Tailgating Art

How awesome is this print from Etsy?! It definitely belongs in our sports cave.

Oklahoma

My heart is heavy for Oklahoma today. My husband attended the University of Oklahoma, we are season football ticket holders, most of our tailgating is done in Norman and my in-laws live in Norman, so this tragedy has hit close to home for us. It seems that we, as a country, have experienced far too many tragedies this year. All I can do is keep counting my blessings and praying for all of the victims.

Gameday Fashion: Southern Charm Apparel

I collaborated with the awesome girls over at Southern Charm Apparel to bring my Gator fans a few choice chic orange and blue accessories just for Stylish Gameday readers. I am all over those football helmet earrings. They are $8 and so darn dope! The sale is only for a week and the items are deeply discounted just for you guys, so check it out. Also pop over to the Southern Charm Apparel Facebook too, to stay updated on new gameday goodies.

Tailgate Food: Dill Pickle Dip

Recipe and Image from The Cutting Edge

I mean....what did we do before Pinterest? I know it sometimes is a time-waster but it has so many great nuggets of information that I just love it. Of course, this latest recipe was a Pinterest find of mine. I thought it would be a great addition to our gameday and tailgate menus. 

Ingredients:

1 (8 ounce) package of cream cheese, softened to room temperature 

1- 1 1/2 cups chopped dill pickles
1/4 cup finely chopped sweet onion
2- 4 tablespoons pickle juice (use less for thicker dip or more for thinner dip)
1 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Use a wooden spoon to press into the cream cheese then stir until loosened up and smooth. Stir in all of the remaining ingredients until evenly distributed. Transfer to a serving dish and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Tailgate Drinks: Fruit Mojitos

With summer fast approaching my taste buds always start to crave fruity, citrusy drink concoctions. Margaritas and mojitos are always a staple of our summer barbecues (and sometimes our tailgates). I guess it makes me think of being on vacation even though I am sitting in my own backyard. I hope you like my spin on the classic mojito recipe. The addition of fruit is really awesome. Cheers!

Ingredients:
2 oz rum
1 oz soda water 
.5 oz turbinado simple syrup 
1 fresh-squeezed lime juice
4 mint leaves
Fruit of your choice (raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, kiwi, grapefruit, pineapple, etc.)

Directions: Muddle fruit in a bowl. Place mint leaves in a glass. Squeeze the lime on top of the mint leaves and muddle. Pour fruit mixture on top. Add ice, rum, simple syrup and soda. Stir well. Garnish with fruit and mint leaves.

Gameday Fashion: Florida Gator Girls

This off season is a great time to start your gameday shopping. I've been finding the cutest orange and blue pieces to add to my wardrobe.  I just can't get enough of the gator jewelry by Betsey Johnson's. I've blogged about them before, but now they are on sale! 

1. Alligator Drop Earrings

2. Blue and White Chevron Dress
(Sorry, the dress appears to be
sold-out, but they have other
options here.)

3. Alligator Necklace 

4. Orange and Blue Dress

5. Colorblock Blouse

6. Two Finger Ring

7. Cuff Bracelet

Tailgate Toys: Point Pong

The fantastic people over at Point Pong sent me a set of their beer pong game last week. It was perfect timing. It’s like they knew I would be hosting a tailgate in the near future.

The set arrived as I was packing up all of my supplies for the Jimmy Buffett tailgate and concert. The game was a big source of entertainment for us while we tailgated for the 8+ hours on Saturday. The set is super easy to assemble and break down. It was quite windy on Saturday, so we ended up improvising and using quarters instead of the ping pong balls that come with the set. The game definitely requires some skill and practice. The set itself was quite the conversation piece. I would guess that at least 30 people came up to our tailgate just to ask us who made the game and a few of them even took pictures of it. We also had a few kids stop by and try to play. I'm looking forward to using the game this summer to work on my beer pong skills. The set also converts, so you can play it in the pool.

Kevin, El Presidente of Point Pong has a great tailgate/concert tip for everybody too. Apparently he makes a really good margarita! One of the first times he saw Jimmy Buffett in concert, he made up 5 gallons of margaritas in a large Igloo cooler for his tailgate. When it was over and he had some left, so he put them in double freezer baggies and then put them in the freezer. So when he wanted a margarita, he just took a bag out, put it in the microwave for a bit and then he had a frozen slush margarita. I like it! I think I am going to try this soon.

Point Pong won the "Best Tailgating Game Award" at the National Hardware Show in 2012. It is now sold online and in stores. For more information and to listen to a phone interview with Kevin visit here.

Gameday Fashion: Chanel Flask Bag

The Chanel crossbody  flask bag debuted at the Pre-Fall 2013 fashion shows. It comes in two sizes and will be guaranteed to "elevate your tailgate" if you were to rock one to gamedays. I love when fashion and function roll into one very stylish bag.

Tailgate Toys: BBQ Boat

I promise the BBQ Donut Boat is actually a real thing! I can't decide if its cool or just plain weird. I love to boat and I love to BBQ but not sure I want to do both at the same time. The product description says,  "Seating up to 10 people and featuring a specially installed BBQ grill, you can even correct your course between courses with the compact outboard engine. The BBQ is a low smoke charcoal kettle grill, especially setup to ensure maximum safety and ease of use and the moulded table settings ensure your sausages and steaks won’t slide off." Hahah, so glad they have "ensured" that my steak won't fall off. OMG! What do you all think? Would you at least go for a ride on one??

In related new, did you guys know that May is National Barbecue Month? I didn't. The things you learn on Twitter. BBQ Month encourages you to take advantage of the sunny weather and to go outside and get cooking on the open grill. Since so much of tailgating revolves around grilling, I figure why not celebrate and start grilling. No matter where you live, hopefully the weather is improving and you can take advantage and spend some time outdoors.  

Tailgating: Jimmy Buffett 2013

Enjoying the beautiful tailgate weather. 

Our tailgate gang.

Lots of giant jenga games played by the tailgaters.

I also saw a lot of  creative decorations. 

Played many games of Point Pong.

Fins Up!

The drinks were flowing all day from the tiki bar.

This guy, was serving mojitos from his bartender belt. 

They were tasty too. Definitely "elevated our tailgate."

This Saturday, we tailgated and attended the Jimmy Buffett concert in Frisco, Texas. I was so, so excited to TAILGATE. It's like my drug and I needed my fix....and boy, did I get it. I am so glad I had my checklist, because I was too excited to think straight. I know I would have forgotten something without it. 

We tailgated from about 10:30 am until 12:00 am. Tailgating for a Jimmy Buffett concert is just so much fun and not like any other tailgate. People started arriving in their RV's on Thursday. The decorations and party supplies are always fun to walk around and witness. One tailgate even brought in at least 2 tons of sand. It was almost like being at the beach, almost. The people watching alone is well worth it. I highly recommend the experience if you have the opportunity!