Progress

Well, the long holiday weekend has almost come to a close. It was a much-needed break to get some sun, explore Austin and hang out with friends I haven't seen in a while who came to visit.

I spent the fourth of July at one of my roommate's homes off of Lake McQueeney. It was beautiful and relaxing as always!

I had the chance to puppy-sit for a friend who came in from Houston for the weekend. The puppy's name is Barrett and he is an adorable chihuahua/terrier mix…

And to top everything off, we spent Saturday standup paddle-boarding on Lady Bird Lake (one of my Austin bucket list items) and had dinner as the sun set by Lake Austin at Able's on the Lake.

Thoughts for this week:

This week, I hope to re-focus on my job searching/applying and really start looking ahead to the future. There are so many changes that will take place within the next few weeks that it's hard to wrap my head around! I have to pack up my entire house and move my stuff to Houston (which includes renting a moving van and storage unit), make sure my house is completely back to the way we found it at move-in, and tie up any loose ends with my current job. 

I ate and spent money excessively this weekend, so I really want to try to eat healthier these next few weeks and actually cook for myself instead of going out to eat. Here are a couple easy lunch recipes for the work week:

• Turkey, avocado & hummus wrap
• Sweet tuna salad
• BLT pasta salad

I also want to start using my unlimited, one-month pass to a cycling studio called Pure Ryde. I became obsessed with stationary cycling during the spring semester when a studio opened up close to campus, but I stopped going (and working out in general) prior to my Europe trip. So now, I want to make a serious effort to go with one of my friends and get back in shape.

Here's a good quote to leave you with…

~ Kelsey

Summer to-do's

I can't believe it is already July!

Summer is flying by way too fast. I still have quite a few things left to do on my Austin bucket list before I make the move to Houston. Luckily, I have a five-day July 4th weekend ahead of me to check some of those things off the list. Here are my top ten to-do's:

1. Enjoy FREE live music at Blues on the Green at Zilker Park (I'm pretty excited about next week's featuring Bob Schneider!)
2. Eat at Uchi/Uchiko - two restaurants by Austin's own Top Chef winner, Paul Qui
3. Relax on a floatie while watching a movie on a massive inflatable screen at Deep Eddy Pool (this weekend is Grease <3)
4. See the city the "weird" way on a segway tour
5. Board the PubCrawler of Austin with friends and cycle (while "rehydrating") to the best bars in the city
6. Stand up paddle boarding on Lady Bird Lake
7. Sample some of the best trailer food Austin has to offer at Trailer Food Tuesdays at the Long Center
8. Get a frozen banana masterpiece from Bananarchy 
9. Brush up on my putt-putt skills at Peter Pan Mini Golf - while also enjoying the BYOB part…
10. Take a much-needed dip in Austin's beloved Hamilton Pool

It's crazy to me that I have lived in this city for the past four years and there are still many basic things I haven't done. At the same time, I have experienced so many Austin-y things that I feel content with leaving and am truly ready to start a new chapter in a new home. On that note, this quote is definitely helping me get through everything right now. 

Until next time…

~ Kelsey

When in Europe

Well, I'm back from Europe!

It was an absolutely amazing trip and despite the language barriers and lack of experience my mom and I had with traveling outside of the country, things went very well and we had the time of our lives. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip:

And then of course, there was the food.

It was all AMAZING…makes me hungry just looking at it.

My favorite city was probably Barcelona because of the great weather, beautiful beaches and friendly people. Someday (hopefully soon!), I would love to go back and visit other cities in Spain and maybe re-visit Paris. Crossing my fingers I am able to have that opportunity within a few years because I'm already itching to go back!

Until next time.

~ Kelsey

Thoughts from a Recent Graduate

My fun is over. Or at least that's how it feels right now.

Since graduating from The University of Texas last weekend, I am still in total disbelief that the past four amazing years of college are completely finished. No more all-nighters, sorority events or all-day tailgates. Can't say I'm going to miss the all-nighters, but losing everything else that made these past four years so special makes me unbelievably sad. I knew the day when I had to step out into the "real world" would eventually come, but I just didn't realize how quickly it would happen.

I've read many "motivational" articles and speeches to the Class of 2013 over the past few weeks that have attempted to make me feel better about graduation, but have just made me even more fearful for my unknown future. No words of wisdom can truly prepare someone for the moment they realize they are about to be completely on their own after over two decades of being taken care of. I've had an idea of where my path is heading my entire life, but now that path could not be more unclear.

Despite all of my nostalgia for my college years and fear for what lies ahead, I am trying to be  hopeful. For all the uncertainty of the future, there is so much room for excitement. Many people are moving to new cities and accepting full-time positions at the company of their dreams. Some, like me, are taking it slow and easing the transition from school to work by taking a trip or catching up on much-needed missed sleep by simply relaxing. 

I've always wanted to go abroad but didn't have the courage to do it while I was in school for fear that I would miss out on so much and miss my family and friends even more during the long semesters. So, the one thing I wanted to do after graduation was travel to Europe. I am blessed to have been granted that wish and will be leaving the U.S. in a few weeks to travel with my mom to Barcelona, Rome, Florence, Paris and London. It will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I can't wait to document.

Post-grad life for me has given me a lot of time to reflect on other things I wish I had done over the past four years. So far, none of these things have been regrets because I realize I am still able to do many of them now. One thing I wish I had done was to keep up with a blog. I started  multiple blogs in college, but never really had time to keep them up-to-date. Now that I no longer have to study (weird!) I have plenty of time to dedicate to blogging. 

Ultimately, my writing will be about a multitude of topics and will be a place for me to document my experiences and feelings as I wade through the chaos of post-grad life.

It's going to be a long, bumpy ride but I'm ready to go!

~ Kelsey