Tag: barton springs

A Midsummer Life Update

Published on by KaylaLeave a comment

Hey everyone! I can’t believe summer is over halfway done. I’ve done so much during my time in Austin this summer, and wanted to give everyone a recap in case you haven’t been following along!

the city

Austin has been such a fun place to spend the summer. Between hiking in Zilker Park, paddle boarding on Lady Bird Lake, and swimming at Barton Springs, I feel like I’m truly taking advantage of everything this city has to offer in the summer. So far, my only real complaint has been the traffic (tell me why it takes me 30-40 minutes to make a 4 mile drive home!) but honestly, I’ve even gotten used to that by now. This is such a fun city to spend a summer in, and I wouldn’t mind moving here post-college (as long as my work commute isn’t past 30 minutes. That’s probably my limit.)

my personal Health

If you follow along on my Instagram stories, you’ve probably seen that I’m a regular at Todd Pilates and Barre! After losing weight over the past year, I decided it was time to focus on gaining strength and toning up my body. I’ve also tried to stick to my calorie-counting plan, but let’s be real: when friends and family come in town, you want to enjoy the food that Austin has to offer. So I’d say I’ve only been consistent with my calorie-counting about 75% of the time. If you’re interested in how I calorie count, or want tips on how to eat healthier, you can check out my blog posts on those topics!

my internship

I’ve been interning with bread & Butter PR this summer, and I’m loving it! I really enjoy going into work M/W/F and knowing that the work I’m doing makes a difference for our clients. One of our clients, Freebirds World Burrito, has been one of my all-time favorite restaurants since middle school. It’s a super full-circle moment that I now get to work on their account as a PR intern! Everyone always says that you’ll learn more in your internships than you will in a college classroom, and I’ve found that to be very true, especially in agency life. I can’t wait for this to be my career someday!

future career goals

Speaking of my future career, I’ve set some pretty big goals for myself going into the future! After graduating in May 2020, I want to spend the summer interning in New York City. It’s a big leap for me, but I love NYC with my whole heart and know that it would be great for my future career. I’ve already started internship-hunting, so I’ll be prepared when applications open around January-February. My biggest hurdle will be finding a place to live, but since the housing market in NYC shifts so frequently, I’m not too focused on that yet. If you have any NYC subletting tips, please send them my way!

Overall

I love Austin, but I’m also excited to go back to Norman and be around all my friends. I’ll be starting graduate courses, beginning my full-time work as Outreach Officer for my sorority, and blogging on the side. Less than a month left in Texas, and then back to Oklahoma for my senior year!

-K

How I Celebrated Father’s Day 2019

Published on by Kayla2 Comments

My dad came to Austin yesterday to visit me. I was so excited, because that meant that I would actually get to (basically) spend Father’s Day with my dad. (The day before still counts, right?) I wasn’t going to visit home for two more weeks, so this was nice because I got to spend time with him earlier than anticipated!

My dad left Frisco super early in the morning, and ended up getting to Austin around 11. I hadn’t eaten yet, so brunch was super appealing. Per the recommendations of my coworkers and aunt, we decided on Kerbey Lane. My cinnamon-swirl pancakes were excellent (can you believe that they consider those half-sized?) and my dad let me share some of his breakfast potatoes. I left very full and very satisfied.

Once I had a substantial food baby from our great brunch, clearly only logical next step was to put a bathing suit and go paddle boarding. We took our stand-up paddle boards out on Lady Bird Lake for an hour, and that was more than enough time. We had a great time, but it was hot, we both got a little sunburnt, and were more than ready for the next stop on our list.

Up next: Barton Springs Pool! The water is a constant 68-70 degrees, so we were both ready to dive in after our toasty paddle board session. But be warned: while 68-70 degrees isn’t that bad in air temperature, it’s pretty dang chilly in water. I definitely got some swim team flashbacks after my jump into the frosty water.

After our (somewhat brief) swim, we laid out in the shade for a while! I liked people watching because Austin has so many interesting characters, especially at a landmark like Barton Springs. My dad, worn out from paddle boarding, took a short snooze.

When we were done at Barton Springs, we headed back home to shower and get ready to go out to dinner. We went to Hopdoddy, per the recommendation of my aunt, and it was really good! I’m going to post a full restaurant review soon (stay tuned!), so for now I’ll leave you with this picture of my truffle fries and shake.

Since we were back on SoCo, we decided to wander around and visit some more places I hadn’t seen when I was out with my friends last weekend. My favorite was the costume store Lucy in Disguise with Diamonds, while my dad liked the various cowboy hat and boots stores.

It was only a day trip for him, so he headed back home after we explored South Congress for a little while. I’m so glad I got to spend time with him, and hope he’ll come back again before the summer ends!

(I know he reads my blog, even though he never says anything, so if you’re reading this Dad, happy Father’s Day and I love you! )

-K