Knoxville Eatery: Tom + Chee

Hey Y'all, Happy Tuesday!

I hope you are enjoying the warm warmer weather! I'm thankful for the snow days, but I definitely am glad they are over (fingers crossed)! Broke cabin fever on Saturday and went to work, but most importantly I had date night with my cousin, Allyn. In January, she sent me a text about a new restaurant opening, and we made a date to go for Valentine's Day. But like most restaurants on this holiday (and it was opening weekend), we rescheduled and went Saturday!    

So what is this new restaurant we were dying to try?? Well another heaven on Earth called 

Tom + Chee, a place specializing in grilled cheese & tomato soup.

^ The Holy Grail: The menu has something for everyone. Nothing catches your eye? Well that's fine too because you have the option to build your own.

^ I opted for one of the Fancy Grilled Cheese, and tried the Pep + Chee with cheddar and a cup of the creamy Tomato soup! My sandwich was PERFECTION! It was the perfect shade of gold and cooked with just enough butter. The pepperoni was bountiful and the marinara was a nice compliment. I wasn't a huge fan of the soup, it was missing something, so I would definitely recommend ordering the dip size. 

 

^ Of course, We could not leave without trying their famous Grilled Cheese Donuts. I ordered the Classic, which is the glazed doughnut with cheddar cheese! This is gonna sound crazy, but I LOVED it! It was a great combination of sweet and savory(or salty depending on your taste buds). My cousin tried The King Donut, and if you know anything about "The King" it involves peanut butter and bananas. This donut creation is topped with fresh bananas, peanut butter mascarpone, and a slice of mozzarella cheese. This doughnut is more on the sweet side since it has very mild cheese; you almost forget the cheese is there!

It may seem like I am overreacting and that could be true, but you won't know until you give it a try!

 And if you decide to, please let me know what you think!

Love, Lindsay J. 

WCW: Laverne Cox

 

Happy Wednesday Y'all!

I hope you are all staying warm! Sadly, Knoxville has been frozen over this week, however the upside is I have not seen the inside of a class room since Monday morning! But I am NOT complaining, I will gladly take my snow days and catch up on Gilmore Girls in my favorite jammies! 

So last Wednesday I got the privilege to attend an event hosted by UTK's Women's Coordinating Council with featured a lecture from the one and only Laverne Cox! The title of the lecture (and tour) is Ain't I A Woman: My Journey to Womanhood. She spent about ninety minutes discussing her life as a trans woman of color; giving narratives about her journey to womanhood, professional achievement, and self-acceptance. And it was truly great!!

Afterwards, there was a brief Q&A in which she told us about her Christmas Card from Beyoncé, how to support transgender friends/family, and her new TV show for CBS. The night ended with a Meet & Greet (in which we were strongly informed NOT to touch Laverne since it is still Flu season) and this was probably my favorite part! Not only did I get a great picture with her, BUT she told me I was gorgeous and I literally could have melted!

(This was me on the inside the entire time I took the picture and after)

Overall, it was definitely an experience that I will always remember and probably in my Top 10 favorite moments of my freshman year at UT. And to think I have at least three more to go!

|Outfit| Top {Old Navy}, Jeans {Old Navy}, Clutch {via Jane Deals}, 

Necklace {Body Central}*, Boots {DEB}*

- Lindsay J.

*= These stores have gone out of business.

October Recap: All Orange Everything!

Hey Y'all & Happy Monday!

    It is so good to finally get a chance to sit down and write a post! I apologize for being M.I.A this month; school has seriously taken over my life! I am in the last month of my first semester and I am trying to tie up my loose ends into a pretty bow! However, October has been a fantastic month, and quite eventful to say the least. So where should we start?

   The first weekend of October kick-offed the month properly. I went to the UT vs Florida game and got to be a part of Checker Neyland (which if you have not seen the pics, simply google them or look down below!!!) Unfortunately we lost the game, but it was definitely a fun experience to be a part of.

    So fast forward to the next weekend and I finally got the chance to celebrate UT Homecoming as a student. As some of you may know, my mom is proud alumna from UT and I have been partaken in a few on campus events growing up. But this year was special because we got to celebrate together! On top of it all, a few of my best friends came home to participate in the festivities and that made this much more memorable. AND I finally got to wear my $20 dress from Bluetique (which I am IN LOVE with!)

    After a long and tiring (but fun) weekend, I had a three day week of classes followed by a peaceful fall break! I took my short two days to sleep in and lounge around, which is something I don't do as often as I would like! I definitely don't think the break was long enough, but I gladly took the two days given!

    Returning to classes on Monday was slightly difficult, but I pushed through the sluggish week. On Friday, my group of friends and I attended Big Orange Madness, an event that introduces the men's and women's basketball teams. I am NOT a basketball fan, but I am all for free t-shirts and campus events! Plus it is always nice to show your school spirit and support! Later that night, we went out to Vol Night Long, which is a huge campus party with food, a d.j. and different activities that happens once a month. Despite the cold weather, and the fact that I hurt myself on the way to the event, I had a good time! I am definitely hoping for the next one is indoors! I closed off the weekend by tailgating for the Alabama game the next afternoon and on Sunday going to see Dear White People, a definite  must see!

     I ended my month by celebrating Halloween with my father's church! I dressed as Tigerlily using a no-sew caftan tutorial and making the headband! My sister went as Kanga from Winnie the Pooh! I had a pretty chill Halloween, which is definitely what I needed after a sleepless week!

In between all of these eventful weekends, I managed to get a new job as a Seasonal Sellebrity for Old Navy, celebrate River's first Birthday, and cheer on the Karns Lady Beaver's soccer team on their way to becoming district champs! So if you managed to read through this, CONGRATULATIONS you can now view a some pictures of my life this month! I am sad to say good-bye to October because I miss all of my pumpkin flavored foods and nice weather, but on the bright side November - January is my favorite time of the year! Hopefully I will be posting much more this month!

- Lindsay J.

Created with flickr slideshow.

Transformation Tuesday: Dorm, Sweet Dorm!

Happy Tuesday, my dear!

I have been living on campus for two months now, and it has LITERALLY taken this long for me to complete my dorm room. The thing that I love about living in a dorm is your space is YOUR space! You can decorate (or not decorate) as much as you would like to. For me, my room is all of my dream Pinterest rooms all in one. I have cute diy projects, everything is perfectly color coordinated, and it's organized.

Vanity Space

Closet Space

 Desk Space 

{Bedding & Pillows: Target | Picture Frames: Goodwill | Ribbon Jars: Dollar Tree (DIY project) | Mirror: Thrifted | Lamp: Target | Monogram: Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/shop/CraftyLittleThings2) | Chalkboard & Rug: Walmart }

Weekend Recap: Fair Frenzy

Happy Monday Darlings!

 

I hope your week is starting off much better than mine has! As some of my local readers know, the Tennessee Valley Fair was going on all last week, and I was able to slip away from campus and partake in the festivities with some of my closest friends. Although I don't enjoy the rides, this is one of my favorite fall festivities! Especially since this is one of the few times a year I get to pig out on the unhealthiest of foods and not feel like a fatty!

 ^ This is the best frozen strawberry lemonade EVER!

 

 

 ^ Nightly Firework Show! (I love Ashley's face)

 

^ This is my favorite picture from the night because I concurred my fear of heights and "enjoyed" a Ferris Wheel ride with my sister and our best friends, Asia and Janeé!

^ This was the moment I waited for... Deep Fried Oreos! It's just perfection covered in powdered sugar!

I know that I have probably gained back half the weight I lost, but it was definitely a night well spent!

- Lindsay J!

WCW: Mr. KHS Pageant 2014

It is Wednesday, right?

So last night I went back to my high school Alma Mater to see my best friend, James (who will be launching a blog soon!!) compete in the Mr. KHS Pageant. This is a past tradition at Karns which a faded off over the years, and was brought back this year as a Homecoming fundraiser. The pageant features guys who dress up as girls and compete in Outfit of Choice, Q & A, and Evening wear. The competition was fierce, and every girl, I mean guy channeled their inner Queen Bey as they strutted across the stage. The audience definitely had their fair share of laughs and giggles, and I am sure the guys enjoyed it. In the end, James took home the crown and made me a proud best friend! I am looking forward to attending next Friday's Homecoming Game, and hopefully seeing the beavers win!

Lindsay J!

Happy 220th Birthday

Happy Founder's Day to the University of Tennessee! In honor of this big day, I thought I would you all my five reasons why I love UTK!

1. If you don't know, UT is located in the heart of my hometown, Knoxville. Knoxville is such a great college town. There is a great variety of events and activities to attend, which all are a walk (or trolley) ride away. 

2. UTK has the best fans in the SEC! No matter how many games we lose, the Vol Nation continues to show up and show out! It's nothing like a UT football game to bring us together decked out in our orange! 

3. There is something for EVERYONE! I love how there is so much to get involved with. There are over 400 organizations on campus, and they are vary on topics. In my month here, I've learned there are at least 10 organizations  I want to get involved with during my time here. 

4. We are one extremely LARGE family. I love feeling like I am wanted and I belong. When I was making my decision between coming here or going to UTC, UTK made me feel wanted. I received letters, hand written note cards,  just expressing how excited they were for me to become a UT Vol. 

5. I look great in orange! But really though, you can't tell me I don't look great! 

So here's to you, UTK, and 220 more years to come! 

Lindsay J!

It's Football Time in TN!

It's Football Sunday!

                     

I hope your Labor Day is going fantastic! Today is the first football game of the season, and I couldn't be more excited! It's great to finally be apart of the Vol Nation as a student. The pride and unity of all the students and fans is UNBELIEVABLE, and I know it is gonna be a great football season for the Vols! My outfit today is definitely one of a kind, thanks to my best friend, Janee, along with my sister Claire. I bought my skirt fabric last summer and had Janee sew it together for me. My sister then dip dyed the skirt for the perfect ombre effect! This skirt is so comfortable and it's the perfect piece to include in my Game Day closet! Looking forward to Friday because I finally get to reveal my Pinterest Perfect Dorm room! 

Lindsay J.

Thifted Finds & Sunday Dinners

Happy Sunday!

    After a week (okay 3 days) of classes, it was nice to put on my Sunday's Best and attend church with my friends and family; followed by dinner at my house. The icing on top of today is I am sporting a one dollar dress. Yes, you read that right; I found this dress at the campus yard sale for one dollar, and it was definitely worth it. It took me forever to decide how to dress it up, because the options were limitless. As you can see I chose nude pointed heels {Target}, pearl jewelry {Thrifted}, and my favorite {French Connection} purse. I am definitely happy over all with today's outfit choice and I can't wait to wear this again! Looking forward to classes this week and I am SUPER pumped for the first game of the season next week! 

Lindsay J.