10 Random Things, 8/2/2021

white linen button down shirt | old J.Crew denim shorts (similar here and here)

Time for another stream of consciousness post with 10 random things that popped into my head as I wrote this!  (Turns out today you’re getting 11 things because I didn’t count properly, haha)

I’ve been listening to The Office Deep Dive with Brian Baumgartner (Kevin) and it’s been a fun way to pass the time.  I listened to a few episodes on a recent drive to and from Charleston and have been listening while running too.  I loved the office when I was a cadet at West Point and every week it came out Dimitri and I would watch it together.  I even gave him a Dwight Schrute bobble head for Christmas one year haha.  It’s been fun to listen to the actors share more behind the scenes information and stories about the show!

I’ve had The Post House Inn in Mount Pleasant, SC on my Charleston bucket list for a few years now and finally got to eat dinner there!  The property is beautiful inside and out and the food was superb.  I had raw local oysters, a summer panzanella salad, and the market fish, which was grouper the night we visited.  It was all delicious and I hope to be able to visit again soon.

My parents sold my childhood home.  It’s a little bittersweet saying goodbye to the house we’ve know and loved for 27 years but I’m excited for their next chapter and with the housing market the way it is right now it certainly made sense to do it now.  I’d anticipated spending a lot of time with them this summer while we’re at Fripp Island, but instead they’ve been sorting through 27 years worth of stuff in the house and donating or moving it all to a storage unit, so we’ve hardly seen them at all!  We made one last trip there a couple weekends ago so that we could say goodbye and help go through things (because apparently I was a hoarder as a child and I never got rid of anything).  So if you follow along on Instagram and were wondering why Peaches and Granddad (what the kids call my parents) haven’t been very present like they normally are when we’re in SC, now you know why!

I LOVE this new rattan clutch I purchased recently!  You can use it as a clutch or as a shoulder bag because the chain can be tucked inside or pulled out.  Currently on sale!

We needed a new sheet pan for my family’s beach house so I ordered another one of these extra large pans on Amazon.  We have one at home and I love it so much.  It’s the perfect size for roasting a bunch of vegetables, baking cookies, you name it, and it’s incredibly solid and well made.

Tom and I are currently on our way back from the Bahamas!  We had the best time even though it was a whirlwind of a trip and Tom had some travel issues with a delayed flight the resulted in me spending the first night in the Bahamas alone.  My parents are watching the kids for a week so Tom and I had a quick little getaway and then we’ll have a few days at home and I’m going to purge the house while I have some time on my hands.  Very excited for that too- hoping to start the school year off with less clutter and a tidier home.  I’ll post a blog post on our Bahamas trip shortly.

I haven’t worn heels in ages but I’ve bought 2 pairs this summer because I couldn’t resist either of them and I’m itching for a reason to wear them.  They’re both neutrals so they’ll go with any dressy summer time outfit and I love how chic and beautiful they are .  This raffia pair is more of a splurge (brought them to the Bahamas for a date night), but this cork pair is more affordable!  Both pairs run true to size.

I just got word that Jack (who is starting Kindergarten this year) will be in 5 days a week, in-person school.  I’m so happy about that because I know that’s the best thing for him.  I wasn’t sure what Arlington Public Schools was going to decide since they were very slow to reopen this past year, so this decision has me very excited.  They will be wearing masks while inside, but I’d expected that.

My friend Kate of Kates Clean Plate shared these bubble pop sensory toys recently so I just ordered 2 sets on Prime.  I have a feeling the kids will love them!  They come in a number of cute options.

I’m not ready for fall yet, but I am getting excited about fall fashion.  The items I’m most looking forward to wearing again are my Dudley Stephens fleece turtlenecks.   If you don’t have one yet, don’t forget that I can always send you a $25 off referral code to use on your first purchase!  Just leave a comment and I’ll use your email address (that only I’m able to see) and send it right over to you.  For a few outfit ideas that include Dudley Stephens fleeces, check out this old post here!

We’re heading to Maine next week to visit Tom’s family.  Can’t wait to get back to that beautiful state and soak up the gloriousness that is New England in the summer.  We’d planned on flying but tickets are expensive right now and we weren’t able to use our companion tickets (through our Delta AmEx cards) as we’d planned.  So we’ll be driving which isn’t very fun but thankfully the kids have gotten to be great car travelers and we plan on spending the night in NYC one night to visit with some of our best friends and meet their new baby!

Happy August, everyone!

Katie Vail

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