happy kansas day!

"if i went west, 

i think i would go to kansas"

[abraham lincoln]

preview

a summary of forthcoming blerg posts: stay on your toes, friends!! there's a lot of catching up to do!

apple picking

halloween - what are our costumes??

election night

thanksgiving

white house christmas tour

christmas

touristing around town

inauguration

inaugural ball

not in kansas anymore

there is no one who comes here that

does not know this is a true map of the world, 

with you there in the center, making home for us all.

[story people]

it was so great being in kansas with my dear, dear grammy and assorted other family members. 
that sweet little town will always be my roots. 

hi friends. i am feeling pretty darn well. i've learned a lot about myself this past year, and i feel as though it's all finally coming together in a way that makes me more well rounded and well adjusted. i've slowly come to terms with some of the stressful situations that have been obfuscating my sense of wellbeing, which makes this spring feel like more than just an atmospheric change; instead, an emotional and psychological shift that i can feel welling up from my core. spring break helped to solidify this by once again bringing me back to my roots and reminding me of what's important: family, friends, and love. always love. the love of family and friends that overcomes the pain and hurt of life. my skin feels like my own again and that feels good. 

leaving

returning

i left dc in a blaze of nighttime lights for a much needed break from here. getting back to my roots is so funny. it's a wonderful respite - not just wonderful, though: necessary. life can get pretty stressful here. i absolutely love getting back to the places and people that are truly home to me. i know i gush a lot about my friends and family, but it's only because they are the best people i know. a few weeks with my people has and will always recharge my batteries. thanks, y'all. 

i'm back now, moving forward as that is the direction things typically move. i'm excited to take advantage of all this semester has to offer. i am also pretty pumped to be involved in doctors for america right now. the health care system is seeing its biggest shakeup in almost half a century and it's all happening here. i'm feeling awfully privileged to be able to play a role in disseminating information about the affordable care act and how it moves our country toward a more stable and equitable health care system. if you have questions about it, please please ask! i love a lively chat.

let's talk again soon, kay?

xoxo,

k and e

an update in photos

first, steph came for interviews and we did it up right - what fun!

then i went home for the holidays and of course we had to attempt a family photo. also, ask me about redneck sledding sometime.

when visiting my gram, we found some fun childhood pics

and i had eleanor's portraits done by the incomparable mr. zach

then to kansas city for the new year! i absolutely love these girls. i can't say it enough.

"in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. for in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed" 

[khalil gibran]

whoa, that was a lot of photos.

this brings us to now - the start of a new semester. there's more to come, but i figured i'd interrupt the quiet of the radio waves to let you know i'm still alive and kicking. talk to you soon!

xoxox,

kate and the princess

to my wonderful grandmother

 

i traveled home to kansas this past weekend to celebrate my grammy's 90th birthday. that is right, 90 beautiful years! i've been so blessed to know her for 26 of them. she is my family's rock and is one of the strongest people that i know. she is witty, she is generous, she is fiercely protective, and she is so loving. i couldn't be more lucky! now i'm just counting down the days until the next holiday when i get to see her and the rest of my crazy/wonderful family.

"it is always sad when someone leaves home, unless they are simply going around the corner and will return in a few minutes with ice-cream sandwiches"

[lemony snicket]

exactly how i feel every time i hop on a place back to the district. this time i had to choke back tears as we sailed home over the beautiful midwestern plains. i cried because i love my family so much and it's a shame not to see them more often, and because life is short, and because school is hard, and because i didn't track down any bobs 47 while i was in town. but then a couple of hours later i saw my little townhouse in miniature out the airplane window and put my [figurative] big girl panties on and got to the business of life.

i'm back.

labor day weekend

this was my birthday party a few weeks ago. we ate dinner at busboys and poets and got drinks in a fancy speakeasy and laughed until our abs hurt. i love my friends!! top left: the metro escalator at dupont circle that i feel like i have to run up every time even though it's like the longest escalator that exists. why?

here comes the bride!

i want to dedicate this post to my dear friend courtney, who got hitched without a hitch this past weekend in STL! it was a beautiful ceremony and i was so blessed to be a part of it! She made a stunning bride who was organized, levelheaded, and the most chill bride i've ever seen. i'm not surprised, because courtney has always been my most reasonable, put together, and no fuss friend. she's good at planning for rainy days and therefore isn't fazed when things crop up. she is encouraging, kind, loyal, and oh so deserving of a happily ever after [which began on the 17th!].

pre-wedding festivities:

wedding day!

the only redeeming part of having a 7:15am flight the day after the wedding:

all in all, the wedding weekend was a huge success, and i even got some studying done. courtney and dan, thanks for letting me be a part of your big day. i look forward to being your friend for forever! i can't wait for you to pop out some babies for me to spoil rotten!

xoxo,

kate and ellie

finally, new ben folds!

birthday epiphany

at first i was sad and annoyed about turning twenty six but then i heard someone complain about how worried they are to turn 25, and that was just annoying. almost as annoying as how i just used numerical values and spelled numbers in the same sentence. i realized that complaining about age just makes a person sound silly and vapid. so i'm excited to be another year older because it is a blessing to be alive - and there is so much good to experience in this world. so yay, and thank you in advance for the wonderful birthday wishes. you should really be wishing my mom happy kate's birthday, because she's the one who had to be filleted open because my stupid placenta implanted over her cervix so i couldn't be delivered naturally. thanks mom! you are #1 and congrats on 26 years of being the best mother!

do you want to know something??

these are people that i love. and they love me back, to boot.

how does one girl get so lucky?

i'm missing everyone back home right now. thanks for the wonderful summer! above are photos from my mom's birthday party - it was  great way to wrap up my terrific vacation. [you'll notice the vegetarian corn dog - i was in heaven!]

in other news, we've survived a earthquake and a hurricane recently. neither proved to be a big deal for dc, but thanks for all the good thoughts and the prayers! i really really appreciate everyone's concern with calls and texts and emails.

i'm just trying to stay afloat in terms of school and all the miscellany that i need to attend to [it never seems to end, does it?] but i'm trying to stay positive because in the end, happiness comes from within [but it also doesn't hurt to have lil miss eleanor being cute all the time and some quality friends giving me time, smiles, and encouragement]. in the end, everything and everyone on the periphery will fade away and only love will remain. probably. 

xoxo,

kate and the princess

we do what we must

and call it by the best names. -rwe

you could say that this summer has been one of much needed relaxation, but what it really comes down to is a series of perturbing impasses. i have indeed relaxed and cleared my mind of the past year, but i have also stressed about the state of uncertainty accompanying this summer - i'm completely accustomed to having a plan and a backup plan. it's not often that plans a & b fall through and leave me at a veritable dead end. 

as i reached said dead end, i decided to come home for a few months. what i've found is that home is a good place to end up when everything else falls through. here, people will love you even though you're a big grouch-ball lazy lump of a person, complaining about the injustices that you alone have been so harshly dealt in life. 

i've also learned that a summer like this is a gift in disguise. i've spent some valuable time with my radiant grammy, my kind aunties, my supportive parents, and my merry and droll siblings. princess eleanor rose has been spoiled rotten. i've cleared my mind and soul for the impending year. my faith has been restored and i am reminded that i am sustained by something greater than my own resolve. 

i am grateful and renewed. 

estes park, co

steamboat springs, co

to my family

dear family:

thank you for welcoming me home. it's the exact nourishment my soul needed.

i don't know how you do it, but you meet me exactly where i am. 

i know i'm hard to love sometimes, but thank you for loving me anyway. 

thank you for raising me from a stinking cute baby to a more or less okay young woman.

thank you for loving eleanor like a [great]granddog/[great]niece dog. she loves you too.

thanks for supporting me and helping me to become more than i ever could be alone.

xoxo,

k and e

i'm so sorry for the hiatus!

ellie and i are being the epitome of lazy by sleeping in, reading, visiting family, and doing some extreme relaxing. today we're about to break that trend by heading up to steamboat springs for some touristing/admiring the scenery. you know how we do.

i would be remiss to not end this post by saying - congratulations to abby and adam for their engagement this week!! they are my dear friends and such a wonderful couple. mazal (mazel?) tov, you two!!

xoxo,

kate and eleanor

i'm back, no big deal :)

sorry for the long absence! ooooops.

since we last talked, i passed sdr (horray happiness!), had a lovely spring break in kc, and started a course called head and neck at school. the head and neck are complicated areas of the body for sure! there are many nerves and blood vessels snaking about and supplying a multitude of muscles.

anyway, about spring break! i headed to kc with little e in tow and we had a wonderful time catching up with family and friends alike.

sorry for the brevity . . . must go learn more! will update more tomorrow!

xoxo,

kate and ellie

p.s. tonight there's supposed to be a good old fashioned thunderstorm . . . lovely!

happy birthday to auntie zinnia!!!

it is my dear auntie cassy's birthday today, so i wanted to dedicate this post to her. she is a lovely, passionate, caring, and energetic lady who inspires me all the time. whether it is by standing up for her convictions, growing beautiful flowers, seeing the good in everyone, encouraging those around her to reach their potential, or just whipping up an amazing vegetarian dinner, she makes me feel so lucky to be her niece.

a.c. - i'd be nowhere without you. thank you for everything that you do - ellie and i love you more than you can know!!!

xoxo,

kate and ellie

animals are my friends,
and i don't eat my friends.
-george bernard shaw

(that's a milkbone in her chompers)

a song dedicated to princess eleanor rose

it’s him or me that’s what he said
but i can’t choose between a vegan and a pot head
so i chose you because you’re sweet 
and you give me lots of lovin’ and you eat meat
 
and that’s how you became my only man of the hour

you never lie and you don’t cheat
and you don’t have any baggage tied to your forefeet
do i deserve to be the one who will feed you breakfast, lunch, and dinner 
and take you to the park at dawn
 
will you really be my only man of the hour?
 
i know you’ll never bring me flowers
flowers they will only die
and though you’ll never take a shower together
i know you’ll never make me cry
 
you never argue, you don’t even talk
and i like the way you let me lead you 
when we go outside and walk
 
will you really be my only man of the hour?


norah jones


{except that e is a she dog, so just substitute "she dog" for the parts where it says "man"}

it's a happy day

the cute dog wanted to tell you that she loves you. :)