College Football!

Holy buckets somebody please tell me, where did August go?! It's true y'all, fall is upon us and that means lots of things...cooler weather, pumpkin spice lattes, changing leaves, but most of all COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON!!! Can you tell I'm excited?! Because excited would be an understatement...I'm beyond excited. It's around this time every year that I wish someone would invent some sort of machine that would allow me to teleport from Colorado to South Carolina in a matter of seconds, so I didn't have to miss a single home football game Saturday at Death Valley. I understand that college football means different things to different people, but growing up in the South, college football was a way of life. On any given home game day, the town of Clemson would swell from a mere 10,000 residents to around 85,000 to watch our tigers play. Pre and post game tailgating was a requirement, as was appropriate attire which typically consisted of a dress for girls and khaki pants, a white button down and tie for guys. I think it's pretty safe to say that I love everything about college football. The pageantry, the tradition, and the comradery is not something that can be explained, only experienced. So the countdown begins...6 days until kickoff, and there's only one thing left to say...1-2-3-4 1-2-3-4 C-L-E-M-S-O-N. Fight tigers, fight tigers, fight fight fight!!

Swim, Bike, Run!

So, I like to consider myself somewhat of a weekend warrior. Now, in saying that I should also let you know that most of the time I attempt to make myself sound much more hardcore than I really am! Well this weekend my adventure seeking ways took me to the banks of the Union Reservoir in the booming metropolis of Longmont, Colorado for a sprint triathlon. Hardcore, right?! What I didn't mention is that it was actually a triathlon relay, which means I only had to do one portion of the race while my talented friends Kim and Kathleen would take care of the other two. So, the night before the big race Kim and Kathleen come over so we could prepare mentally, physically, and emotionally for the following day. This is how it all would go down: Kim will be swimming a half mile (in open water...I had to throw that in there for all you swimmers that realize that really isn't so far). I was preparing to bike a grueling 12.5 miles on a flat closed course through a residential neighborhood (speed bumps and all!) and, Kathleen was gearing up to run a 5k out-and-back down a dirt road with a giant hill (ok slight incline, but she did have to run next to cornfields in the blaring sun!). What we came to discover so late at night was that Kim forgot her athletic swimsuit and was left with only a bikini (good thing it was a Nike) and Kathleen didn't even have a pair of running shorts since she was fresh off the plane from her trip home to Missouri. My immediate thoughts: this is going to be a disaster! We were are laughing quite hard when we figured these things out, and were completely prepared to live up to our team name, Team Moderate. After arriving at the race we spent most of the morning practicing our transitions, gawking at the tri bikes with the sippy cups and aerodynamic helmets hanging from their handlebars, and wishing we would have actually trained. Ok, so we didn't really practice our transitions, but we watched many a participant go for a warm up jog and thought to ourselves, these ladies are intense! So the swim starts and Kathleen and I watched Kim until we couldn't figure out which one she was anymore, and then headed to the transition area. I got my gear on took a deep breath, looked up and saw Kim running toward me. Holy cow she totally rocked it! The pressure was on! I jumped on my bike (which I literally hadn't been on since early June), somehow figured out how to clip in my shoes, and pedaled my little heart out! I quite enjoyed being on the bike because I actually did this same triathlon last year without the luxury of a road bike, and let me just tell you, it wasn't pretty! So as I passed those poor girls on mountain bikes, I remembered me and my friend Jenny and how hard we had to work to go half the speed the road bikes were going, and I thought...hmmm this is fun! When I got back to the transition my legs were so shot I could barely run, so I kind of hobbled (running in biking cleats is not easy!) to Kathleen, gave her the timing chip and off she went. By the time Kim and I made it to the road race course, we waited a few minutes and Kathleen was already coming down the hill. We ran with her for about 30 seconds until she took off sprinting, at which point we just yelled GO KATHLEEN! and hoped for the best. We didn't get to see her cross the finish line but seeing as she was ahead of schedule we both felt very good about it. After the race we enjoyed the freebies at the expo and stumbled upon the leader board to find out that our team was in none other than 3rd place!! We were quite stoked to say the least, and after the times for the run portion were posted, we actually discovered that we had moved up to 2nd! WHAT?!! How did that happen? We didn't even train, we didn't have the appropriate attire but we somehow still pulled it off! Our prize was a bottle of wine and a lot of pride (although the competitiveness inside me was still a little mad that we lost to the 1st place team by less than a minute). Nevertheless, we made a pact that no matter where we live in the country, we will do 1 tri relay together per year. I think we'll change our name to Team Awesome! Oh, and I highly recommend trying a multi-sport race. My next will be a duathlon (run-bike-run) and I am stoked!

Trend Watch: Denim Leggings

I absolutely cannot believe it's almost September! 2010 has been flying by, and with the arrival of fall just around the corner, that can only mean two things: COLLEGE FOOTBALL!!! (Can you tell I'm just a little excited about football season?) and...fall fashion! One thing that I've been seeing in practically every store and on every website that carries denim of any sort is denim leggings. Now I know they can seem a bit confusing because you wonder to yourself, now are these leggings or are they jeans? The answer to that question is simple...they are both! They are leggings made out of a thin stretch denim material, usually with a 5 pocket styling like jeans, but a super slim fit like leggings. So after I got over the fact that they (the fashion industry) were making leggings out of denim, I thought, there is no way these will look even remotely good on most people, and...what the heck do you wear them with? So as soon as they arrived at j.crew, I braved the fitting room with a pair of classic indigo wash denim leggings and to my surprise, they didn't look half bad! The best part about them is that they are extremely comfortable, which is a huge factor in what I decide to buy and wear. They look great paired with anything you would wear with traditional leggings, and even some shorter tops because of the 5 pocket styling which creates an illusion of more of a structured look. As far as shoes go, sandals, flats, or boots are all great options. The most important thing to consider is length, because you don't want them too long and bunching at the top of your shoe. So at least for now, denim leggings are definitely "in". If you've been avoiding this trend like the plague, I encourage you to try a pair for yourself...I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by the fit and definitely by the comfort! Below are a few different pairs to check out, from a variety of stores in a range of washes.

William Rast Sienna Denim Leggings, $107.80 shopbop.com

Paige Denim Verdugo Legging, $179.00 Anthropologie

Overdyed Denim Four-Pocket Legging, $89.50 Banana Republic

Leggy Denim Jean in double-dip indigo wash, $88.00 j.crew

Legging Jeans in classic black, $95.00 Madewell

Legging Jeans (faded gray wash), $69.50 Gap

Oatmeal Cookies "the Best"

This recipe comes from the Colorado Cache Cookbook and if you've never heard of it, you probably should check it out because it's kind of a big deal. Now since I'm so crazy about chocolate, I was slightly hesitant to get excited about baking a cookie that wasn't going to have chocolate in it in any way shape or form, but since they are "the Best" I decided to embrace the good ole oatmeal and raisin combo and hope for just that..."the Best"! So the first thing that threw me for a loop was when the directions called for "combining the eggs, raisins and vanilla and let stand for an hour". I mean, that just sounds weird, right?! Well I'll tell you what...it works!! These cookies are seriously SO GOOD! The chopped pecans also have a huge presence, adding an unexpected element of texture and flavor that you're bound to love. These would be perfect for a care package, cookie swap, or just any time you want an awesome cookie!!

Ingredients:

3 eggs, well beaten

1 cup raisins

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup butter

1 cup white sugar

2 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 cups oatmeal

3/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

Combine eggs, raisins and vanilla and let stand for one hour, covered with plastic wrap. Cream together butter and sugars. Add flour, salt, cinnamon and soda to sugar mixture. Mix well. Blend in egg-raisin mixture, oatmeal, and chopped nuts. Dough will be stiff. Drop by heaping teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet or roll into small balls and flatten slightly on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned.

Note: Delicious. Secret is soaking of raisins

Larkburger

I am so happy right now. The best burger place EVER is opening in Fort Collins!!! It's called Larkburger, and it will rock your world! The first time I had the joy of partaking in Larkburger, I was visiting a friend up in the glorious mountains of Colorado, and she suggested we hit it up for lunch one day. Now I have to admit, I'm not a huge red meat eater so when she said burger I immediately wondered if they would have something besides beef. Well, my dream came true because they happen to have turkey burgers and let me just tell you, they are AH-MAZING! Now Larkburger is a pretty cool company for several reasons. They insist on using 100% natural ingredients with no preservatives or additives which means you don't have to worry about where the food came from, and they have a serious passion for being environmentally friendly. They use energy efficient commercial equipment, eco-friendly packaging, and reclaimed timber as the wood paneling on the interior of their stores. How is that for social responsibility?! Larkburger has several different burgers on the menu, from their traditional Larkburger to the Turkey Burger, Tuna Burger, and Amy Burger (which is a roasted portabella mushroom). They also have these amazing Truffle and Parmesan fries, and what they call "The Five Dollar Shake" which is a milk shake made with Bryers all-natural ice cream. I haven't actually tried the shake but I hear they are equally as amazing as everything else on the menu. So, if you're ever in Boulder, Edwards, Greenwood Village (Denver), or Fort Collins...go to Larkburger. You will be so happy that you did! The Fort Collins location opens Saturday, August 14th and the word on the street is that they might have $2 burgers that day...don't quote me on that but if you go you just might get lucky!

Ooey Gooey Bars...yum!

Ok y'all, I have a seriously delicious recipe to share with you. I love to bake, so naturally it is a dessert. Also, my favorite dessert cookbook is The Lady & Sons Just Desserts written by none other than Paula H. Deen herself! Now Paula Deen just makes the most delicious things and her desserts are no exception. Today I'm deciding to feature her Gooey Butter Cakes. AKA Ooey Gooey Bars. The OGB is a brownie like dessert with a dense cake base and a gooey filling, somewhat resembling a lemon bar, but so much better! (Unless of course you make the lemon version!) So there are many variations on the OGB such as pineapple gooey, lemon gooey, carrot cake gooey, peanut butter gooey, banana gooey, etc. but today, I will post the original because they are just so good!

CAKE

1 18.25-ounce box yellow cake mix

1 egg

1/2 (1 stick) butter, melted

FILLING

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened

2 eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 16-ounce box confectioners' sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well. Pat into the bottom of the prepared pan and set aside. Still using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth; add eggs and vanilla. Dump in confectioners' sugar and beat well. Reduce speed of mixer and slowly pour in butter. Mix well. Pour filling onto cake mixture and spread evenly. Bake for 40-50 minutes. According to Paula: Don't be afraid to make a judgement call on the cooking time, because oven temperatures can vary. You want the center to be a little gooey, so don't bake it past that point! Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into small squares because these are rich and a little will go a long way!

So...it's that easy! Bake em up and I guarantee your guests will love you for it!

Men's Fall 1 At The Crew

As promised, I have selected my favorites from the J. Crew fall line for the men. This is always a bit more difficult than selecting my favs out of the women's collection, mainly because the trends don't change as much on the men's side, but this can also be considered a good thing because most of what you're gonna get will be very versatile and will transition well from fall to winter.

Flannel was big last year and it looks like it's gonna be big this year too. You can't go wrong with classic colors paired with denim or cords. Vintage flannel shirt in winterbrook plaid

When you want to give your chinos a break, go for a pair of cords. Classic colors and a bootcut fit keep things casual for the weekend, or paired with a button-down for work. Vintage cord in bootcut fit

Who doesn't love a good graphic tee? This one is super soft, and a definite step up from the freebies thrown out at the football game. State graphic tee

I absolutely love this pullover. It is casual yet refined, featuring a shawl collar and kangaroo pocket, made from a woven cotton which produces a "marled" look. This could be the new go-to grey sweatshirt! Marled cotton pullover

A cross between a sweatshirt and a cardigan, this cotton-cashmere full-zip sweater would be a great addition to any wardrobe. It is machine washable, but will quickly elevate the look of any outfit by adding a necessary layer, and also provides warmth on crisp fall nights.

Chambray has been big on the fashion scene for over a year now, and I'm here to tell you, it's not goin anywhere! These shorts are a great transition item and look great with an oxford, pique polo, or basic tee. Chambray club short

The Bowery messenger bag is a true classic! This sophisticated man bag will hold everything a guy could need to carry around, and with several internal and external pockets, will keep it all organized too!