I think I wanna marry you.

You may have noticed that I've been MIA for the summer.  That's because I was in New Hampshire slash the greater New England region for the summer, hanging with my sister and helping her plan her wedding.  Well, it happened last Saturday and, I'm pretty bias, but it was the funnest wedding ever.  After a weekend of lawn games, hiking, delicious food, great company and more dancing and sweating then humanly possible, I'm incredibly tired, incredibly happy, and incredibly grateful for my amazing, hilarious, crazy family that got a little bit bigger this on Saturday.  As an added bonus, I did not pass out, pee myself, or cry during my speech.  All three were distinct possibilities.  Now I'm back in DC and back to work and in complete denial about both.  I will also be back to blogging shortly.  For now, I'll leave you with a quick preview of images from the day, taken by the uber-talent Amanda Borozinski of Boro Creative Designs.  If you're having a New England wedding, you're crazy if you don't look at Amanda's work.  (Oh, and she got these pictures while it was raining.)

xo kate

"There was nothing but that savage ocean between us and Europe."

xo kate

Where the Wildcats Are: Hogsmeade

Here's what I learned at Hogwarts this past weekend:

The best time to visit Orlando is early December. No one is there. No lines. No crowds. No chaos. Only magic and fun and joy.  And you can find great hotel and flight deals.

I want to live in Hogsmeade.  Or at least visit it every year.
It is the most magical and wonderful place on earth.

 Butterbeer is sweeter than I expected. Tastes like cream soda.
Meanwhile, Hogs Head Brew is a completely perfect beer. But is not served until noon.

Lunch at The Three Broomsticks is scrumtrelescent.
Especially if you love meat. 

It is important to sport your House jersey at all times.

It is worth waiting for the front row of the Dueling Dragons roller coasters.
You will pee your pants, but it will be worth it.

Have you been to Hogwarts?

Kate: The Call of Nature

I'm absolutely obsessed with outdoor showers.  I have been since I was a kid and my family used to rent a house on Cape Cod in the summertime.  It was the perfect experience, coming home from the beach all sandy, sunburnt and sweaty and taking a refreshing shower.  There was also Vidal Sassoon shampoo and conditioner in it and, to this day, that smell reminds me of summers on the Cape.

Perfection.

There's something about showering outside that is just so much better than showering in a house.  I try to recreate the experience in my apartment by opening the window in the shower in the summer.  It's a good substitute when you're unable to get to a real outdoor shower, but I have had a couple unfortunate incidents with bird getting too close for comfort, and once my super, Glenn, was suspended outside fixing something in the apartment above me and inadvertently saw me naked.  It was an awkward moment for both of us but, on the up side, I've gotten great service ever since.

My favorite outdoor showers are those that are enclosed enough for practical use (like you can actually have enough privacy in them that you can really shower and not just practice sexy washing your hair and sucking in in case someone sees you) but are low enough that you could see over it if you tried. About six years ago I went to a friend-of-a-friend's house in Laguna Beach, and the normal shower in their house had a wrap-around cut out at head-height, which gave it the feeling of being an outdoor shower even though it was a part of the normal bathroom.  It's difficult to describe, but it was amazing.  It is one of the only reasons that I'd consider moving to California -- weather that allows for an outdoor/indoor hybrid.

When I someday buy a house, one of the number one things on my list is going to be having an outdoor shower or the possibility of building one.  And once I have it, I'm going to keep Vidal Sassoon shampoo and conditioner in it all the time.

xo kate

What I learned in Texas.

True.

xo kate

Texas Forever.

I'm headed down to Austin, Texas for the SXSW music festival for the next five days.  Although I'll miss you, Wildcats, I'm pretty excited for 80 degree weather, new music, booze and a great pair of cowboy boots. Also, pretty much everything I know about Texas, I know from George W. Bush and Friday Night Lights, so I'm pretty excited to see this epic hamlet.  (Yeah, I know that's an oxymoron)  I'm really hoping it's a lot more like FNL and a lot less like GWB.

Folks are split on whether or not my cowboy boots are going
to be a fashion do or don't.  What do you think, wildcats?

For those of you who aren't able to make the trip down to Tejas for the festivities, enjoy this free iTunes SXSW music sampler.

xo kate