Did I really go to a USC event?!

     This past weekend was definitely not what I was expecting at all. My plans were to go home friday and spend the night with Cole. Then Saturday I had a hair appointment and a wedding to attend, and the rest of the weekend was going to be spent studying and having some much needed down time...but when does a weekend ever go as planned?!

      The weekend actually went as follows:

      Dusk and I left Clemson and headed back to Columbia to see my cuddle bug (aka Cole). On Friday nights Cole and I normal go out to eat cause we don't really have time to go to the store and buy food and cook. This Friday was no different, we made it our date night, and went out to the local German Restaurant...which might I add is my FAVORITE restaurant. I may have a slight obsession with German Cuisine ever since I went to Germany. The restaurant we go to has two options, an all you can eat buffet or ordering a meal...the prices are very, very similar. The buffet is obviously all you can eat but the food isn't as fresh...and the ordered meals are much fresher, and huge! and I mean Gigantic! The very first time Cole and I ate there we both ordered a meal and neither of us could even eat half of them! Since then we have gotten the buffet, but we have decided from now on to stick to ordering meals cause they are just as much food, and are much fresher, and make our tummies just as happy as the buffet would, if not more so! This was the first time however that we were old enough to order beer with our food, and what German meal is complete without a beer?!

None I tell you, None!

My Cutie, with a plate full of deliciousness!

Me with a yummy German Beer

             Once we got done with our sweet little dinner date, Cole hit the road to a Bachelor party that he got invited to at the last minute. It was for the guy that got married Saturday. So while Cole was off with the Boys getting schwasty i was at home studying. My studying was complimented with the babies running loose in the house and a big ole glass of a frozen peach daiquiri.

               Saturday was supposed to start off with Cole and me both getting our hair done...but I am an absolute retard and I got my appointment time wrong and missed mine, so only Cole got his done, and I rescheduled mine. My day got slightly better with....

Cole and I both got our first Salted Caramel Mochas this fall
and our first slice of pumpkin bread! mmmm....

       On a side note, when I go to starbucks they always spell my name wrong...so everytime I go in there I like to see if maybe by a very small, tiny, itsy-bitsy chance it is spelled right...Clearly this past weekend that was not the case...it was incorrectly spelled just like it is 99.95874% of the time.

       After our starbucks Cole and I returned home and spent the rest of the morning getting ready to go to the wedding! We really enjoyed the wedding, and it was great seeing a lot of people we don't get to see very often, including the bride and groom.

Cole and Me at the reception :) 

Ashely and Stefen
 aren't the adorable?!

         After the reception Cole and I decided to go out and tailgate for the USC game with our friends Stefen and Ashely. I know what is wrong with me, I went to a USC event, and actually had a good time. Stefen was in the wedding, he and Cole have been buds for a very, very long time so hangout with him and his girlfriend Ashely is always a good time! Cole and Stefen always end up hanging out and Ashely and I spend the night joking around, picking on the boys, or just chatting.

           Once we left the tailgate we ended up making a spontaneous stop at Krispy Kreme and got donuts, before we said our byes and headed home to continue our night with some more friends. Deidre, Sam and Brian all came over and we continued to enjoy our night and got some adorable pictures!

Deidre and Me 

My Boys! 

Me, Sam and Deidre

              Needless to say anytime this group is together we have a great time, and we always end up with some crazy late nights that lead to some unforgettable memories!

             The only thing that could possible make the weekend better would be hitting the lake, which we did on Sunday! Cole and I made breakfast for everyone that stayed over, we all were lazy and laid around for a bit until Brian came back over.

Best Friend Cuddles including Diedre's puppy, Easton. 

 When he came back we took the boat out for the last time this summer, and I must say I couldn't have asked for a better day.

Besties enjoying the last day out on the lake! 

Our adorable captain for the day!

Best, Best Friend Picture Ever! :)
I love this girl!

...well it would have been better if I could have stayed out the whole day with everyone but I had to go home and study for my test I had on Monday...talk about serious bummer.

        After I studied for several long, boring hours I decided to take a break. Cole and I got dinner with Stefen and Ashely and watched a movie together, it was a great way to end such a busy Sunday!

First Friday, and the First Home Game

                   Clemson is huge on traditions from Solid Orange Fridays, to the Welcome Back Party to Rubbing the Rock, the list seriously goes on and on and on! One of my favorite traditions here at Clemson would definitely have to be First Friday. First Friday is a celebration held the day before the first home football game to welcome the much awaited football season. First Friday includes a parade full of all the student organizations, big names of Clemson, the Tiger Band, Beauty Queens and much much more. Directly after the parade a huge pep rally is held out on Bowman Field (for those of you not familiar with Clemson's campus, Bowman Field is a huge open grassy area right in front of the center of campus. For me First Friday isn't just the mark of the beginning of football season, its also the mark of the beginning of Fall too!
                  This years First Friday was pretty sweet for me. When I got done with classes Nichole and I went to a pool party at our apartment complex, and then headed to campus to watch the parade. In the four years that I have been here at Clemson I have never missed the First Friday parade. This year I decided that I wanted to bring Dusk along for the adventure, and to be honest I was kinda nervous cause he has never been around a huge number of strangers in one place. He did really well though, he got pet by several people and got a bunch of "aw, puppy" or anything along the lines of that and he handled it really really well! He also enjoyed the parade very much, he especially loved watching the Tiger Band! He sat with ears perked and his eyes were glued to them until they were out of sight.

Dusk at the parade, watching the Tiger Band! 

                To end my great night Cole came into town and he and I went out on a dinner date to Brioso's, one of my favorite restaurants in Clemson and caught up and then Deidre came to town too! We ended up staying up til 3 in the morning chit chatting. Oh and did I mention that we needed to be up before 8 to go to campus for the football game?!

Deidre was begging Dusk to take a picture with her...

The adorable picture that was a result of the said discussion! 

                  Saturday was gameday! Cole, Deidre and I drove to campus around 8 to tailgate with several different groups. We had tickets to sit on the hill, which was awesome we ended up down at the gate, which is literally right behind the goal post! To make it better Clemson seriously spanked Ball State, by half time the score was 45 to 10.

Welcome to Death Valley

Deidre and me with Howard's rock!

Cole and Me with Howard's Rock, A huge tradition at Clemson.

Deidre and Cole were really excited for the game to start

The Tiger getting ready to run down the hill

The hill, where the most exciting 25 seconds of college
football take place!

Cole getting high fives from players while they ran down the hill

Another tradition, balloons rising through the air
while the tigers run down the hill! 

The Central Spirit Flag Runners singing the alma mater.

(all photos from the game were taken by Deidre*) 

                   The only negative of the day was it was extremely hot, and I got pretty sun burnt so we left at halftime and went back to one of the tailgates. Once the game was over and we hung out for a little bit Cole, Deidre, Loren, Cole's friend Mason and I all went out downtown to eat dinner and to get Spill the Beans ice cream (seriously the best ice cream on earth!). All of us were seriously so exhausted from all the sun, alcohol and lack of sleep that we seriously fell asleep before 10 pm. All in all it was a great weekend!! I am excited to do it all again at another home game!

I Have a Slight Addiction...

        If you know me personally you know that I have a slight addiction to shoes. I live in sandals during warm weather, and boots and boat shoes during the cooler weather...Not to mention the countless heels, tennis shoes and flats I own. I love having shoes that coordinate well with a lot of outfits and I also love having those couple fierce shoes that you build an outfit around. My favorite shoes I own right now would have to be:

My First Pair of Cowboy Boots
Brand: Ariat
Style:  Heritage
 Color: Russet Rebel

My Absolute Favorite Heels, talk about fierce!
Designer: Sam Edelman
Style: Lorissa
Color: Cheetah Print

My Sandals of Choice, love the bold color
Brand: Bakers
Style: Tapley
Color: Pink

          What are your favorite must have shoes right now?

My Favorite Time of the Year!

     When I was younger I swore that Summer was the absolute best, but things change! Summer is great and all but the ridiculous heat in SC sometimes puts a damper on all fun outdoor events. As I have grown older my fondness of Fall has grown exponentially, to the point that now Fall is my absolute favorite season. There are several (silly and realistic, and in no particular order) reasons as to why it is my favorite:

1. I love the changing of the leaves

           I don't know why but I have always loved watching the leaves slowly change from green to all the different shades of  yellow, orange and red through the fall. I always try to take a few minutes during the fall to real soak in the vivid colors and enjoy the sense of calmness it brings over me. 

2. Football Season

           I think it would almost be sacrilegious to say you love Fall and not include football in reasons as to why you love it. I am kind of partial because I go to a school where football is a huge cultural aspect of the community. On game days our whole campus basically becomes a huge tailgate, and all you here are people cheering on our Tigers, and to be honest I absolutely love the atmosphere of it! There is just sooo much to look forward to during football season, and nothing beats standing on the hill and watching our boys run down the hill in anticipation of the game! 

3. Pumpkin Spice Lattes

            Nothing says fall is here more than the day that Pumpkin Spice Lattes return to Starbucks. I absolutely coffee, and Starbucks, but I become a frequent customer during the fall because I love their pumpkin spice latte, and their salted caramel mocha both of which are only around during the fall so I make sure to get my fill on them while I can. Is it only me that is this obsessed with these fall specials?

4. Its Boot Season

              As the leaves change the temperature cools and little toes start getting chilly, which means boots come out from the very back of the closet and become a daily staple in my wardrobe weather I wear it with a cute dress and tights, or if I tuck my jeans into them. Boots are so versatile and super comfortable to wear booking it across campus for classes and meetings. (keep in mind that all the boots I own have no heels, Clemson's campus is in a very hilly terrain making heels impossible to wear to classes) What is your shoe preference during the fall?

5. Pumpkins

      One of my favorite traditions with Cole is to carve pumpkins together, so I always look forward to it every fall! Last year when we carved pumpkins we ended up planting the pumpkin seeds to see if we could grow some pumpkins this year! (good news, our pumpkin plant is growing, bad news, we don't have any pumpkins on it yet...) To me pumpkins are a staple to Fall, and it wouldn't be Fall without them. 

6. Wearing Scarves

      I love how a simple scarf can make a whole outfit look completely different, and Fall is when I get to introduce them back into my wardrobe, cause lets be honest it is way way way too hot to wear a scarf from March through August down south. Scarves are almost as much of a staple to fall as boots are. I am especially excited to wear them this fall because I just bought a few new scarves this summer on a great clearance sale.

7. Many, Many Bonfires

          To me the official start of fall is when it is finally cool enough at night to have a bonfire! My group of friends try to have bonfires quite often during the fall, so bonfires have sort of become a bonding experience, and a symbolism of friendship with us. Those bonfires always lead to long nights, and some crazy memories. Those memories are some of the first things I think of when the Fall season comes to mind. I am excited to have the first bonfire for the year soon, and create some more insane memories!

8. Offroading

        With Fall comes the unofficial start of offroading season. The boys offroad all year round but for me Fall marks the start of the actual offroading season because the summer is way too hot to spend the whole day riding up a mountain in a vehicle that has no insulation and poor air circulation. Also the Fall has the best mountain views so it leads to the best photographs too!

9. Hiking and Camping

           Two of my favorite things to do are hiking and camping, and the kind of go hand in hand with each other. Normally if we go camping we do some sort of hiking as well.Of course fall is my favorite time to do both of them because it is cooler and just like offroading the views are the best during the fall cause of all the beautiful foliage. 

10. Roasting Marshmallows

          I am strange and I don't like marshmallows unless they are toasted, if they are toasted I love them, so obviously just like bonfires they are a must during the fall since you need a fire to make them. I also am strange and I don't really like s'mores, I would much rather just eat the toasted marshmallow.

11. The State Fair

         Another huge staple to my Fall musts (and reasons I love Fall) is the South Carolina State Fair. The State Fair is always held during mid-October every year. I love the atmosphere of the fair, its so fun! Plus the food is sooo bad for you but its soooooo good, and since its only once a year I make sure I get all my favorites (cotton candy, frisk fries, lemonade, funnel cake/elephant ear, and sooo much more!). Every year they have a whole bunch of concerts too for pretty cheap which is awesome (last year I got to see STYX and Skillet there, and this year I am going to O.A.R)! There seriously is something to do for everyone at the fair too, there are always shows, and performances, of course rides, exhibits and so much more. It is a fall MUST for me to go! 

What about you, what are you fall staples you can't live without?!