{Rerun} why we wed: kate

Wow, what a difference one week makes!  Last week, I was weepy & mopey about the end of our newlywed days.  I couldn't shake the sadness, then I woke up & realized it was time to look forward, not back.  We are merely days away from boarding our pup (poor guy, his usual petsitter is on vacation too), packing up our car & escaping for our First Wedding Anniversary trip, I couldn't be happier.  I am so excited to reminisce about our wedding, celebrate our newlywed days & toast to our future!

As my final newlywed post, it seems fitting to leave you with my why we wed: kate post that originally ran on Happy Sighs.  Why did I walk down the aisle & say "I Do!" on January 15, 2011?

My then-boyfriend Rodney proposed to me during a long, winter walk on a deserted, snowy beach about two years ago.  It was as romantic & perfect as could be.  As we finished our walk holding hands, I thought of one of my favorite quotes from an unknown source:

“Hand in hand, we shall walk into every day of our lives.”

For that exact sentiment, I married the love of my life on another crisp, clear winter day almost one year ago.  I pledged all of my love for all of my life to the man who would love me, stand beside me & hold my hand on this crazy journey called life.

I have happily walked my path alone & I have wearily stumbled along my path with the wrong person.  Thankfully, Rodney came along & we walk together with purpose & strength.  No matter what comes our way, we are better together.  Darkness & light.  Good & bad.  Sunshine & rain.  Smiles & tears.  When we found something so precious & rare between us, it seemed obvious that we had to grab each other’s hand & take the leap of faith that is marriage.

Our marriage began with a moving ceremony during which we exchanged vows to love, honor & cherish each other for the rest of our lives, followed by a beautiful celebration with our family & friends.  It counts as the happiest day of my life.  My favorite memory is walking out of the church towards our future.   Hand in hand as the new Mr. and Mrs., big smiles on our faces & much love in our heart.

We’re at the tail end of our newlywed days & we’ve done our best to honor & uphold our vows every day.  Some days we are more successful than others.  But always, we are grounded by our vows & our love.  Rodney is my true love, my best friend, my biggest fan & my loudest cheerleader.  In short, he is everything to me & I am the same for him.  We may not know where our path leads but we will walk together.

One thing is certain: I will never let go of his hand.

Photo by Timothy Glenn Photographers

Koru Kate Finds: Book of Love

Welcome to the first Koru Kate Finds of 2012!  If you're new here (hello & welcome!), Koru Kate Finds is my weekly series of wedding finds, from DIY projects to decor to jewelry, to inspire you & your wedding.  Let's start the fun, shall we?

Today's Koru Kate Finds is the DIY Book of Love:

Let's face it, everyone has computer drives full of lovely photos that we never print.  Ladies, it's time to make something of those memories.  The sentimental fool that I am, this personalized & easy DIY project is right up my alley.  All you need are fun photos, sweet memories & few basic supplies to make a Book of Love to cherish forever. 

A Book of Love is billed for Valentine's Day, although it's fitting for any special occasion.  Make one with photos from your engagement session, your bridal shower, your bachelorette party, your rehearsal dinner, your wedding, your honeymoon or your newlywed years. You get the idea, right?  

A Book of Love is a perfect gift &/or a lovely keepsake.    

For complete instructions & plenty of other DIY goodness, please visit The Wedding Chicks HERE.  Enjoy!

Numbered

10 days.

Our newlywed days are numbered.  The official countdown: 10 days!

How is it possible that our beautiful wedding day was almost one year ago?  The newlywed year has gone so quickly.  We heard rumors that the first year of marriage is the most difficult; we didn't experience that ourselves.  With deaths in our families, serious illness in our families, job worries & more, the first year wasn't all sunshine & roses.  We were fortunate to enjoy more than our fair share of sunny, happy times too.  No matter what, our marriage was strong & true.  It was the wonderful safe haven among the chaos.

I'm sad to see the newlywed year come to an end.  I can't shake the feeling even as we plot a fun first wedding anniversary celebration & I put love into a first wedding anniversary present.  I suppose endings always make me a little teary.  We'll never be newlyweds again- the time was so precious & fleeting.

The end of our newlywed days only leads to the rest of our marriage for which we have many hopes & dreams.  I'm very excited for one particular wish we have for the upcoming year!  I'm just not ready to embrace the next chapter yet.  I'm going to savor our final, blissful newlywed days!!!!


Photo by Timothy Glenn Photographers

Our First Christmas

Our First Christmas as husband & wife ♡

Our personalized First Christmas ornament arrived from Oceanside Designs &, well, it's simply perfect.  I chose our favorite wedding photo, then Mel took it away & designed this amazing ornament that we will treasure forever.  I planned to save it as a Christmas gift for RZ but once I had the pretty package in my hand, I knew there was no waiting.  That baby went right on the tree to be enjoyed & admired!

I am so, so excited to make the beautiful First Christmas memories that we will always associate with this ornament. 

On that note, I'm bowing out from blogging until 2012.  Let's make a date to meet back here on January 2 & continue to have our wedding jollies in the new year ☺   

May your holidays be merry & bright!

Photo by Koru Kate

{Guest Posting} why we wed: kate

On January 15, 2011, RZ & I stood in front of our family & friends & said "I Do!"

Why did we get married?

That is a seemingly simple questions posed in the "Why We Wed" series on Happy Sighs.  The easy question left me searching my heart & soul for the answer.  I was inspired to look beyond the standard "we're in love" justification.  Today, I'm very honored to be sharing my response on Happy Sighs- why we wed: kate.  

Please visit me at Happy Sighs & say hello!

Photo by Timothy Glenn Photographers

Holiday Date Night, Take Two

My hubs & I made a very important decision: 2011 could not be the year of No Lights at Rock Center.  We wouldn't let this happen.  Holiday Date Night, Take Two became a reality with one critical change in our game plan: the tree first, dinner second.  You can't accuse us of not learning from our mistakes!

Last Friday night, like the holiday troopers we are, we made our way to crowded Rockefeller Center & breathed a sigh of relief when we were greeted by this familiar, beautiful sight:

LIGHTS!!!!!!!!!  Camera!  Action!

We paused for a bit to admire the graceful ice skaters:

We can't leave well enough alone so we posed for one more holiday photo with the LIT tree:

Seconds after this photo was snapped, we witnessed a man propose to his surprised girlfriend.  (I stopped myself from handing them my business card, ha!)  I felt like we were on a movie set for a moment.  Pure holiday magic!

Our Holiday Date Night, Take Two got even better, continuing with a delicious dinner in the West Village.  But dinner wasn't the best part.  As we strolled through the charming, decorated streets, we were delighted to stumble upon Christmas carolers singing holiday tunes.  I've never seen & heard Christmas carolers in real life.  Let me tell you, it was quite cool.  More holiday magic!!


Now our Newlywed Holiday Date Night will be remembered as The Year of No Lights at Rock Center, followed by Lights & Pure Holiday Magic.  ♡  XOXO   ♥ 

Koru Kate Finds: Cheer

The final Koru Kate Finds of 2011 is abundant during the holiday season.  You can find it here, there, everywhere.

My holiday-style Koru Kate Finds is Cheer, specifically Holiday Cheer.  The smiles on your family & friends' faces.  The childrens' laughter.  The carolers' sweet voices.  The twinkling lights.  The sparkly decor.  The festive traditions.  The amazing smell of fresh evergreen.  Or how about the sweet smell of baking cookies?  The cup of piping hot chocolate.  The holiday card from a dear friend.  The bright red bow on a pretty package.  The lovely holiday party.  The most perfect holiday date night as newlyweds.

Those are just a few examples of holiday cheer that I've enjoyed lately; I know there is much more holiday cheer coming my way in the next week.  

Where have you found Holiday Cheer?  I'm sending you sincere wishes for plenty of Holiday Cheer for you & yours!

Photo via

Holiday Date Night

RZ & I have a Christmas tradition that began during our first Christmas as boyfriend & girlfriend: Holiday Date Night in New York City.  Holiday-season Manhattan is absolutely magical from the Lord & Taylor windows to the Fifth Avenue star & everything in between.  I have adored admiring the holiday cheer since I was kid; it's even more special to share it with the man I love.  Holiday Date Night 2011 was hotly anticipated because we would enjoy it as newlyweds. 

Our newlywed Holiday Date Night started out like every other one with the holiday windows at Macy's at 34th Street.  My favorite window was the spinning bucket of champagne:

Next up, Lord & Taylor, always my vote for best holiday windows.  Check out this snowy scene:

Bryant Park is festive during the holidays with ice skating & shopping.  We always pose by their icy blue tree &, well, thank goodness (more on that later):

Dylan's Candy Bar hosted a pop-up shop this year & I couldn't resist taking a peek at the candyland.  Is this candy Christmas tree not a candy-lover's dream come true?!

We never forget to pay homage to my husband's Filipino heritage with a swing by the Philippines Center's gorgeous holiday display of parols (p.s. I still want one):

We strolled up Fifth Avenue, passing Santa, Grinch, Reindeer & Snowmen.  No, not decorations- walking, talking Santa & crew (only in NYC)!  The Rockefeller Christmas Tree was crazy crowded & we decided to come back after dinner.  First, we saw Cartier, tied up with a holiday red bow:

Time to eat, drink & be merry!  We enjoyed a delicious, traditional steakhouse dinner at one our favorites, Wolfgang's Steakhouse.  Bonus: we met Wolfgang:

Stuffed & happy, we made our way back to Rockefeller Center, only to find this disheartening sight:

Sad but true: Lights out at Rockefeller Center at 11:30pm.  In the city that never sleeps!  BOO!!

But hey, we wouldn't let one little glitch ruin our newlywed Holiday Date Night.  Just a few blocks away, we found more holiday cheer.  A bright, happy Christmas light strand put smiles back on our faces:

More holiday smiles at the biggest, merriest Christmas ornaments:

Our newlywed Holiday Date Night was so fun & so special.  I will remember it forever as the year of no lights at Rock Center! 

Photos by Koru Kate

Holiday Card Evolution

In what seemed like a flash of brilliance, I chose to send homemade Christmas cards this year.  I enjoy making cards & I adore the holiday season so why not?  Sure, crafting 50+ Christmas cards would be my largest cardmaking project yet.  Oh yes, of course I would find the time for this project during the busy holiday season. 

Looking back, I identify that moment as a stroke of insanity! 

Allow me to take you on the journey of the Koru Kate Holiday 2011 Card from inspiration (I'm so excited to make my holiday cards!) to reality (What in the world was I thinking?) . . .

Six weeks ago, I pinned a snowflake card as my inspiration:

One trip to Paper Source, one trip to AC Moore & one raid of my craft armoire later, I had Version 1 of my holiday card:

A few minor tweaks of colored card stock & patterned paper later, I was happy with sweet Version 2 of my holiday card:

Bright Version 3 of my holiday card on RZ's choice of classic holiday red card stock:

A few more of lovely Version 2 on my choice of icy blue card stock:

I'm a complete sucker for details so every card has a snowflake stamped on its butt:

I'm pretty proud of my humble holiday cards.  We dropped the first batch in the mail last night; the second batch should be ready this evening.  I've glued my fingers together, I've smudged countless snowflakes, I've wondered if the project would ever end.  But there is a definite satisfaction knowing I created our newlywed holiday cards with care & love for our family & friends.

Will I make my holiday cards next year?  Ha, by then I will have forgotten the insanity & I will think it's a fabulous idea!  

Photo 1 via, Photo 2-6 by Koru Kate

Koru Kate Finds: Word Art

Koru Kate Finds fabulous word art for the wonderful couples in your life!  Or for you & your honey.

I adore the bold, modern look of word art & I was happy to stumble upon these great options last night while I was supposed to be finding Christmas gifts for our Titas (Filipino term for Aunt).  I couldn't resist sharing these gems with you!  Now if Tita Meg ends up gift-less on Christmas, I can blame you :-)

For the newlyweds still basking in the beauty of their wedding day, the Celebration wall art:

For the couple with a shiny, new home sweet home & plenty of blank walls, the Home wall art:

For the happy couple who have been together through thick & thin, the Happy wall art:

I would not mind one bit if one of the above found its way under our Christmas tree!! 

Images & Products via Red Envelope

My Wedding Invitation Ornament

From inspiration to reality . . .


One of the first images I pinned was the wedding invitation ornament:

I loved the idea, especially since I had a wedding invitation or ten collecting dust.  I promised myself to make my wedding invitation ornament when the Christmas season arrived.  My Christmas spirit kicked into full swing this weekend & I started this DIY project with my extra-large, clear ornament:

I set out my supplies: my pocket wedding invitation; my outer & response envelopes for color; my ruler & exacto knife in place of fancy cutting matts; & my pencil:

I separated my wedding invitation from its pocket &, I'm not going to lie, I started to freak out a bit about cutting up my wedding invitation.  It seemed wrong!  Then I reminded myself the extra invitation was doing no good collecting dust.  I detailed 1/2 inch strips & began cutting:

I repeated this process with my wedding invitation, response card, reception card, hotel card & both envelopes.  I decided to cut my pocket only if needed.  I had an extra-large ornament to fill; you probably don't need more than a wedding invitation for a regular-size ornament.  As soon as I had a decent pile of strips, I wrapped each strip around my pencil to curl it into a swirl & dropped it in the ornament:

Soon, my wedding invitation ornament was filled to the brim!  I couldn't control how or where my swirled strips landed but they naturally arranged themselves just perfectly.  I spy meaningful details like my maiden name, my husband's first name, our reception location, our zip code & more:

I played around with adding different ribbons & other details to my wedding invitation ornament & nothing looked right.  In the end, my simple wedding invitation ornament is quite lovely on our newlywed Christmas tree:

  
We'll admire & treasure our wedding invitation ornament for years to come!


P.S. I still have extra wedding invitations (the stationer in me ordered plenty of extras just in case!).  Do you have any creative, holiday or non-holiday ideas?


Photo 1 via, Photo 2-7 by Koru Kate

Koru Kate Finds: Firsts

Hello, Koru Family & Friends!  Did you enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend?  Our first Thanksgiving as husband & wife was fabulous, thank you very much.  Then I got sick on Friday & Saturday & I missed some fun festivities like attending a 45th Wedding Anniversary party & decorating our home for Christmas.  Bummer.  Now that I'm on the mend, I can't wait to unpack our Christmas decor & make our home festive!


But long before we fetched our holiday decor from storage, I've been on the hunt for the perfect Our First Christmas ornament.  We'll only enjoy one Christmas as newlyweds & I want a beautiful ornament to commemorate the special occasion.  My dears, after a long & hard search, I found IT.


A holiday Koru Kate Finds is this sweet Our First Christmas ornament:

Oh, how I love, LOVE it!  Simply send a lovely wedding photo & make any color or font requests & presto- you'll receive a personalized ornament to treasure forever!


Perhaps you & your friends have moved on from the newlywed stage in life.  Don't worry, there are plenty of other firsts to celebrate!  For the new parents, is there much more precious than a Baby's First Christmas ornament?  

  
Or how about giving the jubilant new homeowners an Our First Home ornament?

For plenty of other personalized gift ideas, please visit Oceanside Designs.  If you act fast, you can take advantage of their super Cyber Monday sale!!!  Now excuse me as I scroll through my favorites to pick our best wedding photo for our ornament!  This may take awhile . . .


P.S. If you're looking for all things ocean wedding & honeymoon inspiration, Oceanside Bride is a must-read!


Images by Oceanside Designs

Thankful.

Him, I am so thankful for him

Photo by the great Timothy Glenn Photographers

Thankful.  Very, very thankful.

My husband RZ is at the tippy top of my gratitude list this Thanksgiving.  I dedicate this post to him.  

I am thankful to call you my husband.  I am thankful for the beautiful moment we clasped hands, looked into each other's eyes & pledged our vows in front of our nearest & dearest during our marriage ceremony.  I am thankful for the fun, rockstar party that followed.  I am thankful for our sunny, dreamy Hawaiian honeymoon.  I am thankful for the incredible, lovely newlywed times that came after our wedding & honeymoon.  & for the times that were not so happy or easy, I am thankful we weathered the storms together.  I am thankful for our sweet home we share with our sweet pup.  I am thankful that I look forward to the moment you walk through the door every night.  I am thankful for every big & small moment that we make special.  I am thankful for this amazing life that is ours. 

More than words. 

Dear Koru Family & Friends, I wish you the most Happy Thanksgiving!  

Holidays, Newlywed-Style

Oh, the holidays!


I love celebrating the holidays in all their festive glory!  It's the most wonderful time of the year.  The grand holiday marathon starts with spooky Halloween, works its way through family & food-filled Thanksgiving, continues with family & gift-filled Christmas, then ends with the champagne pop of New Year's Eve.  This marathon has been all the sweeter with RZ by my side.  &, honestly, a bit more complicated.


How do you handle holidays as a couple?


We had no formal holiday agreement before I had my pretty sparkler on my finger.  My family is scattered throughout the country with a good chunk in California & a small chunk here in Jersey.  His family lives about one hour away.  For the most part, we spent Thanksgiving with his family.  Then we would spend Christmas apart with our respective families.  Don't even get me started on our senior dog Gucci- he had to split his holidays with us too.  I spent his final Christmas Eve without him while he celebrated with RZ & his family.  Craziness!  This holiday approach served us well for awhile but its days were numbered.  Everything else aside, we missed each other too much.


Cue our first holidays as an engaged couple last year.  There was no question that we would not be spending the holidays apart; those days were in our past.  We, including our new pup Bailey, would be together for the holidays.  We decided to take the split-the-day approach & put as many miles as possible on our car.  RZ & I spent Thanksgiving afternoon chilling with my family, then took off & enjoyed a Thanksgiving feast with his family.  Christmas Eve with his family, Christmas day with my family.  It worked fairly well.   


Now we're facing the holiday season as newlyweds, our very first holidays as husband & wife.  It's so special I can hardly stand it!  This year, we're flying by the seat of our pants & Bailey is coming along for the wild holiday ride.  I suppose we're still searching for that perfect holiday solution that keeps us happy, as well as our families.  Does it exist?  Thanksgiving will be celebrated with his family.  Phew, only one car trip!  Christmas will probably shake down to Christmas Eve with his family & Christmas with my family.  To be decided.


I can't imagine negotiating the holidays once we have kids!  It seems a bit like mission impossible.


One thing we have figured out is that we must celebrate holidays together.  Just as we are better together, holidays are much, much better together.

Photo by/Print available at Etsy in blushface's shop

Hi, My Name Is . . .

Me, on my Wedding Day
I had no clue of the name drama that lie ahead for me!
Photo by the great Timothy Glenn Photography

My full name is Kathleen Ann Undecided.


Married women, I pop champagne & throw confetti for you!  Yes, you.  Whether you kept your maiden name, hyphenated your maiden name with your husband's name or took your husband's name, I whole-heartedly support & applaud your decision.  The simple, sad truth is that I can't make a decision.  


I have seen family & friends take different paths when it came to changing their names, such as my sister who has kept her maiden name & my best friend who took her husband's name.  Both are in happy, healthy, loving relationships.  Clearly, the decision to change or not change my name has no impact on my marriage.  It's a matter of following my heart & doing what's right for me.  Throughout our happy engagement, I had no doubt in my mind that I would follow tradition & become Mrs. Husband's Last Name.    


We got married last January, officially becoming husband & wife.  I changed my name on Facebook.  I proudly wore my Mrs. Husband's Last Name hoodie during our Hawaiian honeymoon.  I printed business cards with my married name.  And the name game stopped there.  What had seemed like the best decision for me now filled my mind & heart with doubt. 


I still want to take my husband's last name.  We are a team, we are partners & our shared last name is an important way for us to reflect that.  Agreed.  Hyphenation is not in the cards for me, just a personal preference.  Agreed.  Here's where it gets hard.  


The way I see it, I have two options: drop my maiden name & take my husband's last name or drop my middle name, make my maiden name as my middle name & take my husband's last name.  Both my middle & maiden names mean the world to me.  Ann is my middle name & I was named after my Mom who has the middle name Ann too.  I don't want to drop it.  Sullivan is my maiden name & it's my Dad's last name (obviously).  My Dad died when I was 13 years-old & my maiden name is a connection to him.  I don't want to drop it.  I have done nothing to change my name in the past (almost) year but that doesn't feel right either.


About two weeks ago, I mustered all the courage I possibly could & filled out the HitchSwitch paperwork to begin the process of changing my name.  I decided to go with my first instinct & follow the traditional path of dropping my maiden name & taking my husband's name.  As kind, understanding friends & family reminded me, I would always be a Sullivan & my last name has nothing to do with a connection to my Dad.  I felt so brave & confident.


And then I cried & cried.  The easy, detailed HitchSwitch paperwork arrived days later & I cried & cried some more.  Epic meltdown. 


Hello, my name is Kathleen Ann Undecided.


Do you plan to or did you change your name?  Any advice for an undecided married girl like me?  

Fall Lovin'

One crisp, cool October Sunday each year, you can find me & my husband celebrating the Fall season at Wightman's Farm.  This tradition dates back to my childhood, now it's our tradition too.  The farm is a seasonal delight of products like pumpkins & apples & of activities like pumpkin slings & apple picking.  RZ & I are in it for the farm's fresh & delicious apple cider & donuts, not to mention the miles & miles of plump pumpkins.

 
We loaded up on two cups of hot apple cider, two gallons of apple cider & two dozen donuts before I began my search for the perfect pumpkins.  Sometimes it takes awhile but with the threat of rain, I was amazingly quick this year.  That's me in the purple skirt in absolute Fall glory with my cup of hot apple cider & our bags of homemade donuts as I pick the two most perfect pumpkins:

RZ convinces me to pose for a photo among the corn stalks & while I can bear to be separated from my new pumpkins, there is no way I'm letting go of my hot cider & yummy donuts:

My hubs says Hello & Happy Fall:

He had his eye on this Jets pumpkin & I insisted we decorate our own.  Then I was left wondering who has the incredibly fun job of painting these pumpkins?  Where do I sign up?

Much like Fall, traditions are comforting.  Once upon a time, I shared this tradition with my birth family, now it's a delight to create & enjoy this tradition with my baby family (remember: this does not mean we are having a baby!). & our yearly trip to the farm never disappoints.  We celebrate not only the gorgeous season but the delight of making yet another sweet memory in beautiful life we have together.  Till next year, Wightman's Farm!

What are your favorite Fall traditions?