Happy Friday! Last night I got to attend an event in downtown Minneapolis where Chelsea Clinton was the main speaker, and it was so nice. She is so inspiring and it was a pleasure hearing what she had to say.

I'm so glad it's the weekend. I have plans to hang out with some girlfriends tonight, and Rob and I are going to do brunch at Modern Times either tomorrow or Sunday. There might be a farmers market in our future, too!

I don't have as many links for you this Friday as usual, so I'm just going to list them randomly instead of categorizing them. Hope you enjoy!

• Loved reading these very interesting parallels between Game of Thrones and To Kill a Mockingbird.
• I'm having an ad sale! All spaces are 50% off--use code JUSTBECAUSE at checkout.
• Minneapolis will now be referring to "Columbus Day" as "Indigenous People's Day," and I couldn't be happier. I'd love to see more cities and states follow suit!
• Looking forward to one day seeing this documentary (you can contribute to the Do I Sound Gay? kickstarter campaign here).
• Always Hungry? Here's why.
• Speaking of hunger, Gym-Talk has plenty more discount codes from last time! Click here to check them out.
• I'm ready for dresses! I think this thing is cute as can be.
• Celebrities Read Mean Tweets always makes me laugh so hard. This most recent one is no exception.
• Loved this post from Sam: Take the Experience.
• I am so excited about Neil Patrick Harris' book!
• Have you seen our wedding photos yet? So far I've shared details and getting ready shots, the first look, and our wedding party. Next week I'll be showing you our ceremony, reception, and a few sunset/golden hour-y shots of just me and Rob.

--

What are you up to this weekend? I'm attempting my first "serious" DIY (it involves a drill, so, you know), which I hope will be a success! What have you been reading, watching, and/or listening to this week? I want to know!

This month, Lavazza sent me a package with all four of their specialty drip coffee blends and a copy of Extra Virgin: Recipes and Love from Our Tuscan Kitchen. The challenge was to get inspired by the book, the coffee, and Italian heritage in general, so I flipped through the book one afternoon with hopes that something would catch my eye. (Everything caught my eye--the book is gorgeous.)

I came across a recipe in the dessert section called Coffee Granita, a frozen coffee treat that includes sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla. It reminded me a little of the iced almond milk cafe miels at my favorite coffee shop, which I love because of the non-dairy option and the honey instead of sugary syrup. And then I thought, "Oh my gosh--coffee popsicles." I made them Paleo with coconut milk and honey (you can't have a cafe miel without honey!), but you could use heavy cream or whole milk if you like dairy. Scroll down to get the recipe!

Ingredients: (Makes four-six popsicles, depending on size)

• One cup of iced coffee (I cold brewed a batch of Lavazza Gran Aroma)
• One cup of full-fat coconut milk (from a can, and only use the creamy part on top)
• 1/4 cup of honey
• Optional: You could use a vanilla bean or some cinnamon to flavor these a bit more, but I just stuck to coffee and coconut cream.

Instructions:

1. Combine coffee and coconut milk in a bowl with a mixer or in the blender (make sure all the coconut milk lumps have been mixed until smooth.
2. Pour into popsicle molds and freeze until solid (usually only takes a few hours).
3. Pop them out and enjoy! They make an awesome afternoon treat.

This is a sponsored post. You can see my first Lavazza Passion piece here.

One of the best parts of our wedding day was definitely having fourteen of our best friends with us the whole time. Everyone is so scattered all over the country that I hadn't even seen some people for two or three years! Rob and I keep talking about how awesome it was to see one friend from a certain time in our lives hit it off with another friend from a different time in our lives. That was definitely special. Here are some photos of our awesome wedding party! I just love everyone so much.

The flowers were by Gloriosa in Roanoke--I had Mary Jo add rosemary to the boutineers in honor of my sweet grandfather Albino (and as a nod toward my Italian heritage). The girls are dressed in J.Crew, and we just had they guys wear any black suit they wanted or already had. Like I mentioned before, Rob got them black Michael Kors ties and personalized tie clips.

Rob asked my brother to be a groomsman and it was so nice. They're really good friends and I'm so happy about it, because Sean is one of my best friends, too. Our ring bearer was William, our adorable nephew; and our flower girl was Scarlett, my best friend from my old job's daughter, who is actually now our goddaughter! They're both a little shy so I wasn't sure how they would do in front of everyone, but they became fast friends and made it down the aisle and back not only during our rehearsal, but for the wedding as well. Also, they were really cute.

I'm going to share photos (and a playlist!) from our ceremony next. Thanks for following along!

More wedding posts: Details + Getting Ready // First Look

All photos by V.A. Photography.