My wonderful boyfriend was here for an entire eight days.

This was the longest I've ever been able to spend with him, and it was completely wonderful.

And if it's possible, it broke my heart even more when he got in his car and drove away back to California.

I'm doing my very best not to be a complete emotional wreck right now. And I've found that if I focus on the amazing things that we did this week, the things that I loved; it makes it so much more bearable to know he isn't here anymore.

- The first kiss when I opened the front door -

- Watching one Harry Potter movie a night in anticipation of Deathly Hallows - Part Two -

- Reading all of the Hunger Games together. We read it out loud to each other -

- Going swimming in a fancy hotel pool -

- Walking the strip and exploring hotels we'd never seen -

- Tickle wars -

- Teaching each other card games that we love -

- Watching Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland, a movie we both loved when we were little -

- Playing board games late into the night and laughing so hard at the silly things we said -

- Lots of kissing and cuddling -

- Cooking various food dishes: Breakfast sandwiches, lemon pepper chicken, taco soup and much more -

- Eating out at wonderful restaurants, and sitting so close together -

- Letting him give me my first hickey (he gave me two, the little punk) -

- Getting a hug when I was disappointed about the job interview I had -

- Playing through all of Yoshi's Island on SNES together -

- Watching Brian Regan comedy shows on Netflix -

- Listening to Disney music any time we drove the car, and singing along -

- Picking up job applications. Even though it was tedious, it was made fun because he was there -

- Reading most of Catching Fire before he left -

- Waking up to find that Kevin made me puff oven pancakes for breakfast - 

- Taking a few pictures in the same place we took our first pictures together, in a graffiti covered underpass -

 - The smell of Kevin. It's wonderful. (He sprayed cologne on my pillows before he left) -

- How sweet it was that he filled my car up with gas -

- Seeing Deathly Hallows with Kevin at the end of the week. It was an amazing movie, and seeing it with my Potter-fan boyfriend was wonderful! -

- The hesitation when it came time to say goodbye -

- And most of all, the multiple times when he told me how much he loves me -

It was an amazing week. And it was definitely over too soon.

I love you Kevin! Thank you!

I wrote a letter a few months back to my seventeen year old self. 

It was written as a guest post for another wonderful blog, but it turned out to give some incredible insight into my past.

I know my younger self will never read that letter, but my twenty-two year old self learned a lot just by writing it. I found that I am stronger than I think. That I've grown so much. That I am a wonderful person.

What would YOU say if you could write a letter to yourself? 

I encourage you to try it!

And I would also love it if you checked out my guest post on the Hindsight Letters! 

My man is going to be here in an hour.

For those of you who are new to Simply Kate, I suppose I should fill you in.

I'm in a long distance relationship.

I met Kevin online back in August. By October I knew that I loved him. 

And that thought was strange to me. I felt silly that I was so sure I loved someone that I'd never met.

We didn't officially meet until April.

This will be the third time that I get to see him. And for the first time, I get to have him all to myself for a whole week! 

The first time, his parents came with him. (I think they were scared I was one of those scary internet killers.)

The second time, his friends brought him.

This time he's coming by himself. And I don't have to share him at all.

I am only a little selfish.

Long distance relationships are so hard most of the time. But the anticipation of seeing someone that you love so much after a month apart is such a wonderful feeling.

And that first kiss isn't so awful either. In fact, it's downright amazing!

Throwing open the front door and instantly feel his arms around me. Best feeling ever.

And in an hour, I get to have that moment. 

I'm all giddy.

*Sigh*

The Fourth of July always starts with getting up a little too early and heading over to main street to stand in massive crowds in the uncomfortable heat.

It's one of my favorite things about the day.

Goofy little floats made by various groups lazily stroll through the middle of town while people watch and smile. People sell everything from soda to pets to the spectators on the sidewalks. And four jets fly over main street, making the ground rumble as they pass. 

It's one of the best things about my favorite holiday!

What did you do to celebrate the Fourth of July?

Fourth of July is always one of the best times of the year.

That's probably because it's my favorite holiday.

Between parades and family, barbecues and fireworks, and friends and homemade root beer, it's pretty much the best time ever.

And this year is going to be just as incredible as every year before it! I'm so excited!

Have a look at some Fourth of July past!

It's going to be a great weekend full of sparkling festivities!

Have a great weekend!

What are your plans for the Fourth of July?

- 10th-12th: Kevin came to visit me for the weekend! It was much to short, but it was pretty much perfect! -

- 18th: My wonderful brother-in-law's birthday! Happy Birthday, John! -

- 19th: Happy Father's Day, dad! You're the best father any girl could have! Thank you! -

- 26th: My cousin and her husband and adorable son stayed with us for the night. It was so fun to catch up and revisit old memories with them! -

I went to pick Kevin up down on the strip where his friends were staying. I waited in an elevator lobby for him to meet me. We were talking on the phone, I turned and there he was. That kiss was pretty darn incredible!

Dropping Kevin off in the exact same spot was really hard. Sometimes this long distance thing REALLY sucks.

Pancakes. Seriously.

Matched by Ally Condie - It was decent. The writing was a little shallow, but I thought it was interesting enough.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne - So sad. So beautiful. The writing is simple, but really good and gripping.

The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde - Disappointing. I was expecting something different. I loved the ending though!

The Seer and the Sword by Victoria Hanley - A surprisingly WONDERFUL read! I loved this book from beginning to end! It was refreshing to LOVE a book after so many 'eh' books.

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher - Interesting and original. I'm having mixed feelings. I liked it but still didn't feel connected to it.

Heroes - Season one only. It's the only one worth watching.

Glee - Season one as well. It was the only one on Netflix.

Medium - I've been watching it for months. Finally just got tired of it. It just stops being amazing after season 3 or 4.

Samantha Who - Hilarious and cute! I'm only halfway through season one.

I didn't do anything too exciting this month. There were definitely some INCREDIBLE experiences, but it was just refreshing to have a month where I could just relax a little. I read a lot of books, watched a lot of wonderful shows, and just had time to myself. It was nice. I'm definitely looking forward to a few more exciting things in July!