Episode 45 : Main Stage Era

Episode 49 : Long Live the Sip Squad

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/fan_mail/new] This episode is the one before the one. Just Jen and Rachel, a charcuterie board from Aldi, and nearly a full season of memories to look back on. Fresh off the Riverfest Main Stage, with an anniversary party on the horizon and one more episode to go in Season 1 — this is their moment to pause, pour a glass, and say long live all of it. Trend Decoder is back, Rachel pulls off a perfect score (including a dramatic live count of her 36 Amazon lists), and Hits Different lands with a little more emotion than either of them expected. Spoiler: there were tears. --- 🔍 TREND DECODER Trend 1: "Don't Touch It" The trend where you act out something you love a little too much but probably shouldn't be doing. Rachel's guesses include cactus handling, workplace hot potatoes, and the eternal temptation of a late-night Snapchat from someone you really shouldn't open. She gets there. Jen's version: Sephora online shopping. Rachel's version: 36 Amazon lists. She counted them live. Trend 2: "I Want the Best for You" A soft sell trend — reaching out to someone with something genuinely good to offer, making it dramatic and relatable. Rachel connects it to Prime Day, real kindness, and wanting good things for people even when it's complicated. The STH version: calling every listener personally to tell them about the July 12th anniversary party, the 15% off merch code STHANNIVERSARY, and the specialty cocktail menu at Bubbles. We just want what's best for you. Rachel goes out on top with a perfect score. Season 1 Trend Decoder: complete. --- 🎉 LOOKING BACK ON SEASON 1 A full roll call of the people, places, and moments that built Season 1: • Jenny from Her Edit Candles — the first guest, the first vibe-setter, and the person who accidentally opened every door that followed. • Kristin Beal from Harvester Arts — still the most downloaded episode of all time. She started with a parade and built something extraordinary. • Stacy Ward Lattin from Hopping Gnome — a holiday pop-up that became a full crew outing. The Christmas setup was stunning. Deck the gnomes. • Tracy Hoover from Groover Labs — a startup queen with a fascinating story. The episode ran long and nobody minded. • Kaia and Bella from Roaming Spirits — tequila in an espresso martini, homemade syrups, and a content day that is absolutely still happening. • Brent and Annika from Ballet Wichita — what started as a guest episode became a whole community. Ballet Wichita is basically a second home now. • Kari from Happy Camper Hat Company — an interactive episode, a Chiefs hat, and lake day content that is already planned in Jen's head. • Jovana Vu from Vu Events — where Episode 1 began, and where Season 1's sponsorship lives. Thank you, Jovana. Thank you, Tony. Full circle. • Ghost Girl from Oddfellow — relatably vulnerable, creatively inspiring. They're putting a bat signal in the sky. • Jamie Seipel from Blood Cancer United & Home2 Suites — an absolute queen with a mission and an event calendar that never stops. The FOMO was real. • Jennifer Short from Colour Thairapy & Sovereign Inhale — the hair is still falling perfectly. The breathwork conversation was unforgettable. • Krissy Buck from Digital Wichita / WSU Tech — the woman behind Mission Control Digital Day 2026 (June 18–19, AI-focused, space themed). Jen is Vice Chair. It's a whole thing. And to the Sip Squad — the community that brought back Trend Decoder, sends coffee recs, and showed up for every episode. You made it possible to stand on a stage at Riverfest. You are the kingdom. --- 🎶 HITS DIFFERENT: "Long Live" — Taylor Swift (Speak Now, Taylor's Version) Rachel's first listen: warm, nostalgic, no hard feelings. A song about cherishing the feeling of a moment even after the moment is over — and still wanting the best for the people you shared it with. Even the ones where it's complicated. Jen's take: this is a love song to Taylor's fans. Written after her very first stadium performance — her second album, before she knew what was coming. The lyric that gets Jen every time: "Point at the pictures, tell them my name." Though she said — she won't have to point at pictures of Rachel. Her kids already know who Rachel is. Why this song, why this episode: for the Sip Squad. For the community that has been here from the beginning, sent ideas, left reviews, and made Riverfest happen. You're the kingdom. Long live all of it. Long live So This Happened. 🥂 --- 📣 WHAT'S COMING Episode 50 — Season 1 Finale Next week is the big one. Jen and Rachel are recording at Revolutsia with Naquela from Planted Tea Shop. Iced tea is confirmed. Naquela also has a popup event coming up: July 11th from 3–7 PM at 102 N. Francis (where Espresso To Go Go used to be). One day before the anniversary party — make a whole weekend of it. Anniversary Party — Uncorked, Unhinged & Bubbling Over 📅 Saturday, July 12th | 2:00–4:00 PM 📍 Bubbles Champagne Bar, Wichita Free event! Guests cover their own refreshments. Presented by Vu Events. Venue sponsor: Bubbles Champagne Bar. Special limited-edition gifts for past guests (a very exciting collab with Bella Bonita Designs 👀). Specialty cocktail menu. Past guests: come claim your prize. Listeners: bring your ideas for Season 2. Merch Use code STHANNIVERSARY for 15% off the Uncorked & Slightly Unhinged line through July 31st. Shop here [https://www.bonfire.com/uncorked-and-slightly-unhinged/]. --- 🔗 FOLLOW & CONNECT Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe + leave a review — it truly means everything. Follow @sothishappened_podcast on Instagram, Facebook, and Threads. Long live all the mountains we moved. 🥂 So THIS happened. This episode is proudly sponsored by Vu Events [https://www.vueventplanning.com/] — Wichita's premier event production team. It had to be Vu! Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/support]

Episode 48 : Live From Riverfest

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/fan_mail/new] So THIS Happened went live. Like, actually live. Main Stage at Wichita Riverfest live.   Episode 48 is Jen and Rachel recording in real time on the Main Stage at Wichita Riverfest 2026 — in front of a real crowd, with wine in hand, the wind trying its absolute best to ruin the vibe, and DJ Panda on hype duty. It did not disappoint.   We played This or That with the crowd (Riverfest edition — festival food, outfit planning, local vs. national acts), dove into some of our favorite Riverfest memories, talked about what we'd already been up to Friday and Saturday, and giggled through Trend Decoder — because a live audience watching Rachel guess internet trends cold is exactly as chaotic as it sounds.   🎲 THIS OR THAT — RIVERFEST EDITION   The crowd played along this week — DJ Panda held it down from the booth while Jen and Rachel revealed their answers and let the audience weigh in. A few standout moments:   Front of the crowd vs. back by the bar — turns out it's a both/and situation and nobody is sorry Local Wichita act vs. national headliner — unanimous local love (very on-brand for this show) Corn dog vs. funnel cake — deeply personal, surprisingly divisive, and both are correct Festival outfit planned for weeks vs. threw it together this morning — the crowd overwhelmingly grabbed what they could find, and we respect it Document everything for the 'gram vs. put the phone down and live in it — turns out Broadway In Wichita taught Jen how to be present, and Rachel just trusts Jen to get the shot   🎡 RIVERFEST MEMORIES & THIS WEEKEND   The conversation got good fast. A few highlights:   Rachel's most vivid Riverfest memory: snow cones with Jen and the boys back around 2018, Century II, hot and sunny, outfits sourced from Von Maur the day before. Some things never change. Rachel's childhood memory: watching the hot air balloons launch at night with her dad — and the fact that she's still hoping to catch them this year (weather permitting, which, it has not been). Jen's chapter as the official Riverfest livestreamer — the backstage access, the deeper love for the festival it created, and the moment she arrived at the VIP dinner thinking Tim wasn't coming... and he was already there. Waiting. Having conspired with Julie to pull off a full surprise. There is a GIF. It lives forever. The $25 giant margarita situation: Brittany at the bar turned them onto the Una Vida Tequila margaritas with refills for the rest of Riverfest. They are going back immediately after recording. The Schooner Mates, Admiral Windwagon, the food court at the brick of fries, the Korean corn dogs — Riverfest is well-represented in this episode.   Big takeaway of this year's fest so far: more collaboration, more community showing up for each other — and that is exactly what this podcast is about.   📱 TREND DECODER   Rachel's Trend Decoder has returned by popular demand — specifically because Tracy from Oklahoma City mentioned it at lunch, and that was all it took. Welcome back, chaos.   TREND 1 — "Can We Reschedule?" Creators pretend to receive a text cancelling plans, fake disappointment, then cut to themselves already in comfy clothes at home — relieved they don't have to go out. Rachel immediately said "cat on your lap" and "we do this all the time" and earned herself a hard-fought point. She was correct in spirit. One point awarded.   TREND 2 — "Watch My Body Change" Creators use hooks like "watch my body change after giving up ____" to tease a big wellness transformation — but the reveal is them looking tired, sad, and completely over it. Rachel went deep fried pickles → food belly → Ozempic → habits → no progress, and landed basically right at the end. A point and a half. Very generous. She earned it.   Running score: Rachel is getting better at this. She said so herself. We believe her.   🥂 BEFORE YOU GO   One-year anniversary party is HAPPENING — July 12th at Bubbles Champagne Bar, presented by Vu Events. Watch our socials for details coming soon. Episode 50 is right around the corner. It's happening. Merch is live — Uncorked & Slightly Unhinged and Messy Is My Polished available at https://www.bonfire.com/store/so-this-happened-store/ [https://www.bonfire.com/store/so-this-happened-store/]. 10% of profits from Messy is My Polished merch goes to Ballet Wichita. Find us on Spotify, YouTube, and Instagram @sothishappened_podcast. Or honestly just find us out in the city — we're not hard to spot. This episode is brought to you by Vu Events [https://www.vueventplanning.com/] — the Sip Squad Sponsor making the magic happen, including our upcoming one-year anniversary party. Thank you, Vu Events. We love you almost as much as we love those Una Vida margaritas.   So THIS happened. Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/support]

Episode 47 : Yes, But

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/fan_mail/new] 🎙️ Episode 47 — Yes, But Hosted by Jen Cole & Rachel Chappelle This episode is sponsored by Vu Events [https://www.vueventplanning.com/] — Wichita's magic makers. Cheers to Jovana and the team! May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and we decided to get real about it. Not in a five-tips kind of way. In the actual, imperfect, sometimes-you-hold-it-in-until-you-explode kind of way that real life actually looks like. Also: Trend Decoder is back, the math gets embarrassing, and "Clean" by Taylor Swift sends both of us somewhere we weren't entirely prepared to go. 📱 TREND DECODER Trend #1: "Yes, But" — Creators show the polished, aspirational side of something ("yes") followed immediately by the messy behind-the-scenes reality ("but..."). Rachel earned half a point guessing this one. She's at peace with it. Trend #2: "Brainwash You" — Creators jokingly frame themselves as dangerously influential. Spend enough time with them and you'll accidentally adopt better habits. Rachel basically cracked this one by referencing The Office. 1.5 out of 2. 💜 MENTAL HEALTH, MILESTONES & THE MESSY MIDDLE What does managing mental health actually look like — not the Instagram version, the real one? We get into the routines, the spiraling, the lists, the people, and the positive milestones that are somehow still exhausting. Spoiler: positive things are still stressful. Mixing emotion with logistics while being the most emotional person in the room is a whole thing. We see you. 🎶 HITS DIFFERENT: "Clean" — Taylor Swift (1989) Rachel heard it for the first time tonight. The rain imagery hit. The drowning-but-finally-breathing thing hit. And Jen shared something she hadn't talked about on the podcast before — the season in her life when this song first existed, and what it meant then vs. what it means now. Both of us realized we were going through overlapping heartbreaks at the same time without knowing it. That came out on mic. In Episode 47. So that happened. 🥂 📣 BEFORE YOU GO * Riverfest Main Stage — Sunday, May 31 at 11 AM! All you need is a Riverfest button. Come find us. 🎉 * Merch: Uncorked & Slightly Unhinged + Messy Is My Polished — 10% of profits go to Ballet Wichita 🩰 Link here [https://www.bonfire.com/store/so-this-happened-store/]. * Season 2 is coming — drop your ideas for new segments in the comments! * Subscribe + review on Spotify, YouTube, and wherever you listen. 🎙️ Yes, but... we'll see you next time. So THIS Happened. Sponsored by Vu Events  |  Sip Squad Sponsor  |  May 2026 Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/support]

Episode 46 : Perfectly Un-Perfect

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/fan_mail/new] This episode is sponsored by Vu Events! Whatever you’re celebrating, Jovana and her team have the vision to make it unforgettable. Find them at vueventplanning.com [https://www.vueventplanning.com/]. Episode 46 is chaotic, emotional, hilarious, and somehow perfectly on-brand for two women who just coined the phrase “perfectly un-perfect” live on air. Jen and Rachel are fresh off a content creation outing at Century II — getting familiar with the main stage where they’ll record LIVE at Riverfest on Sunday, May 31st at 11 AM. Come see them. All you need is your Riverfest button. 📱 TREND DECODER (Tracy, this one’s for you) The No Trend: running words together to dodge accountability. “youdon’tneedonemorebottleofwine.” My name’s Jen. It doesn’t apply. Not a Math Person: reclaiming a weakness as proof of a different brain. “You’re so creative!” Thanks, I used to cry during math homework. Rachel got half a point. Both of them cried during math homework. 🎓 THE WEEK THAT WAS Nathan performed My Shot from Hamilton at his variety show and absolutely obliterated the stage. Nicholas graduated high school with 18 college credits already banked. The senior girls performed Slipping Through My Fingers twice — once the night before graduation, once during. Nick fanned Jen with his program. At graduation, Nathan caught her eye from across the auditorium and was losing it. She did not cry. The boys handled that one night early. Baby Everett came to town with Hannah and Shane for the graduation party. The summit at Torr Brewing included the full friend group, both families, a legendary nacho bar, and Nick arriving in full Johnny Cash black. Then: Bubbles, Chambongs, Sammie’s official initiation, an Andy Reid lookalike, and Rachel texting her dad about it at midnight. Also — Rachel is going to be an aunt! A girl. An enchanted forest baby shower is in early planning. 🎶 HITS DIFFERENT: “This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things” — Taylor Swift (Reputation) The party is any relationship you poured yourself into. The song isn’t sad. It’s a boundary. It’s the nice thing protecting itself. Neither of them is re-recording Reputation. Perfectly un-perfect. 📣 BEFORE YOU GO Come see us LIVE at Riverfest [https://wichitariverfest.com/] — Sunday, May 31st, 11 AM, Main Stage! Merch: Uncorked and Slightly Unhinged & Messy Is My Polished 2.0 (10% to Ballet Wichita 🩰) [https://www.bonfire.com/store/so-this-happened-store/] Subscribe on Spotify & YouTube + leave us a five-star review! 🥂 So THIS happened. Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/support]

Episode 45 : Main Stage Era

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/fan_mail/new] This episode is sponsored by Vu Events [https://www.vueventplanning.com/]! Whether it’s a corporate gathering, a wedding, or the celebration of a lifetime, Jovana and her team have the vision and the hustle to make it unforgettable. Find them at vueventsplanning.com. ―――――――――――――――――――― Forty-five episodes in, and things just got very, very real. Jen and Rachel are back with a full glass and a LOT to say — trends, milestones, a tearjerker of a Hits Different segment, and two announcements that have us fully in our Main Stage Era. 👟 THE TRENDS SEGMENT This week: Red Flats Queen (the Met Gala assistant who went viral for running the whole show in red flats and zero cares) and the I’m a Survivor trend — using Reba McEntire’s anthem to celebrate the absolute bare minimum. Swallowed your vitamins? Survivor. Didn’t cry until the very end of the band concert? Survivor. We’re all survivors here. 🏟️ ANNOUNCEMENT #1: WE’RE PLAYING RIVERFEST So THIS Happened is recording LIVE on the Main Stage at Wichita Riverfest — May 29th at 1:30 PM. All you need is your Riverfest button. Come find us front and center. Sponsored by Vu Events. 🎉 🥂 ANNOUNCEMENT #2: ANNIVERSARY PARTY We’re almost a year old and we’re throwing a party. More details coming very soon — but save the date: July 12th, 2–4 PM at Bubbles Champagne Bar [https://www.instagram.com/bubbleswichita/] inside The Workroom. Presenting sponsor: Vu Events. Venue sponsor: Bubbles. It’s going to be incredibubble. 🎵 HITS DIFFERENT: “The Best Day” — Taylor Swift (Fearless) Rachel came in blind and left emotional. Jen couldn’t make it through without crying. Between Nick’s last band concert solo, graduation week, and wedding lead-up memories — this one hit every single layer. 📣 BEFORE YOU GO → New merch [https://tr.ee/W-71xXCE_L] dropping before Riverfest — Messy Is My Polished is getting a redesign! → 10% of all merch profits go to Ballet Wichita 🩰 → Subscribe, review, and follow us everywhere @sothishappened_podcast So THIS happened. And it’s gonna keep happening. Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2513969/support]