born and bred a vol

its football time in tennessee y'all! we can now countdown to game day on one hand! i have been a vol fan since day one... even my hair is just the right shade. though we haven't necessarily been on top the past several years, as butch says "brick by brick" we are coming back. some of my favorite memories involve tennessee football and with it being the throwback thursday before game day, it is only appropriate that i share some snapshots from rocky top, from the very beginning to the past three years as a student!

freshman year

sophomore year

junior year

through it all, i'll always be a vol! go big orange!

xoxo,

clp 

p.s. the publix right off campus opened today! its like christmas for me!

arrington vineyards afternoon

to celebrate my mom's upcoming birthday since i won't be here for her actual birthday, mom, dad, and i went to arrington vineyards yesterday for an afternoon of wine tasting and a fabulous picnic lunch. to say it was picturesque was an understatement. we all three said we felt as though we had actually gone somewhere far away and that home wasn't just a short car ride away.

located among the rolling hills of middle tennessee, arrington vineyards offers visitors a "wine country experience" through its wine tastings and picnic areas with views of the grapevines. there are outdoor tables and and abundance of seating to enjoy a picnic lunch or dinner with your arrington vineyards wine and music for entertainment. with multiple tasting options and wines to choose from, arrington vineyards has handcrafted "tennessee's wine country".

as soon as we arrived, we drove up the short drive to the tasting lodge and put our name down for the bar tasting. we milled about and explored the grounds until our name was called. i actually decided to live a little and sample four of the wines. groundbreaking, i know. of the four i tried, the dessert raspberry was my favorite, especially since it was served with a chocolate truffle! still not a wine-or-alcohol enthusiast, the experience was quite fun! mom and dad each sampled wines of their choosing and found some new ones that they enjoyed.

we packed a picnic lunch/dinner of summer sausage, baguette slices, assorted cheese, fruits, veggies and pickled okra for after our tasting. it was quite nice sitting outside the tasting lodge, mom and dad with a glass of arrington vineyards wine, taking in the stunning view. i wouldn't have to think twice about returning to arrington vineyards. it would be a great place to take out-of-town visitors, have a girl's day or a nice date spot!

one more thing crossed off my bucket list!

xoxo,

clp

long labor day weekend

happy labor day weekend! between family coming in, the football game, and a long weekend in general, it has been a packed weekend!

the weekend started out great with a run to turkey creek with phillip. he drug me to gander mountain and i drug him to super target so i guess we are even. phillip, erin and i then met mawsie and tony for supper at our favorite, aubrey's. as usual, it was delicious and its safe to say that i certainly indulged with the slice of key lime pie i ate all by myself. below is the outfit i wore to dinner - sorry about the selfie quality!

j. crew schoolboy blazer, j. crew jeweled collar oxford, j. crew print shorts

kork-ease wedges, lilly pulitzer bangle

saturday brought college football back to knoxville. i woke up extra early with excitement! the entire family came into town for the game and brought along a big tailgate. since i have a kitchen this year, i can contribute to the tailgate spread so i made a southwest cornbread salad (recipe below) and some of my healthier pimento cheese. of course, i dressed up for the game because thats how we do football in the south and wore white since i adhere to the "no white after labor day" rule. i completed my outfit with my "AXO loves the Vols" gameday pin and power t nail appliques! 

lilly pulitzer shift, j. crew belt, j. crew orange bracelet, tory burch sandals 

as always, there was more than enough food at the tailgate. the lowe-parsley-jennings family knows how to tailgate and we don't mess around when it comes to food. the game was fun as well. the atmosphere in neyland stadium is unlike any other and 97,000 people singing rocky top will give you chills no matter how hot it is. most of the alpha chi's sat together in the student section so we had a good time. i liked what i saw on the field last night and its always nice to start to season out with a W. 

this morning, i am meeting the rest of the family for brunch at chesapeake's, one of our favorite restaurants. there isn't an OOTD for this outing because i am committing a crime to fashion and repeating an outfit i wore in july to loveless cafe. it is one of my favorite outfits and i wanted to wear it one last time before labor day. 

southwest cornbread salad

1 Granny's Cornbread 
1 can reduced-sodium black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 can no-salt added corn, rinsed and drained

4 Roma Tomatoes, diced

1/2 cup chopped onion 

1/2 cup chopped bell pepper 

cilantro, finely chopped

1 jalepeno, finely chopped

cumin, lime juice, garlic powder, to taste

creamy avocado dressing 

1 avocado, diced

1/2 c Greek Yogurt

lime juice

1 tbsp olive oil

1. Combine all ingredients for dressing in blender and process until smooth. Place in small bowl and set aside. 
2. In large serving bowl, crumble cornbread. Combine all other salad ingredients and stir to combine with cornbread. 
3. Refrigerate until ready to serve. 
4. Serve with dressing on the side. 

this afternoon i plan on grocery shopping, maybe stopping by the new anthropologie (eek!), spending some time with my mom and dad and doing homework so i can hopefully relax by the pool all day tomorrow. i love being busy all weekend but it sure can be exhausting so i am going to try to rest up and get ready for this coming week.

xoxo, 

clp 

throwback thursday: vol for life

its no secret that my family's blood runs orange. we have had the same season tickets for longer than my parents have been married. i have been to more UT games than i can count and sang "Rocky Top" more times than should be allowed. our family tailgates are in my opinion unlike any other and they have become part of the tennessee tradition for me. now that i am a student at UT, football games have become even more fun. there is nothing more fun on a saturday than dressing to the nines with your orange and white and gameday pin, tailgating, then singing rocky top at the top of your lungs with your friends in the student section.

some of my favorite memories are from days spent on rocky top. and since it is throwback thursday, i thought i would share some of my favorite pictures from years past and last season.

the first home football game is just two days away and campus is buzzing with excitement for this season. everyone is looking forward to seeing what butch jones has in store for 2013. the past few years have been a struggle so everyone is hoping for a winning season. i am a vol for life, now and forever.

the crockpot stayed out today for another delicious meal. i have been craving eggplant so i picked one up and the store the other day to do something with. after perusing many recipes (have you seen my pinterest board - ridiculous) i came up with this recipe. i added in lean ground beef but you could leave it out completely or use ground chicken or turkey. it turned out really tasty and i have enough for leftovers!

crockpot eggplant, zucchini and tomatoes

1 eggplant, sliced

1 zucchini, sliced 

1 can italian stewed tomatoes

1 can diced tomatoes

1 clove minced garlic

1/2 pound extra lean ground beef

italian seasoning, pepper, basil, etc. to taste 

1. brown meat in pan. drain excess oil. 
2. place all ingredients together in crockpot. adjust amount of tomatoes and seasonings to taste. 
3. cook on low for 4-6 hours.
4. serve topped with feta or parmesan, alone or over noodles, quinoa or polenta. 

i ate this along with a salad. for dessert, i am warming some strawberries and raspberries in the oven that are drizzled with honey and sprinkled with cinnamon! 

xoxo,

clp