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In this heart-forward episode of So THIS Happened…, Jen and Rachel sit down with longtime friend and event planner extraordinaire Jovana Vu at GROW Plant Bar to talk about collaboration, trust and what it really means to build something with the people you love.

From planning Jen’s wedding to launching Vu Events as a brand, Jovana shares how working with intention — not hustle — has shaped her business, her marriage and her future.

This one is about partnership done right. ✨

🌿 In This Episode, We Talk About:

• How Vu Events began (and why a terrible wedding experience sparked it)
  
  
  
• Why collaboration has always been Jovana’s secret sauce
  
  
  
• The power of referrals and word-of-mouth growth
  
  
  
• Working in hospitality to learn the inner workings of events
  
  
  
• Why trusting your vendors is non-negotiable
  
  
  
• Protecting your relationship while building a business together
  
  
  
• Tony joining Vu Events with DJ + Karaoke services 🎤
  
  
  
• The importance of boundaries to prevent burnout
  
  
  
• Choosing the people you can “do the hard things with”
  
  
  
• What makes the perfect event unforgettable
  
  

✨ Standout Moments

“Choose the people you can do the hard things with.”
A reminder that collaboration isn’t about ease — it’s about trust under pressure.

From Planning to the Party.
Vu Events is expanding to offer DJ services and karaoke alongside event planning — a seamless experience from timeline to dance floor.

The Echo.
Every event leaves an echo.
What does it sound like? What does it feel like? What memory lingers after the lights go down?

That concept alone is worth a re-listen.

🎉 Rapid-Fire Recap

• Collaboration = Creativity
  
  
  
• Working with your partner = Peace
  
  
  
• The perfect event night = An Echo
  
  

🪩 About Our Guest

Jovana Vu
Founder of Vu Event Planning, Jovana has been in the event world for nearly 20 years. Known for her calm presence, strong vendor relationships and intentional approach, she specializes in events that feel deeply personal and beautifully executed.

Now expanding into DJ and karaoke services alongside her husband Tony, Vu Events is entering a new era — and we are here for it.

🔗 Website: https://www.vueventplanning.com/
📱 Follow: @vueventplanning

💫 Also Mentioned

• Digital Wichita
  
  
• The Tallgrass Film Festival
  
  
  
• Ballet Wichita (10% of profits from “Messy Is My Polish” merch line supports them 💛) Here’s the link: https://www.bonfire.com/messy-is-my-polished/
  
  

👕 Merch Shoutout

We’re wearing our “Uncorked & Slightly Unhinged” and “Messy Is My Polish” pieces in this episode.

Support the pod. Support local arts. Stay a little unhinged. Grab yours here: https://www.bonfire.com/store/so-this-happened-store/

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Love Letters to the Self, the City and the Night (with GHOSTGIRL)

This Valentine’s-week episode is a love letter — not to romance, but to self-trust, community and creative courage.

Recorded on location at Odd Fellow Hall, Jen and Rachel are joined by Wichita-based DJ and producer GHOSTGIRL for a conversation that drifts from Galentine’s celebrations to late-night creativity, sensuality on your own terms and the power of building the rooms you wish existed.

With red heart sunglasses firmly in place for a Valentine’s edition of This or That, this episode balances playfulness with depth — and reminds us that choosing yourself can be both soft and bold.

✨ In This Episode, We Talk About:

• Why Galentine’s is more than an alternative to Valentine’s — it’s an act of intentional connection
• Hosting community-focused events and what it means to curate joy
• Creating safe, expressive spaces for women and femmes
• Sensuality as authentic connection — not performance
• Navigating social anxiety while building a public creative life
• Vulnerability as the gateway to real community
• Finding your people through music, art and shared energy
• Why experimental synthpop feels like home
• Letting your art be a love letter to the night
• Building multi-day experiences and festivals rooted in belonging

💗 This or That: Valentine’s Edition

(Yes, with red heart sunglasses)

• Candlelight vs neon lights
• Getting dressed up vs dressing for comfort
• Hosting the party vs being the guest

Equal parts chaos, honesty and laughter.

🎶 About GHOSTGIRL

GHOSTGIRL is a Wichita-based DJ and producer whose work blends synth-forward sounds with experimental textures and emotional depth. Rooted in community-building and self-authored expression, her work spans DJ sets, original music, curated events and collaborative festivals that center connection, inclusivity and creative freedom.

🗓️ Upcoming Events & Projects

💘 Galentine’s at Odd Fellow Hall
📍 Odd Fellow Hall
📅 February 20
⏰ Doors at 7 PM | Event 8 PM–Midnight - Get Tickets Here

An all-women and femmes-forward Galentine’s celebration featuring:

• Multiple DJs
• Local women-owned vendors
• Curated cocktails
• Food, art and community energy

🔥 Valentine’s Night with ICT Pole
📅 February 14
A sensual, high-energy evening blending DJ sets, pole performances and embodied expression.

🎧 New Music on the Way
An upcoming experimental synthpop project featuring collaborations with local artists — music that lives somewhere between dance floor and midnight reflection.

🎉 Mini Music Festival at Lion’s Lounge
📍 Lion’s Lounge
📅 April 18–19 (4/20 weekend)
A two-day, genre-spanning festival featuring DJs, bands, rappers, vendors and a whole lot of community love.

🥂 Final Toast

This episode is for anyone who has ever felt awkward, underestimated or unsure — and chose to show up anyway.
For the artists, the hosts, the dancers, the curators and the community-builders.
For love letters that aren’t about romance.

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Guest: Kari, Founder of Happy Camper Hat Company
Recorded at: Bubbles Champagne Bar inside The Workroom (Ballroom Collective)

Crafting. Community. Champagne.
In this joyful, hands-on episode, Jen and Rachel sip bubbles with Kari of Happy Camper Hat Company and explore why so many of us are craving analogue creativity again — the kind that pulls us off our phones and back into the moment.

From DIY hat-making and pop-culture patches to feminist values, happy accidents and the magic of making something together, this conversation is a love letter to creativity, nostalgia and finding your people.

✨ What We Talk About

• Why crafting and “analogue joy” feel so refreshing in a screen-heavy world
• How Happy Camper Hat Company became the only all-DIY hat bar in the country
• Letting go of perfection and embracing happy accidents
• Pop culture, inside jokes and why patches spark instant connection
• Hosting birthday parties, bachelorettes and group hangs at Happy Camper
• The power of making something tangible you can wear, gift or remember
• Building community inside the Ballroom Collective at The Workroom
• Creating with intention, values and voice — not neutrality

🧢 This or That: Craft Edition Highlights

• Hot glue gun > sewing machine (with a surprising amount of emotional backstory)
• Champagne crafting > coffee crafting
• Happy accidents > perfect placement
• Vibes only > Pinterest inspiration
• Bold bases > neutral bases (in hats and in life)

💡 Notable Moments & One-Liners

• “What’s going to bring you joy today?”
• Crafting as a form of rebellion against constant scrolling
• The joy of watching someone put 15 patches on one hat — unapologetically
• Why dog bandanas unlocked something magical for guests
• The beauty of leaving with a memory you can wear
• “Messy is our polish.”

🌈 A Brand With a Voice

Kari shares the inspiration behind Not Neutral, a new civic-minded hat line from Happy Camper Hat Company.
Each hat gives wearers a way to express their values — with $10 from every hat benefiting the Kansas ACLU — proving that creativity and community care can go hand in hand.

🥂 Events & What’s Coming Up

• Galentine’s at The Workroom (Feb 13): DJs, piercings, pop-ups and Happy Camper’s Slip & Sip — custom sherpa slippers + champagne
• Ongoing DIY crafting — hats, jackets, bags, dog bandanas and more
• Private group reservations available (birthdays, bachelorettes, just-because hangs)

📍 Visit & Create

🧢 Happy Camper Hat Company
📍 Upstairs in the Ballroom Collective at The Workroom
🕰️ Open 7 days a week
🌐 happycamperhatco.com (tutorials, reservations, event info)

🥂 Bubbles Champagne Bar downstairs for the perfect pre- or post-craft sip

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Episode 30: Messy Is Our Polish (aka 30.2)

Sometimes the best episodes don’t go exactly as planned… and sometimes that’s the whole point.

In this re-recorded (and very real) Episode 30, Jen and Rachel embrace the chaos after recording an entire episode with zero audio. What could’ve been a spiral turns into laughter, reflection and a deeper conversation about creativity, imperfection and momentum.

This episode is about messy magic, creative resilience and why polish doesn’t have to mean perfect.

☕ What We Cover in This Episode

• The infamous no-audio recording fail and why Episode 30 became 30.2
• A callback to Episode 29’s This or That moment that sparked a brand-new merch line
• The meaning behind “Messy Is My Polish” and why it resonated so deeply
• Why 10% of Messy Is My Polish merch sales are being donated to Ballet Wichita
• A fresh This or That: Chaos Edition showdown
• Hits Different featuring "us"
• Coffee Breaks at Larcher’s Market
• What’s coming next for the podcast, including guest episodes and special locations

🎲 This or That: Chaos Edition Highlights

This week’s prompts lean all the way into imperfection and growth.

Spoiler alert: messy wins… but polish still matters.

👕 Merch Moment: “Messy Is My Polish”

What started as an offhand This or That response in Episode 29 quickly became a mantra — and now, a merch line.

Jen and Rachel talk through:

• Why the phrase stuck
• How it reflects their creative process and friendship
• Why letting listeners see the mess feels more honest than chasing perfection

And because community matters, they’re donating 10% of all “Messy Is My Polish” merch sales to Ballet Wichita in support of local arts and creatives.

🎶 Hits Different: “us” by Gracie Abrams (feat. Taylor Swift)

This week’s Hits Different segment goes deep.

Rachel shares her take on the song’s themes of memory, secrecy and emotional residue after relationships end. Jen opens up vulnerably about how the song connects to her own past, reflecting on love, timing, mistakes and growth — including why the lyric about being 29 hits especially hard.

This isn’t just about the song. It’s about reflection, honesty and the courage to talk about the chapters that shaped you.

☕ Coffee Breaks at Larcher’s Market

The first official Coffee Breaks meetup takes place at Larcher’s Market, complete with:

• Local goods, cozy vibes and great lighting
• A reminder that community moments don’t have to be big to be meaningful

More Coffee Breaks are officially on the way.

🔮 What’s Coming Next

Episode 30 marks a turning point.

Coming up:

• Guest episodes recorded at special locations
• Collaborations with local creatives and business owners
• Lifestyle photography captured during recordings
• A front-loaded February full of momentum

This episode is the inhale. What’s next is the spark.

💛 Final Thought

Messy doesn’t mean broken.
Messy doesn’t mean unprofessional.
Sometimes messy is the polis

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Episode 29: Mirrorballs & Milestones

Water for Elephants, vinyl nights, Taylor Swift truths and celebrating moments that shimmer

This week felt like a highlight reel — the kind where art, community and personal milestones all collide in the best way. Jen and Rachel recap an unforgettable week filled with Broadway magic, behind-the-scenes access, local music love, a milestone birthday and a Swiftie song that hits straight in the feelings.

From watching acrobats warm up before Water for Elephants to listening to Wichita artists tell the stories behind their albums, this episode explores what it means to reflect light, show up fully and celebrate the moments that quietly shape us.

✨ In this episode:

• Attending Broadway in Wichita's production of Water for Elephants and witnessing a pre-show acrobatic warmup that revealed the heart behind the spectacle
• Why behind-the-scenes access changes how we experience art — and makes us better audience members
• A deep dive into ICT Vinyl Club’s Local Artist Night featuring Pretend Friend, Casey Abay and Social Cinema
• Celebrating Nick’s 18th birthday with scratch tickets, custom cookies and the realization that time moves fast
• THIS or THAT returns with spotlight vs substance prompts that spark thoughtful conversation
• It Hits Different (A Swiftie Segment): Taylor Swift’s Mirrorball from Folklore and what it reveals about people-pleasing, chameleon energy and loving fully
• Why shining brightly is never something to regret — even when relationships don’t last
• A preview of the new Coffee Break series launching at Aroma Coffee House
• Upcoming guest recordings with Happy Camper Hat Company, Vu Events and GHOSTGIRL — and the beautiful spaces hosting them

🎶 Song discussed:

• Mirrorball — Taylor Swift (Folklore)

☕ What’s coming next:

• Coffee Break: A new mini-series inspired by the ICT Coffee Passport
• Guest episodes recorded at Bubbles, GROW and Odd Fellow Hall
• More conversations rooted in creativity, community and lived experience

If you loved this episode, be sure to follow, subscribe and share with a friend who loves Broadway, local art or a good Taylor Swift lyric breakdown.
And if you’re interested in sponsoring an upcoming episode, slide into our DMs — we’d love to collaborate.

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Some weeks feel louder than others. This one felt deeper.

In Episode 28, Jen and Rachel return to the theme of Becoming — not as a destination, but as a living, breathing season filled with milestones, emotions and moments that quietly change us. From standing ovations and final bows to baby showers, birthdays and songs that truly hit different, this episode captures what it feels like to watch life unfold in real time.

This is an episode about pride and grief coexisting. About looking forward while honoring what’s already behind you. And about realizing that some moments stay with you forever — even while everything else keeps moving.

In This Episode, We Talk About:

• Nathan’s state-winning performance of Alice by Heart and the emotional weight of final bows
• The magic of the Kansas Thespians Festival and finding creative community at a young age
• What it’s like watching your child step fully into their talent and confidence
• Rachel’s weekend in Liberty for Hannah’s baby shower and the beauty of showing up in support
• The quiet power of milestones like baby showers and 18th birthdays
• Why “Becoming” isn’t one big moment — it’s a collection of small, meaningful ones
• Another round of This or That, centered on growth, reflection and emotional seasons
• Lyrics that comfort vs lyrics that confront (and why confrontation often heals more)
• New segment alert! Introducing "It Hits Different (A Swiftie Series)", where Jen and Rachel will discuss a different song each week. This week we talk about Taylor Swift’s Hits Different and how the song applies far beyond romantic breakups
• Jen’s reflection on career grief, identity and letting go of something that once defined her
• Rachel’s perspective on breakups that don’t end in anger — just understanding
• Why some endings are harder because they were once full of hope
• Looking ahead to Water for Elephants, upcoming guests and what’s next for the podcast

This Episode’s Themes:

• Becoming in real time
• Pride, grief and growth
• Creative community
• Milestones that mark us
• Music as reflection and healing
• Letting things evolve

Featured Music Moment:

• “Hits Different” – Taylor Swift
  A conversation about breakups that aren’t dramatic, but still linger — and how the song resonates across career changes, identity shifts and personal growth.

What’s Coming Up:

• Behind-the-scenes access at Water for Elephants
• More guest episodes on the horizon
• Continued conversations around creativity, community and becoming
• And plenty more This or That moments (Rachel is currently on a winning streak 👀)

If this episode resonated with you, consider sharing it with someone who’s navigating a milestone of their own. And if you’re in an Era of Becoming yourself — we’re really glad you’re here with us.

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• Starting before you feel ready vs waiting until it feels right
• Learning by doing vs learning by watching
• New beginnings vs gentle endings
• Being proud of who you’re becoming vs missing who you used to be
• Celebrating the milestone vs honoring the process

The conversation then turns toward what’s ahead: a night at Broadway in Wichita for Water for Elephants.
Jen and Rachel talk about:

• Going into shows without spoilers
• Why circus stories, theater and music often mirror seasons of becoming
• Seeing yourself reflected in characters mid-transformation
• Why live performance consistently brings big emotions

• Watching kids become adults seemingly overnight
• Pride mixed with disbelief
• Parenting through independence
• Letting go while still staying close

• Growth doesn’t always look like forward leaps
• Process matters just as much as milestones

• Follow along with Coffee Break / Brew Break on Instagram and YouTube
• Watch for upcoming Spotify playlists

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We’re kicking off 2026 in real time — recording and releasing this episode on New Year’s Day.

In this episode, we reflect on the holidays, unveil a fresh brand glow-up, talk goals that feel realistic (not rigid), and share what we’re leaving behind as we step into the new year. From Christmas Eve Eve live music and New Year’s Eve pinball wins to planners, pajamas and a very competitive round of This or That, this episode feels like a deep exhale and a hopeful reset.

If you’re starting the year slowly, intentionally or somewhere in between — you’re in the right place.

Cheers to 2026 🥂

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