It’s FRIDAY!

This week was a bit of a whirlwind—I flew to Boston on Monday for a work presentation, flew home on Tuesday morning. This trip to Boston was fun as I was able to walk around Harvard University’s campus for the first time, as well as eat dinner and grab a nightcap in Cambridge. When we returned to the office, I hit the ground running on my other projects. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to travel with my job, but those less than 24 hour trips really take it out of you!

This weekend should be a fun one as I am heading to Richmond, Virginia with Monica for a lovely stay at the Jefferson Hotel. It’s recently renovated and supposed to be the place to stay in town! We’re also excited to check out their legendary champagne brunch first-hand. While we have plenty of fall outfit photoshoots planned, the temperatures are supposed to be in the mid-80s and I’m not complaining for a second—anyone else already dreading winter? Can we just skip to April?

Whatever you’re up to this weekend—I hope you have a good one! Without further ado, here’s what else has been going on in my life lately:

SAN FRANCISCO TIMES TWO /

Turns out, I’m heading to San Francisco twice in October! Once for work and once for play. I’m flying out on a Saturday ahead of my work obligation on Monday next weekend, and then return for five days a week and a half later.

I’ve started researching what I want to do when I’m in town, but I would love any and all advice any of you have about the City by the Bay. I want to hit up the tourist spots—the Painted Ladies, the Palace of Fine Arts, Fisherman’s Wharf, Pier 39, Lombard Street—but am all ears for other things I need to do while in town. I’m also on a mission to get a great Instagram of the Golden Gate Bridge—any favorite views? I’m not sure if the Golden Gate Bridge visitor’s center, Lands End, Baker’s Beach, or somewhere else is best! I do know that fog often interferes in such artistic endeavors, so I’m hoping it stays away for at least one day of my trips.

THE LADY GANG PODCAST /

It’s no secret I am a fan of Podcasts—I love NPR’s How I Built This, Lady Lovin’, and NPR’s Up First, to name a few—but recently, I’ve been loving The Lady Gang. My friend Nicole told me all about this gem hosted by Keltie Knight, Becca Tobin, and Jac Vanek, and I’ve been slowly working my way through their 90+ episodes ever since.

Now that I’m living alone, I really like to have background noise on while I’m doing other things, like cooking dinner, the laundry, the dishes. As such, I’ve spent a lot of time with these three ladies over the past month and a half. Each episode, they talk about the highs and lows of their week—which is a really helpful way to get to know the hosts better and then they invite a guest on for an interview. The guest then sticks around to answer listener questions.

It can get vapid at points, but overall, I really enjoy listening to the gals after a long day at work. If you want to start listening, you definitely do not have to start with episode one. I tend to jump around to the topics that are most interesting to me. Here are a few of my favorite episodes if you’re looking for a place to start—Kate Sommerville, Spencer Pratt, Jac’s Mom, Ryan Murphy, and Dr. Jamie Schwartz.

DAY-OF COORDINATING A WEDDING /

If you follow me over on Instagram, you know that I was a day-of coordinator for a wedding a couple of weekends ago! I fell into this by accident—I was joking about my organizational skills with a friend of a friend on Valentine’s Day, and a couple of weeks later she asked me if I would run point on her big day.

To prep, the bride and I had two meetings before the wedding and collaborated on a shared Google doc to create a run of show. While I have run events at work before, there is nothing like coordinating a wedding—it is both exhilarating and exhausting! In addition to helping with the rehearsal, I went to the venue earlier than the bridal party to set up all the small details—the bar signs, place cards, table numbers—and meet with the DJ, florist, photographer, and musician. I helped time the actual ceremony and ensure the reception ran smoothly. At the end of the night, I helped clean up and remove any decor items that couldn’t be left on the premises.

It was such an honor to be part of the happy couple’s special day, and the venue even asked me to work as a day-of coordinator for other weddings on their premises. It definitely is something I would consider doing again, but I think at this point in my life, I value my free time on Saturdays more than the extra side cash. It’s hard to work while everyone else is partying! I’m really glad I had the experience and am proud of myself for trying something new.

THIS IS LIFE WITH LISA LING /

When I’m not listening to The Lady Gang, I’ve been watching the CNN documentary series Lisa Ling hosts called This Is Life. I’ve loved Lisa ever since I watched a documentary she did about China’s One Child Policy called China’s Lost Girls in a child psychology class in college. I then discovered her Inside North Korea documentary—so relevant in today’s world!—and ultimately, This is Life.

Each season of This is Life has eight one-hour, stand-alone episodes which explore such interesting topics—high rates of Priesthood in the midwest, the financial boom from oil fracking, the modeling industry, LA’s coroner office. There are currently two seasons out—I watch on Fios on-demand, though it used to be on Netflix, and the new season starts October 1 on CNN. I’d highly recommend if you’re interested in learning more about some really interesting and diverse topics.

INVISALIGN = DONE! /

I’ve mentioned it in previous life lately posts, but I’ve had Invisalign since January 2016 and just finished the process last week! I really didn’t mind having Invisalign since the trays are clear and really don’t hurt, but I am glad to have all of that behind me. If you’re interested in getting Invisalign as an adult, I would go for it! Feel free to email me any questions or if you need a recommendation for an orthodontist in Arlington—katie@atouchofteal.com.

That about sums it up for me—I’d love to know what’s going on in your life lately!