Better in Pairs

Valentine's Day at New York Public Library

In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, I thought it would be fun, in part to reminisce, but more so to share just how far Matt and I have come in our journey together. All of life’s biggest moments, we have spent together as a pair. We met all the way back in 2003 while attending Mizzou in Columbia. He was set to graduate the following spring and I had a couple years left. After Matt graduated, he went back to St. Louis to begin work and we lost touch for a while. I was still in school and he was busy with his career. About a year or so passed by since we had last spoken. Then one day, my phone rang and to my surprise it was Matt. I gotta admit, I was so excited to hear his voice, I didn’t know what to say to him actually. He was calling to let me know he was taking a job in California and would love for me to come out and visit him. I said yes and we ended up dating long distance for the next year or so until I graduated. Shortly after, I moved out to California to begin my career in technology as well. We spent our early days in California down south in Santa Clara and then moved up to San Francisco. Our tech careers both started out in technical recruiting but we quickly rolled into software sales. We traveled all over together and absolutely fell in love with San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, Napa Valley, Carmel, etc. It was an amazing way to spend the first years of adult life together.

Valentine's Day at New York Public LibraryValentine's Day at New York Public Library

Valentine's Day at New York Public Library
Valentine's Day at New York Public Library
Valentine's Day at New York Public LibraryValentine's Day at New York Public Library

Valentine's Day at New York Public Library
Valentine's Day at New York Public Library
Valentine's Day at New York Public Library
Valentine's Day at New York Public Library
Valentine's Day at New York Public Library
Valentine's Day at New York Public Library

I had always dreamed of living in New York City and being a part of the fashion industry in some capacity. As a hobby, I began to blog while in San Francisco and loved it. As it would just so happen, my corporate job was going really well and I was offered a promotion and an opportunity to move to New York City! Uhhh yes please! Matt and I took several trips out east to look at places in Manhattan and once we found a place, we packed up a few things and headed to the Big Apple. We loved it out West but just knew in our hearts New York City was where we both wanted to be. After just a week of being in our new place, Matt proposed to me on our balcony. I said Yes! It was such an amazing way to start our new lives in New York and the planing began. We ended up getting married in Mexico with a small group of family and friends. Later that year, we got Batman, our French Bulldog. Matt didn’t grow up with dogs so it was a hefty learning curve in patience raising a puppy but it worked out great. He is the best!

All the while, I continued the blog and was considering leaving my corporate job to do it full time. In the spring of last year, I made the decision to move into blogging full time. Matt and I had already found out we were pregnant with Sebastian and I really wanted to get the blog in a good spot once Sebastian arrived in December.  I made the jump and it has been amazing. Matt even took time away from his work so we could spend a few months together. This past December, we welcomed our little Sebastian into the world. This was easily the single greatest event life experience we have shared together and so excited to raise our son here in New York.

Can’t wait to see what’s next! We are so thrilled to have partnered with Hushpuppies to share our story. We all know them as the shoe brand that invented casual. They have been transforming the casual revolution for years. We love their comfort and it fits our everyday lifestyle here in the city so well. I am wearing the Cyra Cetelyn Boot. I love these because they are stylish and super comfortable. They are perfect for running errands around the city and strolling little Sebastian around the block. Matt is wearing the Bob Portland Moccasin. He is a loafer and chukka kinda guy, so he loves this shoe. It looks great and perfect for any season(except maybe the snow:)) Be sure to check out their new Spring Collection that just recently launched this month for both Women and Men and remember, life is better in pairs! We hope you all have a very happy Valentine’s Day! Let us know how you are celebrating!

 

xo, Olivia

This post was created in collaboration with Hush Puppies, as always, all words, opinions and photography are my own

photography by paige campbell linden

2 Comments

  1. Dana Mannarino wrote:

    Such a sweet post! You and Matt seem like the perfect duo!

    Pink Champagne Problems

    Posted 2.14.17 · Reply
  2. So sweet, Josh and I met in college too. Also, I love your shoes!!!

    Posted 2.14.17 · Reply

Leave a Comment

Are you in the know?

Subscribe to the newsletter for weekly behind the scenes content, special sale alerts, and more.