Chip chip CHEERIO!

CALIFORNIA HERE I COME

Thank you everyone for all the posts throughout these past months. They have truly made my day everytime I look. AND it looks like you all had fun too :) Can't wait to see you soon!

Here's a final CHEERS from London,
XOXO
Katie

I miss London already and I haven't even left!

What a fabulous night! Brit, Hayles and I went to Pizza Organic (yes I had the egg pizza one last time) and then Brit and I left to go on the London Eye! I was SO excited to see London at nighttime, but unfortunately we were literally one minute past 8:00 and the guys wouldn’t let us on. Oh well … that just gives me an excuse to come back again. It’s actually the number one targeted terrorist threat at the moment, so that pretty much scared the living daylights out of me, and was the reason I still hadn’t been on. Maybe I’ll ride it when it moves off that list.

Other than that, Britty and I said our goodbyes to the beautiful Big Ben, Thames River, and Westminster Abby. Then, we were off to Trafalgar Square to see the huge Christmas tree which was actually not that “huge” or great. I don’t think the Brit’s actually understand the importance of the Christmas tree. Let’s just say that I’ll be driving down Christmas tree lane this weekend. We know how to do it right!

Our last stop of the night was Regent Street. All the lights were so festive and Britty and I sat in the Starbucks window sipping our Tea and watching all the shoppers go by. It was fantastic! I can’t believe I have to leave this city. I am so lucky to have called it my home for four months. Hopefully, I’ll be able to share it with more people in the near future. XOXO and I can’t wait to see and hear from you all very, very soon!

Tea Time!

Tea Time for Three!

We decided that on the 15th week we better get our act together and go to high tea. Yes, this is a must if you are in England for four months. I would have felt pretty stupid coming home and not taking part. Anyway, the three of us went to Kensington Palace (hey why not have tea at Diana's old home??) and had a wonderful afternoon tea full of dainty laughs and smiles. It's a little overrated if you ask me, but works none the less. Now I can say that I have properly experiences this English tradition. Let’s do it over Christmas break… sound good ;)

HOLY PANCAKES!

Those were some ridiculously yummy pancakes. We've been talking about going to this little Danish pancake place since we got here in September, but never got around to it. Finally, we made a list for our last days and that was on our top 10. You could basically choose ANYTHING to put on these, but we decided to keep it simple. A good old fashion maple syrup and butter pancake is the perfect cure to a wonderful Saturday night :)

My Favorite Guy ;)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE BEST DADDY IN THE WORLD!!

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!


Can't wait to be home with you
and celebrate in nine days!

Katie Houghton.... Gold Medal for Ice Skating!

What could be better than ice skating outside in London???? NOTHINGGGGGGGG... Oh goodness. We had so much fun being little ice skating bunnies tonight. As you can see we have about 50 layers on due to the freezing cold weather, but not to worry it didn't get in the way of our fab moves on the ice! Actually, I think the US team will be calling us in the next few minutes :) Anyway, lots of fun and no wipe outs at all!!

HOMEHOMEHOMEHOMEHOME!

TWO WEEKS FROM THIS EXACT MOMENT I WILL BE ON A PLANE TO COME HOME!!!!!! I AM SO EXCITED TO SEE EVERYONE XOXO

Paris!

Hayley bought crab one night and #1. thought it was a great price b/c it was 18 euro and then the bill came and it was 18 euro a POUND. SHOOOOOTy. plus she had a crack it herself which meant that she wasn't a happy camper...

The three of us sat on this bench watching the world go by and eating crapes for about an hour and a half. FANTASTIC

Notre Dame ... (I said a prayer for Notre Dame, but i guess it didn't work...oh well. go USC and yes i know it is totally out of context)

Eiffy! our buddy who lit up at night

Hayles got bad looks from moms when she ran around with the 4 year olds and almost pushed them in the pond tryin to get her little boat


TOP OF THE EIFFLE TOWER! good god it was high

The Louve! So beautiful and i saw MONA! :)


I'll be home December 17th! Can't wait to see everyone!

XOXO

Au revoir!!!

Off to Paris .... more pictures and stories to come on Monday :)

HAVE A FANTASTIC WEEKEND AND AN EXCELLENT DAY AFTER THANKSGIVING!

I LOVE mom & dad!

YAY I HAD SO MUCH FUN WITH MY MOM AND DAD!!!
We had huge jam-packed days, but covered almost all of London and the countryside in only a week. Hope you enjoy the pictures! I'm sure my Mom will give everyone lots of details soon :)

HaPPy ThAnKSGiViNG!!!!!!

25 more days until I come home ... YiPpEE

The LoNdOn HoUghToNS

niiiiiiiiiiice .... Warick Castle

Attack of the pigeons in Trafalgar Square

Babushca :) it was a little chillllllly today

Big Ben! with a Bobby in the background

Prettiest day in Hyde Park

THE BEST WEEK!

Mom & Dad at Tower Bridge

Dad's next car :)

Cute cute... Daddy at the Tower of London

Houghton's in London

YAY!

Case and Jimbo made it!!!!!!!!! Thanks for all the posts! I have lots of pictures and stories to tell soon, but after a long day we are all getting ready to take a little nap and then head out for some dinner and drinks! BUT here's one thing... CASEY HOUGHTON WENT ON THE TUBE ALL DAY LONG TODAY! Can you believe it? YAY! I'm so excited to have them here. Love love to everyone at home! XOXO

SO sweet

I, KATIE HOUGHTON, SERVED PRINCE CHARLES, CAMILLA, GWYNETH, AND STING!!!!!!!! COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL
and I was just wasting my time on People.com and came across this picture. She doesn't look that great, but trust me she was STUNNING! Oh my goodness. Wow. So cool.

WOOOOOHOOOO

MOM AND DAD COME TODAY HIP HIP HORRRRRAYYYYY

One big THANK YOU!

A HUGE THANK YOU TO THE BRAMELL'S, FITZGIBBON'S, AND RIFE'S FOR TAKING SUCH GOOD CARE OF US :)

The Land of Shakespeare

Stratford upon Avon is the prettiest place on the planet. It's the home to 23,000 people right now, but most famously Shakespeare. I can’t believe how beautiful and serene this place is. There are houses built before the time Columbus set sail to America and so much history all over. Trees are swaying in the wind, geese walking about, and grandparents are playing with their little grandchildren feeding the ducks and swans in the river. We had a long day, but saw some beautiful sites and a play, Taming of the Shrew. For the most part I didn’t understand one bit of the play. AND they did a traditional play with all male actors. It was a little odd watching a man with a hairy chest in a wedding dress hehe. Oh well…. Let’s call it an educational experience ;)

ps. more pictures to come on this one

We're tired, but hey why not lets go out

Saucy Hayley likes to take pictures of herself

PIMMS @ Jannnnnnneeeettttssss
Okay so here's the deal... We walk by this tiny bar every single time we go to the tube. It's called "Janets" and for some reason we decided that you had to say Janet in a really deep voice and extend it for quite some time. We've always talked about going, but never have. SO finally we went. It wasn't all that great and neither is the story I'm telling. Okay good good the end.

Dave looking dashing for his internship black tie event

Boys will be boys and Katie will be Katie

SO Guy Fawkes Day, comparable to our 4^th of July, was the 5^th of November and fireworks were everywhere. The boys disappeared for a good while that weekend and came back with fifty pounds worth of fireworks – WOW! They have fun intentions of setting them off in the park that night, but soon found out that it was illegal to do so. SO instead they decided to fire one out of our kitchen window – not the greatest idea. Basically, I turned into my “cautious Katie I hate fireworks or anything to do with fire” mode and lashed out a little. WOOPS. No worries apologizes were made ;) But anyway they still have a load of firearm under their beds. We’ll see how it’s let off.

I LOVE UNCLE ROGER!!

FANTASTIC!!!

Okay, so every time I hear the word "FANTASTIC" I think of my Swedish boss who says it in the most lovely accent about 100 times a day. AND I'm not even afraid of her anymore. Things are looking way up at Inn or Out Ltd.! Today was the first day that I actually enjoyed work.... pretty sad. They just kind of use me and abuse me - way more than any unpaid intern should suffer haha. ANYWAY... today I was asked how my weekend was, got to go on a "team" outing, and didn't get yelled at! HOLY MOLY WHAT A GREAT DAY! I went to visit Simon Lycett, a famous florist in London, and he was fabulously "campy" as they like to say. We all sat around like little ladies drinking tea and discussing flower arrangements. It was "Fantastic!" He even did the flowers for David Beckham and Posh's wedding.... oh my!
Oh yes... one more thing I GET TO GO TO THE PRINCE'S EVENT! YIPEEEEEEE .... Sting, Prince Charles, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Sharon Osborn are on the list. AND Hayles, Kails, Britty, and Drew signed up to work too!

Hope all of you are living the CA life in the November 90 degree weather :) The high was 50 today for me, but I'm not complaining at all. I've actually grown quite fond of the chilly weather! Thanks to Lori for my fashionable scarf, hat and mittens!

One more thing.. Packman, I am FULLY aware that you will be about 20 zillion times tanner than I will be in December. No need to do the arm comparison. I'm white as a ghost already and I have 6 more weeks ahead of me hahaha.

COUNT DOWN

10 DAYS UNTIL MOM AND DAD COME!!!!

Yuck. Whiskey

KAILS... WE ARE SO PROUD OF YOU :) Official Jamison Wiskey Tester hehehe

"It's a Lovely Day for a Guinness"

COOL waterfall! This is the purified water that is put in the Guinness (i think)

At one point they had an entire room where people could post things. I'm sure they have to switch it everyday, but we all made sure to post a little something on the wall to show that we were there.
Santa Clara would be so proud haha

We made it to the top! 7th floor and you could see all of Dublin. Stunning if you ask me. This was my first ever Guinness. I have to say that it wasn't my favorite, but enjoyable none the less.

Nice Cliché Picture

*Luck of the Irish* Day 1

Kailey at St. Patrick's Cathedral

I lit a candle for everyone at home
*Christ's Cathedral*

Trinity College

A wedding we saw at Trinity College . . . nice kilts :)

"Laughing Leprechauns"

BEST WEEKEND EVER!!! I can't wait to go back to Ireland soon. Sorry, I'll put up more pictures and stories very soon. Love to everyone! Oh yes, and Pop was all over Dublin and says Hi to everyone :) XOXO

"Éirinn go Brách"

I'm off to go find the best looking leprechaun of them all :)
Enjoy the weekend everyone!! XOXO

PARTY AT KATIE HAYLEY & MEGS HOUSE/APT.

I HAVE A HOME I HAVE A HOME I HAVE A HOME HEY HEY HEY HEY!!!!! Okay... so it doesn't look like this, BUT who cares! It's a roof and has four walls! 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms a balcony kitchen living room THE WORKS! So...if anyone has some extra furniture sitting around let me know :) hehe. LOVE LOVE LOVE EVERYONE! Oh yes... I'm living with Hayles and Megarooooo and Britty is going to be our silly fun always there 3rd roommate :) LOVELY. Can't wait! COME OVER AND PLAY

Dad.... one step closer to having tea with the QUEEN!

Well I am a working woman once again!!! HOWEVER my boss nor the people I work with are as nice (or funny) as my friends at Therapak :)
I started my day like a typical Londoner as I sardined myself in the tube for about 45 minutes until I finally arrived at Bermondsey stop. I was warmly welcomed by the five employees that were in the office today and thrown into work immediately. I’m working with Lena, the president, for three weeks mostly in sales and marketing and then afterwards I will be downstairs with the events planning team. I'm pretty much intimidated as hell by Lena, but I'm sure I'll end up learning a lot from her. Today I made portfolio's (a.k.a. pretty paper with ribbon tied like a present haha), sent out their autumn newsletter, AND called everyone on the guest list for a party involving........... Prince Charles and Camilla WITH a guest performance by STING!
SERIOUSLY....... how cool is that?! Hopefully I'll get to wiggle my way into working overtime (for free of course – damn).

Anyway, it was a good first day and I got let out an hour and a half early … can’t ask for much more.

The Sights of Rome

St. Peter's Basilica
We got there a little late and the line was wrapped all the way around the circle. So, we settled for a picture infront instead

Couldn't help myself... I know it's a little stalkerish to take pictures of someone from behind, but hey... we're in Rome and there are cute little nuns walking along the street... why not!

Our Hotel ... wasn't I lucky :)

My favorite part of the picture are the dressed up Romans

The Ruins