Last day, waiting...

Trying to stay warm!

Here it is, the last day of my visit to my home state, the old freezing Wisconsin. Midday tomorrow I'll be on another plane, first to Chicago, connecting to London, and then up to Edinburgh where I'll arrive sometime around dinnertime on Monday. It's going to be another loonnggg 24-ish hours of travel, but in every single way this trip home has exceeded my expectations. I mean that literally; some things I wasn't expecting at all.

First, there was the cold. Nothing like coming home to a polar vortex. I had no right to complain about it being cold in Edinburgh. Ever. I promise I will never do it again. (!!!)

Then, food. Seriously, I sometimes don't realize how much I take for granted the restaurants and availability of foods that I can't get elsewhere. Take Mexican food for example... there just aren't that many places to choose from in the UK, and even then, it's not what I'm used to. Not to mention the soul food restaurant I went to last night (where in the UK can I get hush puppies, cornbread, and BBQ chicken with lemon pepper fries and 'hell sauce'!? TELL ME.) And it should go without saying that my dad's homemade pies and second-to-none breakfasts are something I sorely miss at times.

Catching up with friends is always amazing. Since I'm home after the holidays, most of the people who now live out of town were already gone after visiting, so I didn't get to see a lot of people. That, and time was short, so there are many others I wish I could have seen and didn't. However, being able to connect with some close friends, even just one or two, after four months apart was just what I needed. There's really nothing like being around people who just 'get' you, friends and family both.

And of course, where family is concerned, this trip is epitomizing the emotional rollercoaster of welcoming a new family member! My younger sister, Ali, is gonna give us all a little bundle of joy sometime TODAY!! Her due date was tomorrow (the day I fly out -- I know, I know, ugh.) but we poked and prodded and whispered and wished for her little bun to arrive a little early and yayyyyy. It's her first, so labor is taking a long time, and we're as patient as we can be, but... how patient can I seriously be? I'm going to be auntie for the first time! Looking forward to my other sister arriving home from college for the weekend so we can all be here to meet the little gal or lad (even Ali doesn't know).

Otherwise, I'm just trying to stay warm, get a few school things taken care of before my second and final term starts this week, and my oh my... life just keeps on keeping on.

Happy weekend!

Cheers,
Kate xx

Auntie Katie!

I've been waiting to be able to break this news: I'm going to be an aunt! For the first time! My beautiful sister Ali, who was married last month, is about 16 weeks along with her first baybay. Per the image above, she told my other sister and I in early May, shortly after our birthdays. These cards were her cute little way of getting the point across without having to really say anything at all. It was wonderful! Needless to say, we're all super excited around here!! Of course, I'm about to take off on la grande aventure but I'm stoked to be able to book a trip home after the new year -- right around the time she's due.

Anyone who takes a moment to do the math, will know that she was "in the family way" during her wedding and also on our magnificent trip camping to Glacier Park earlier this month. Apparently, she's been feeling great for the most part, if just a little more tired sometimes than usual. Other than feeling "huge," she's doing wonderfully. Did I mention we're all so excited!??



BABY!!!


In other news, my visa arrived in the mail today, so I'm all about scouring the internet for the best travel deals at the moment. Soon I should be receiving all of my matriculation forms/details so that I can actually join the university and register for classes and all that fun stuff.

I've been suuuuuper busy working both jobs lately. The bookstore is the bookstore is the bookstore, as it always is -- crazy -- in the summer. But the museum has tacked on an extra 20 hours or so, this week, because their annual art fair is on Sunday and they've been trying to get everything together in a very, very short span of time. I'm in charge of coordinating the volunteer base for that day. Once the weekend is over, I'm all but wrapped up at the museum, save one or two small tasks. Then it's on to the next thing...

Time continues to fly on by...

Days to Edinburgh move-in: 44