it helped that my parents decided to take the hike over the border with me so that we could meet up with Steve's family and enjoy his show together. So we all took off Friday morning and got to the city in time to clean up, settle in, and take a cab over to watch Steve play. (More on that later)
Since we had all day Saturday to wander around the city, we bundled up and took a stroll down Yonge street. It was my parents' first time in Toronto, so we tried to see as much as possible.

Dundas Square

Royal Bank Plaza- Windows tinted with real bits of gold dust

Of course, no trip to Canada is complete without a cup of Tim Horton's coffee.

I am going to go ahead and apologize in advance for anyone who is not a hockey fan. My favorite part about this trip to Toronto was visiting the Hockey Hall of Fame. For those of you who don't know this about me, I'm a huge NHL fan. Notably, the Detroit Red Wings. It was such a cool experience to see jerseys, skates and other hockey paraphenelia from Steve Yzerman, Gordie Howe, Sergei Federov, and more. 

Not sorry about not being a Blackhawks fan.

I realize not everyone may be a hockey fan, but if you're ever in the city of Toronto with some spare time, I recommend checking it out. If not for the hockey excitement, do it for the history alone. Lots of cool things to see.

xoxo,

Laura

World Market

Katelyn and I have an addiction to shopping for accessories and home goods at World Market. When we saw that they released some really awesome accessory articles and features, we were pumped. If you all love World Market as much as we do, we recommend checking out these super helpful articles we adore. 

5 Trending Jewelry Styles:

9 Ways to Tie a Scarf:

We can't wait to experiment with these fun jewelry and scarf trends.

Tell us what your favorite jewelry trend is or your favorite way to tie a scarf!

xoxo,

Laura & Katelyn

Welcoming Spring

As the official first day of Spring, we are welcoming it with open arms. The only problem is that we had to scrape ice/snow off our cars and walk with caution so we wouldn't slip and fall on the ice this morning. The wind was crazy-as you can see in our photos below. We are both so ready to be able to wear pastels and even a light jacket. Grand Rapids is beginning to pick up again now that the weather is tolerable, and Jason Segel & Jesse Einsenberg are filming a movie downtown right by where we both work! (check it out)

Laura's wearing:  Shirt- Forever21 // Jeans- h&m // Shoes- Samantha Pleet Picnic Sandal c/o Wolverine
Necklace- Groopdealz // Belt- Marshalls

Katelyn's wearing: Blazer/Purse- Forever21 // Jeans- Urban Outfitters // Shoes- Maise Oxford's c/o Wolverine

Blouse- Banana Republic// Belt- H&M// Watch- Boyfriend Three-Hand Watch c/o Fossil

Laura is off to Toronto tomorrow, so more travel photos to come!
We hope you all have a lovely weekend.

xoxo,
Katelyn & Laura

NYC Recap

Life has been so crazy but so so great lately. I (Katelyn) took of for NYC on Sunday and flew back yesterday afternoon. I was there with Sowhope meeting one of their partners and sitting in on a parallel event for the United Nations. I felt like I was on cloud nine the entire time. On Sunday I took the subway into the city and walked around Union Square for awhile. I used the Hopstop App for transit directions-I highly recommend it! Then on Monday we met up in the city and made our way to the UN for a tour.

 

 I'm so grateful to have gone to NYC and had the opportunity to meet such amazing women! I'm continually inspired by them and the work that they do. Just to be in the same room where Malala Yousafzai gave her first speech was so humbling. I hope I can be just as influential someday.

Now it's time to get back on the work grind and count down the days until my family vacation in Florida! Anyone else do something exciting the past weekend?

xoxo, Katelyn

Daybreak

Laura and I are absolutely infatuated with the perfect morning light when the sun first comes up. We've started meeting together before work to collaborate on some blog stuff. It's so nice to wake up while enjoying coffee with each other at Madcap, day dream about starting our own business and watch the sunrise. That being said, Michigan decided to bring back our old friend winter with his unbearable temperatures and frost. I'm pretty sure Michiganders are throwing up the white flag and giving up this year.
Mother Nature: 1, Everyone in Michigan: 0

 Katelyn's wearing: Shoes-Steve Madden // Tights-Gap // Skirt, Belt & Sweater-F21 // Blouse-American Eagle // Scarf-FashionABLE 

 

 Laura's wearing: Blouse- Marshall's // Sweater- Express // Skirt- Forever2
 Boots- Samantha Pleet Blixen Boots- Wolverine // Tights and Belt- Target // Bracelets- Loft

Now we are both heading out for weekend travels. See ya'll next week!

xoxo,
Katelyn & Laura

Melt

We met up for our usual lunch-time hangout today, and we really started to notice the change in the appearance of the city. Now that the snow is melting away (slowly, but surely), there is a grey-ish, brown-ish tint to everything outside. It was overcast all day, so everything seemed extra dreary. The worst part about the snow just starting to melt, is everything looks dingy and dirty. Anyone else looking forward to seeing green grass? It can't come soon enough.

Laura's wearing: Top- Marshall's // Jeans- h&m // Shoes- Hautelook // Belt- Michael Kors // 

Necklace- Forever21 // Watch- Kohl's

Katelyn's wearing: Jacket - Zara // Shirt- Gap // Shoes- Wolverine 1883 Collection c/o Wolverine // Scarf- Gifted // 

Jeans- Urban Outfitters // Belt- Forever21

All weather talk aside, I (Laura) will be heading to Canada this weekend and next weekend for some of Steve's gigs in both Hamilton and Toronto. I love my weekends spent in Canada because I can free my mind and just enjoy my time with Steve and family. Katelyn is heading to New York on Sunday for a quick trip with her mother-in-law to meet some Sowhope affiliates and tour the U.N.!
What are your weekend plans?

xoxo,
Laura & Katelyn