monday meeting OOTD

oh monday. today was long so this post is short. i had an early birthday supper at my favorite restaurant in knoxville, Sunspot, with some of my very favorite people and then formal meeting. i saw it as the perfect occasion for breaking out the tights and leather booties for the first time!

j. crew jeweled collar sweater, j. crew wool skirt, brown opaque tights, ivanka trump booties

and i can't pass on the opportunity to brag on my brother a little bit! today he shot his first deer with a bow! i am so proud of him! good thing he enjoys venison meat because i won't be eating any of it! 

xoxo,

clp

p.s. birthday countdown: 12 days 

bistro at the bijou OOTD

this morning i had a wonderful brunch with my parents at The Bistro at the Bijou. they serve a little bit of everything but we all decided on items from the brunch menu. it was delicious and we would all highly recommend to anyone (and they take reservations which is a plus)! i decided to dress comfortable but still cute for brunch. the outfit was also perfect for this crisp fall day!

tory burch leopard scarf, j. jill knit tunic, camilyn beth vest, j. crew leggings,

tory burch boots, louis vuitton speedy 30

i have no tests or major assignments this week but i'm sure homecoming will keep me busy! this weekend with my parents in town has been nothing short of perfect and i am already looking forward to the entire family coming up for the auburn game next weekend! here's to wishing everyone a good upcoming week! 

xoxo,

clp 

p.s. birthday countdown: 13 days! 

some like it hot

i began this cool saturday morning with one of my favorite alternative workouts, hot yoga! i do hot yoga here in knoxville at Real Hot Yoga and love it! everyone is so nice and the instructors are great. not to mention, it is a workout. the benefits of yoga are many and when you add in a 95 degree heated room, the benefits are even greater. my favorite hot yoga class is hot power yoga which i took today. it is a combination of various poses and sequences that strengthen and tone and the "hot" element ramps up your workout by adding a cardiovascular workout and a detox! it was a great break from regular cardio and my muscles feel stretched and as a whole, i feel cleansed. afterwards, i stopped in trader joe's (they are next door to each other - so convenient) and was the definition of the classic yoga and organic food cliche.

i wanted to share my costume from last night's costume-birthday party since i think it turned out pretty cute. it was definitely one of the easiest costumes to put together! all i had to buy was the shirt since i had everything else on hand so it was also a budget friendly costume! happy (late) halloween from your one and only red-headed pumpkin!

the temperature dropped quite a bit which to me means its a perfect night for taco soup! this is an original claire recipe and it is a family favorite! it can be easily adjusted according to what you like and you can make it meatless if you prefer. i think i make it different every time and it always turns out delicious. this time instead of chopped jalepenos, i threw in some chili peppers in adobo sauce to kick the spice up quite a bit. i also used diced fire roasted tomatoes with green chiles instead of the can of rotel. it is so adaptable so make it yours! it makes a crockpot full so it can serve a crowd but also freezes wonderfully! tonight i am making some jalepeno cornbread to serve along with the soup as the perfect complement!

taco soup

1/2-1 lb cooked ground beef with taco seasoning

1 c diced onion (i used frozen)

1 c chopped or sliced bell peppers (i used frozen) 

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup corn (i used frozen)

1 can pinto beans

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can mexican stewed tomatoes

1 can hot rotel

diced jalepenos

cumin, red pepper, to taste

garlic, to taste

up to 1 cup water, as needed

cilantro

diced avocado, onion, sour cream, shredded cheese or other toppings of choice

1. combine all ingredients in a crockpot or large soup pot on stove. let simmer/warm on low. 
2. serve with toppings of choice.

mom and dad are here for their parent's council fall retreat so we are going to have taco soup and cornbread tonight and watch UT hopefully win against Missouri. i have had such a perfect weekend so far. not to mention, east tennessee is absolutely beautiful this time of year which makes me love fall even more. the view from my bedroom window could not be any prettier! 

fingers crossed for a Volunteer win tonight and have a great rest of your saturday!

xoxo,

clp

p.s. countdown to 21: 2 weeks! 

hello november

the week is finally over! after a quiz and three tests, i am glad that the weekend is here! this weekend brings a birthday-costume party, mom and dad coming to town and the start of homecoming here at UT! and today brings us november! where on earth did october go? i don't mind though because i can celebrate 21 years of myself starting today (yes, i get the whole month)!

i am still on that pumpkin kick i talked about earlier and as a treat for surviving this past week and since my parents will be here, today i made some pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting! if you ignore the icing, they really aren't horrible for you and they make the whole kitchen smell like amazing!

pumpkin cupcakes

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup pumpkin (NOT pie filling)

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/4 cup Splenda brown sugar blend 

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 egg

2 tbsp honey 

cream cheese frosting

1 block greek yogurt cream cheese (i used kroger's brand)

1 stick butter, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

2 tsp vanilla

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pan with 11 cupcake liners and spray with non-stick cooking spray.
2. in a large mixing bowl, combine ingredients for cupcakes and mix well. 
3. fill each cupcake liner with 1/4 cup of batter. 
4. bake for 30 minutes and let cool before icing. 
5. to make frosting, beat all ingredients together in a mixing bowl until thick and smooth. 
6. ice cupcakes once they are cool and store in the fridge until ready to serve! 

now that halloween is over (which i have never gotten to celebrate in college because i have always had a test the day after), holiday season is already in full swing. i love everything about the holiday season and am so excited that everything holiday related is starting to appear in stores. i went to target today and they have out their thanksgiving decorations (which some of is already on sale!) and are starting to put out their christmas decorations! i bought an adorable pink and green stocking to hang on my door later this month. i have a rule where i won't decorate for christmas or listen to christmas music until after my birthday! 

and sorry for being MIA for the past few days but i thought school should probably come before blogging! since i have a much lighter workload this coming week i promise not to disappear on you! happy november to all! 

xoxo,

clp