So that’s it…that’s our list so far. Two weekends worth of travel and about 8 hours worth of television. I know that I’d also list to visit Ashley in Boston if time and money allow, and perhaps we’ll travel to Cincinnati for the holidays, but we certainly need some post-wedding activities! Any suggestions?

Wedding planning has been going really well. All those little details we had been putting off for a while are finally all taken care of. I had my first dress fitting last week, and it’s just so pretty I’m so excited to wear it. The bridesmaids dresses are all in, eventually the groomsmen will be told what they will wear and we will all show up to a perfectly orchestrated wedding. People still look at me funny when I say that we’re serving waffles at our wedding, but I think it will be fun. Who doesn’t love breakfast food? After everyone RSVPs we’ll have another round of ordering things, but until then all we have to do is coast.

In other news, Josh bought me a new iMac this past weekend which I like very much. He even managed to transfer over the Sims from the windows version to the Mac version. How awesome is that? It’s amazing to look through years of old data and wonder why I keep it all. Do I really need old projects from high school? Probably not, but you never know! Now that hard drives are so huge there’s really no point in deleting stuff, it’s just funny to see what I’ve kept over the years. So now between my new computer, my iphone, mac mini and my Kindle, I’m pretty well set for technology. I know before the end of the year we’ll have an ipad, but that’s not in the budget until after we pay for the wedding.

I’m still enjoying my Pilates lessons and I’ll be sad when the wedding is over and I can’t justify paying for personal lessons every week. I’m going to try to do a duet with someone, but it’s going to be a challenge to find someone who is at my level and can commit to going every week. I’ve also thought about rejoining my yoga practice, but I’m worried about hurting my back again. It’s taken over a year of Pilates to correct all the things I do wrong with my back, I don’t want to start doing them again.

Josh and I have started doing some things with the Tejas Chapter of the BMW CCA. It’s a really well organized group, and they put together some good events. Now, I’d say the average age of the membership is somewhere hovering above 55, but no one seems to mind and everyone is really nice. We’re going on the bluebonnet drive this week, so I really hope the weather is nice. Last time we went I had to wear two coats it was so cold and we didn’t even have the top down.

I will make an attempt to blog more. I just really don’t want to blog if all I have to do is complain about working too much, being tired from work, and how stupid I generally think things are. It doesn’t make for very interesting reading.

This is going to be a bit of a different year for me. As my friend Elizabeth pointed out, it’s the first year that I won’t be wondering if Josh is going to get me an engagement ring for Christmas. Thankfully, we’ve already taken care of that this year. It’s also the first time I’ll be traveling to Cincinnati to meet some of Josh’s very extended family members. I’m nervous about flying in what might be bad weather, but I’m sure once I’m there it will be nice to see his family again.

This Christmas, Josh and I had a lot more people to buy for since we’re combining our gift-giving lists and had to include the Kentucky family in our list this year, but I must say that I really do enjoy picking out gifts for people…even if they are people I’ve never met before. Luckily I started really early, and even though I missed many of the super great Christmas sales, I feel I was still able to get good value for my money….without having to risk life and limb on Black Friday sales. I just don’ do well with shopping when I have to be in crowds. I’m far too efficient for that!

In other Almost Christmas news, we were lucky enough to get to attend Josh’s sister’s graduation from UH. She’s taking her first steps off into the real world, and I just hope its’ everything she’s dreamed of!

I’ve spent the past week spending time with friends in Houston and making cookies with my mom. We decorated cut-out cookies yesterday, and every year they turn out better and better. My mom is so well equipped now after taking her cake decorating classes. I’m quite fond of my penguins and reindeer this year and I always like doing the Christmas trees.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and gets plenty of time to spend with their family!

Venue: Paraiso Maravilla
Catering: Bailey Connor Catering
Wedding Boutique: Weddings By Debbie
Bridesmaids Dresses: Jim Hjelm
Brides Dress: Sottero & Midgley
Flowers: Whole Foods Market
Wedding Cupcakes & Chocolate Mousse: Ooh La La Bakery
Hair & Makeup: Your Beautiful Face Co
Photography: Erin Anderson Photography
Ceremony Musicians: Chamber Music Unlimited
Reception Entertainment: Luxury Trio
Invitations: weddingpaperdivas.com
Accessories: Nordstroms
Shoes: My Glass Slipper
Fascinator: PowderBlueBijoux
Garter: Peterene Design
Cake Topper: SugarRushCakes
Cupcake Forks: Beadz2Pleaz

Let’s see…to get caught up on all things in the world. Our wedding planning is going well. I haven’t had much to do lately, but we’re just getting ramped up to do all the things that have to be done before tax season starts again. I’m finalizing dates and arrangements with people I haven’t hired yet. At the moment, it seems that getting out hair done will be the most painful process of them all since it will probably involve getting started way early in the morning. Oh well.

My whole family came to Austin a few weeks ago for what has been come to be known as Alfredson Family weekend. We had a really fun time and the weather was beautiful. Just a word of caution to anyone planning on taking the Austin Steam Train to Burnet, Texas: please don’t plan on eating in a restaurant there. Bring a picnic lunch and find a park. This is not a quaint hill country town with a nice historic square with restaurants and shops. It’s the distant third-cousin to that concept. I think we’re just spoiled by Fredericksburg.

Josh just bought himself a new toy. It’s a Z4 M Roadster. It’s very fast. It took him a long time to find the exact one he wanted, and I’m glad he finally did since he really loves this new car. I’m getting lessons from the very patient Josh on how to drive a manual transmission, but as much as I like to think of myself as the Stig, I’m pretty bad at hills…although I do pretty well on flat ground.

Work is okay. November and December are our slowest months, so we’ll take a lot of time off between now and the end of the year. I’ll start on the tax organizers any day now and as soon as we get those my boss will literally want them done as soon as possible. Seriously, if I were working at super human speeds for two days straight with no breaks, that would not be fast enough. I’m always very amused by this though, considering we don’t mail them out until January. But at least I’m prepared this year. Next year will by my fifth tax season, and I’m fairly certain I’ve learned a thing or two in the past five years.

Like many other people, I’ve recently become obsessed with Glee on Fox. It’s awesome! I’m not at all ashamed to say I’ve downloaded several of the songs from iTunes and sing along to them loudly with the roof open and the windows down. Yes, people do look at me funny…but once I did get applause!

By next month, Josh and I will have attended a total of six weddings. I can’t believe how many of our friends got married this past year! They will all be great resources when I need help with our wedding next year. Josh and I have always moved at a different pace I guess. I had the pleasure of being a bridesmaid at Ashley and Greg’s wedding exactly one month ago today! That was a beautiful day! In two week’s we will attend the wedding of Chelsea and Bryan, some Texas friends I met at KU. I have gotten really good at buying gifts off registries!

I will work on getting back on track with blog posting. However, I do update my Twitter account almost all the time and you can find me @kathrynocity.

We had a great engagement party, thrown by Josh’s parents on the Fourth of July. It was really fun, and it was a nice relaxed way to hang out with everyone.

The following weekend, we met up with the Trommers and some friends for a weekend at a lake house and Schlitterbahn for Andy’s birthday. That was a blast. I hadn’t been to Schlitterbahn since we graduated high school, and I really did have fun. Angela is such a great hostess, she really needs to give Martha a run for her money. And that is exactly why she’ll be a great hostess at our wedding! Her organizational skills are truly unmatched.

The next weekend we left for vacation in Florida. It was an adventure getting there (Josh has learned his lesson, don’t worry) but we were able to relax once we arrived. The beach was really beautiful and the water was perfectly clear. It was pretty cold though, and each day brought new little creatures to bite at our toes. We ate some crazy good food and got to spend lots of time with Josh’s extended family. I suppose they’re my extended family too (well almost). I must say that if you are in the Panama City Beach area, go to Dirty Dick’s Crabhouse and get the fried crab lasagna. You won’t be disappointed. You might be 20 pounds heavier…but it truly is a meal to remember. Plus, you can get a t-shirt with an inappropriate slogan on it!

This past weekend, Josh and I just had a nice weekend at home. On Saturday we went the Bluebonnet Cafe in Marble Falls where we had some great food and gigantic pie. Then we toured some of the wineries in the area. I had no idea there were that many wineries within an hour of our house. Now, to be completely honest these wines are pretty darn good. However, most of the wines poured at the tastings are not grown from local grapes. Some of the wineries are importing their grapes from their vineyards in other places and selling them under their label in Texas. So if you want a truly Texas wine, you might have to venture out a little further, but if you just want a nice afternoon touring wineries….you should definitely make a trip of the hill country wineries.

In wedding news, we’ve booked our musicians and now have a photographer and florist. We’re going to Houston in a few weeks to hash out some more details with our catering company and tour our venue again to take some measurements for decorations. I’ll also be working on picking out bridesmaids dresses. How exciting!

August should be a bit quieter for us, and hopefully I’ll be able to post a few more updates. For those of you who aren’t yet, you can follow this blog via twitter @kathrynocity.

The biggest project has been the spring cleaning which never actually gets done until the summer when I have time. Josh did an amazing job on the garage last weekend, and I’ve been slowly making my way around the house cleaning pointless things like baseboards, windowsills and miniblinds. We also pretty much decided that we aren’t going to buy a house this year, and as a compromise we’ve agreed to not wait until our new house to buy ourselves some bedroom furniture. It’s not that we don’t have bedroom furniture now, it’s just that the stuff we have is pretty much the odds and ends of way too many moves in college. I think it’s time to have grownup furniture. We’re slowing working our way around the house. We first did the dining room table, then the office (which looks great) so now it’s time for the bedroom. The living room will be last, simply because we really do need to come up with some sort of long term living plan before we start buying sectional sofas.

In other news, my new favorite show of the moment is Top Gear. Now, you may think that’s an odd choice for me, but really I do love cars. In fact, how many of you know that the first ever spark between me and Josh (okay, well maybe just me at Josh) took place while driving far too fast in his father’s BMW? Anyway, I’ve always liked cars and more so than that, I really enjoy the hosts of Top Gear who never fail to make me laugh uncontrollably at least twice per episode. Yes, it is totally unimaginable to lust after driving a million dollar Lamborghini or Bugatti or something like that, but it’s certainly an interesting thing to learn about. Of course, the best part of the show is when they give themselves challenges that are completely ridiculous, but those of you who know me well, know that I’m perpetually a fan of British humor and of course, physical comedy. Now I just need to figure out how to get a job as one of their test drivers. Driving a Subaru qualifies me, right?

Cruise: The cruise was amazing. Emily and I had the best time imaginable. We hung out by the pool, ate way too much food, made new friends and I treated myself to a spectacular watch from the duty free shops. We went on a horseback ride & swim in Montego Bay and went parasailing in Grand Cayman where we got a 360degree view of the beautiful island and smurf blue water. It was absolutely incredible. Each day on the cruise was more fun than the next, and I managed to go the whole week without getting sunbured. We had an amazing time at the piano bar in the evenings, and were definitely fans of $5 martini hour (or three hours) at the Metro Bar. I can’t wait to go again! I am still dreaming of their melting chocolate cake. Oh my gosh, that what so delicious.

Wedding: While I was out galavanting around the Caribbean, Josh was busy planning our wedding for us. We have an official date: June 26, 2010 and caterers and liquor…and the makings of a great wedding. I’ve been working hard on musicians, photographers & flowers. At the end of this week, my mom and I are going to look for dresses, talk to florists & cupcake people. It should be a really hectic weekend, but productive. Josh, of course, is worried about the budget, and I’m primarily concerned with finding the perfect color yellow for the flowers. Pretty standard.

Josh: Josh has been busy with offers.com and listening to me plan our wedding. He’s very upset that his car was damanged in two consecutive hail storms. The second one occured immediately after his car was fixed the first time. He’s been recruiting our friends into geocaching, and even though it’s way too hot outside to be climbing around the hill country, has still managed to find a fe hard ones lately.

Kathryn: I’ve been good lately. I’m enjoying my pilates lessons which are also morphing into nutrition counseling. I’m learning a lot about how and what to eat. The worst thing so far has been fish oil supplements, but I just hope my body appreciates my discomfort on a cellular level. Elizabeth came to visit me last weekend, and she’s a great motivational resource for all things healthy.

We’re getting excited for summer vacation to Florida with Josh’s family next month. It will be hot, but hopefully the weather will be nice for us to sit out on the beach all day. Our engagement party will also be in July, so it’s going to turn out to be a really hectic month. I’m making a resolution to only go to Houston once a month to plan the wedding. That seems to be plenty for me to get everything taken care of. It’s a good thing I have so much vacation time, otherwise all my trips & days off to drive back & forth across houston wouldn’t be possible.

I know I’m going to miss Josh terribly, so I’m having to sneak in extra hugs this week. I’m also worried that he’s not going to feed himself next week and will starve to death without me, but I don’t think that will happen. Mike is going to be here over the weekend, so I know they’ll at least eat something then.

Over the past weekend, I went to Katy to visit Ashley who was in town to plan her wedding. We picked you bridesmaids dresses, looked at tuxes and thought about the entire weekend outline. It will be an amazing wedding. I’m so excited for it! I know that Ashley and Greg always put a unique spin on everything they do, and their wedding will no doubt reflect their artistic personalities.

Our wedding plans are starting to fall into place. We have a great quote from the catering company, are dealing with the liquor guy and need to finalize a few details with the locaiton, then I think we’ll be able to announce our date. Well, I kind of already know our date, but it’s not officialyl official yet. We also sampled cupcakes from the Ooh La La Bakery, and I think we’d love for them to do our wedding cupcakes. I’ve been looking at options for musicians/djs , and photographers and that’s a bit overwhelming, but at least we have plenty of time for narrowing down those options.

Josh and I also booked our plane flight to vacation with his family in July, so I’m getting excited about that. I’ve never been to the beach in Florida before (yes, I realize that sounds strange, but my family didn’t do vacation). We’re going to some place near Destin (or maybe Fort Walton Beach) but it’s not exactly those places. Apparently it’s a really nice beach, and as long as there’s sun and a nice stash of fruity drinks, I’ll be plenty happy.

Let’s see, in other news work is fine. It’s actually pretty slow right now, which leaves lots of time for extracurricular activities. I was worried it would still be busy this time of year for my cruise, but it seems that there’s not all that much going on. That doesn’t stop us from working ourselves into a tizzy at least once a day, but that’s just so we don’t get out of practice.

I haven’t been cooking anything too interesting lately, and when I get back from the cruise Josh and I are doing SouthBeach again. I’ve also been ready about the abs diet, but I don’t know much about that. I really don’t like the thought of a diet or restricting what I eat, but I’ve got to do something! I need to lose some weight to show off the pilates body I know is lurking underneath these extra pounds.

There will be no post next week while I’m on the cruise, but the weekend after I’m sure there will be lots to say!

I’ve started making lists of all the things I need to bring, and I think the list included the entire contents of my closet. That can’t be good. I’m sure once I actually start packing I’ll realize what I actually need to bring with me…and it will of course be more than I need.

Nothing new on the wedding front. Josh has officially taken over the responsibility of negotiating with the catering company, and unfortuantely hasn’t made much progress yet. I’m still hoping he can make good on his promise to have the food and venue booked before I go on my cruise. I’ll be going dress shopping in June, and am really looking forward to that.

This past weekend I got to see Andy and Angela for lunch as they were moving her sister to Austin. We had a good lunch at Mandola’s. And while that isn’t the best italian food in town, it’s an easy place to go…and I can eat there to get my italian food fix since I still haven’t made any progress with Josh’s hatred of all things tomato. After lunch I got my hair done by the always lovely Carolyn Taylor and treated myself to a massage. The knots in my back are almost gone, but of course I did finally decide to get a Massage Envy membership. I’ve never been one to ignore a good sales pitch…unless you’re from the Quill office supply company, in which case I will chase you out of my office.

Tonight we’re going to see the new Star Trek movie, and as you can imagine, I will be very excited. I’ve never claimed not to be a huge and total dork, so I have no problem stating my love for the Trek. Especially TNG, I always wanted to be Counselor Troi. In fact, I believe one day I had a huge debate with myself (Josh might have been present too) about whether it’d be better to live in the world of Harry Potter or Star Trek. I don’t think I ever really got the answer to that. Maybe some combination of them both? Or would that make me like Q? Oh no, nerd alert!!

We dont’ have any big plans for this weekend, just taking care of some things around the house. I have a huge list of spring cleaning items that Josh and I have been ignoring for some time now. Maybe by Christmas those will get done….or maybe it’d be easier to just move?