ZTA/Tri Delt Ice Cream Social

Torrey St. George and her Tri Delt friend, Emily Hees, at the 

ZTA/Tri Delt Ice Cream Social.  In addition, here is a glimpse of 

their yummy ice cream creations 

What can bring two sororities together on a Tuesday night? Ice Cream Sundays! That’s right, an amazing ice cream social. Our first Zeta/Tri Delt ice cream social, held this past Tuesday, was beyond a success. Planning it with the sisterhood team was such an outstanding experience. The excitement started Tuesday morning when I drove to HEB to stock up on all the delicious toppings. I thought it would be a fun idea to ask girls what their favorite ice cream toppings were – little did I know people had strong opinions about their favorite toppings.  Within a minute, I was flooded with suggestions. A little shout out to PC '10 Jess Harper for throwing some wild, fun ideas my way (such as cereal—who would have thought?) Anyway, as I walked the aisles of HEB pushing my cart, filled sky-high with chocolate and other heart attack inducing candies, many grocery shoppers gave me sideways looks.  The glares had gotten a little out of hand. People must’ve assumed I had recently gone through a terrible break up or that I, a college student, had a poor diet.  Finally, someone had the courage to approach this crazy looking girl and ask what I was doing.  Happily, I was able to brag about our ice cream social with Tri Delt. After my adventure to HEB, I headed to the house to prepare for the social. Arriving an hour before the event I recruited Ben Biamante and other ZTA houseboys for the small price of a few Oreos. Together, we prepared for the ice cream extravaganza. As the clock struck 7:00, the line was out the door, and soon Tri Delts and Zetas took over the dining room with chatter.  Everyone enjoyed the event and left no trace of goodies and toppings behind! It was such a success and hopefully we can have another ice cream social with the ladies of Tri Delt soon. A little Delta bird told me they loved it just as much as we did!

Lots of love (and ice cream),

Torrey St. George 

PC '11

Exploring Austin & Enjoying Mom's Weekend

 “Mom, you have to rent a car.”

It was as simple as that. My mom was a little nervous about driving in a new place but I knew that when she and my grandma came to town for Zeta’s Mom’s Weekend, we would be exploring all that Austin has to offer. Being from Chicago, I am always learning more and more about all of the unique things to do in Austin. My mom has always been into traveling, and acts as a tour-guide for my family when we travel, and so this past weekend I decided to follow in her footsteps.

Live Jazz at Eddie V's

Although the weekend got off to a late start, with their flight being delayed, my mom, grandma, and I sure made up for lost time!  We finally made it to dinner at 10 pm when they got in on Friday. We decided to go to Eddie V’s where we could hear some live Jazz music. After all, Austin is the live music capitol of the world! It was great to catch up and relax with them over some seafood and jazz music before embarking on our fun-filled weekend.

Zeta Mom's Weekend brunch at ACC!

Our Saturday started with Zeta’s Mom’s Weekend brunch held at Austin Country Club. On the drive to the brunch, the sight of green mountains and cliffs marveled us, as we never knew they were even part of the Austin landscape. Maybe Austin natives wouldn’t consider them as outstanding but in comparison to the flat landscape back home, they were incredible. When we finally arrived at the beautiful ACC, many smiling Zeta friends greeted us. After a couple hours of Annie Ray photo booths, dining on gazpacho, chicken crepes and chocolate lava cake, and getting to know my Zeta sisters and their mothers, we were off to the Domain for some shopping. Finally, after walking around and taking advantage of our discount, we were off to Mozart’s to recuperate.

Afternoon coffee at Mozart's

            Mozart’s was perfect. We sat outdoors on the large, wood balcony overlooking the lake, under the shade of a beautiful, big tree. There, on that beautiful day, we sipped on some coffee and planned our next move.

2^ndStreet was next. We walked into some trendy, independent Austin shops to explore artwork and clothing. We truly felt like we were in Europe as we walked down the narrow streets and into each quaint shop. I was able to point out a couple neat spots to my mom and grandma, such as Ballet Austin where I take dance classes, and the spectacular capitol building. We walked through downtown til our feet were sore, then drove back to the AT&T center where they were staying to rest up and get ready for dinner at Uchiko.

Grandma's "chicken and rice"

My AXO friend Danielle, and my Zeta sister Chiara joined me and my clan with their moms for some sushi and, well… uh, uniqueJapanese food. It was an interesting experience to say the least, and my grandma was definitely surprised when her “chicken and rice” dish came in the form of sushi. Nevertheless, it was delicious, and fun to be out on Lamar for a trendy, Austin dining experience. Afterwards, I tried to get my mom and grandma to the famous 6^th street but they didn’t really have it in them to go out that night. I guess I’ll have to save that for next time!

Exploring South Congress!            

On the last day, Sunday, we began with brunch at South Congress Café. After some delicious migas and OJ, we set out to explore South Congress. On SoCo, I got to point out the famous Austin food-trucks, the gorgeous view of the Austin skyline, and the many unique shops, offering everything from cowboy boots to insane costumes and crafty furniture. We stopped to take a picture by the “I love you so much” sign on the side of Jo’s on SoCo, and then headed off to Whole Foods for some groceries.

            

The beautiful Zeta house!

       
 Though I had intended to show them even more, like see the famous graffiti wall on Lamar, and hang out at Zilker park, I couldn’t have asked for a better weekend with my mom and grandma. I guess it’s best to leave some things for next time, anyway! After a quick tour of the Zeta house, they were off to the airport and back to Chicago, but the memories of that weekend will stay with me in Austin.

ZL, 

     Alexia Phipps (PC ’12)

Alexia, her mom, and grandma posing for the Annie Ray
photography booth at ACC!

Zeta Mom's Weekend 2013!

The weekend everyone looks forward to for shopping, fun, and spending quality time with their moms… that’s right, last weekend Zeta Tau Alpha hosted their annual Mom’s Weekend!

To kick off the weekend, we hosted a cocktail hour on the rooftop of 219 West on 6^thStreet. Moms and daughters enjoyed an amazing view overlooking downtown Austin, as well as an great DJ who played all the classics like “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” That one sure got people on their feet dancing! Everyone danced the night away as rainbow colored lights flashed across the tented rooftop. What better way to spend the night than having fun dancing on a rooftop with your mom? Zeta’s sure had a blast getting together to show their moms an amazing time downtown.

The next morning everyone 
headed over to one of Austin’s 
most prestigious country clubs, Austin Country Club. A wonderful “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” themed luncheon was planned for the girls and their mothers. The Mom’s Club did a wonderful job on providing the centerpieces for the luncheon, with beautiful turquoise accents. The girls and their moms enjoyed a tasty lunch along with chocolate lava cake, a candy bar, and an Annie Ray photography booth. The girls and moms put on cute props and took pictures at the photo booth as a memento of their weekend. While everyone munched on their chicken crepes, many of our members gave speeches, including our philanthropy team to explain to the moms what Zeta’s truly passionate about, Breast Cancer Education and Awareness! Our Mom’s Club president, Anne Robillard, then spoke to the moms about how they can become more involved involved in Zeta.  After the lunch was over, girls headed out to the beautiful golf course to explore and take pictures, then everyone headed over to Neiman Marcus and the Domain for the shopping event!

Neiman Marcus provided us with cute goodie bags and fun activities to start off our shopping event, including assortments of popcorn, cupcakes, and drinks provided at tables throughout the store. Everyone then headed out on their own to shop with their moms at all of the stores to get their special Mom’s Weekend discount! Girls and mothers were also able to enjoy manicures and pedicures at the Domain where they were well pampered! The girls obviously enjoyed getting new clothes, shoes, and accessories with their moms!

Overall, Mom’s Weekend was a huge success and we are so happy to have hosted everyone! It takes the best to make the best, and all of our moms proved to be the best of the best this past weekend! 

ZLAM,

         Heather Lauterbach         

         (PC '12)

  

Chili Fest 2013

On April 5^th and 6^th, I had the opportunity to attend Texas A&M University’s spring charity event in Snook Texas, Chilifest. The event is the second-largest outdoor music concert in Texas, and donates over $100,000 each year to local Brazos Valley charities. I had a great time dancing to Texas country artists like Aaron Watson, Mark Chestnut, and Josh Turner. I even got to go backstage and meet some of the artists! Even though getting to hang out backstage was awesome, my favorite part of the event was meeting my Aggie Zeta sisters and hanging out with A&M’s Pan-Hellenic women.

I also enjoyed walking around the venue with my best friends from high-school, who are A&M Tri-Deltas, and getting the opportunity to visit each of the A&M fraternity builds.  It was a great time and raised a ton of money for worthy causes. I can't wait to see which bands will be headlining next year!

ZLAM Tara

Mackenzie Howey interns at SXSW

One of the many interesting
murals put up for SxSW

Last semester, I was given the opportunity to go on the Campus2Careers bus to tour Austin’s top advertising agencies such as McGarrahJessee, GSD&M, and T3. After the tour, Campus2Careers sent the students on the tour internship and job opportunities, with one of the opportunities being South By Southwest. My past internships had only consisted of advertising agencies so I was a skeptical about applying. However, I had always wanted to intern at SXSW, a company that brings such a unique event to Austin each year. After my interview (with a past Zeta!), I was positive I wanted to be a part of the festival and was thrilled when offered the job.

Mackenzie Howey ready to intern at SXSW

By way of introduction, SXSW is held annually in Austin and consists of conferences and festivals that highlight technology and interactive discoveries, film, and music; showcase thousands of bands, films, and celebrities; and provides inspiration for new technology. SXSW describes the collaboration on its website as “the premier destination for discovery.” For me, it was an opportunity to work in the company’s brand development and special projects department. My work prior to and during the event was focused on protection of the SXSW trademark, which involved tasks related to monitoring unwarranted use of the SXSW trademark; preparing for and monitoring unofficial events; and managing a team of volunteers who reported various assigned tasks.

The band Third Eye Blind

The week of the festival was a whole other playing field: I worked around the clock in the exciting environment and loved every minute of it. I assisted in monitoring official events such as the VEVO Control Room and Disco Donnie; helped with coordinating the merchants at Auditorium Shores; and spent a day facilitating the Neiman Marcus CUSP and Style Caster event. I walked countless miles, saw some awesome breakthrough artists, and learned a lot about myself.

To be an intern with SXSW, you must be able to think on your feet, be detail-oriented, move-on after something does not go as planned, and most importantly, have a smile on your face. SXSW is the largest festival of its kind, so naturally countless things will go wrong, but you must be able to efficiently think of the best possible solution and roll with it. (And if you can’t think of anything, walkie your boss as fast as possible.)

Mackenzie enjoyed Jeni's ice cream at SxSW

If you have ever participated in SXSW, you know the craziness that floods the streets of downtown Austin. You have experienced standing in long lines to get into Hype Hotel; licking the perfect ice cream cone from Jeni’s Ice Cream; or refreshing your e-mail to see if you won a ticket to Prince or Justin Timberlake’s secret shows. If you have not been to SX, I encourage you to go.

I am so grateful for my experience as an intern for SXSW; the skills I gained from that week will serve me for a lifetime.

                ZL,
                Mackenzie Howey
                PC '10

The First Annual Zeta & Silver Spurs Backyard Bash!

The line grows as the Spurs' freshly grilled burgers and hot dogs fill
the trays on the buffet table in the backyard of the Zeta house!

Food, friends, and face paint – there’s really no better way to kick off the weekend of Round Up! This year marks the first year that Zeta and the Silver Spurs came together to host Backyard Bash, which was basically like a huge tailgate for all of the Round Up parties we were so eager to get to. Unlike the sea of burnt orange that we’ve come to associate with tailgates, everybody was decked out in their Round Up best. With everyone sporting knee-socks and neon fanny packs, the Zeta backyard quickly transformed into a scene from a 90’s movie and Round Up officially began.

PC '11Kristen Oglesbee gets her face painted at Backyard Bash

All UT students were welcome to attend Backyard Bash and support our philanthropy while enjoying some pretty darn good burgers and hot dogs cooked by Zeta’s very own house boys. There was also a very comical slushie vendor, who still managed to put a smile on our faces even when the delicious piña colada flavored slushies ran out. The food was great, but what really seemed to get everyone excited was the face painters. Although the boys thought they were too cool for glittery face décor, girls eagerly waited in long lines to get their faces painted. After all, colorful swirls all over your face really is the cherry on top of a perfect Round Up outfit!

The slushie stand was a big hit with attendees!

Backyard Bash was such a fun way to share one last meal with all of my Zistas before the weekend began. The Zeta and the Silver Spurs team really pulled it off, and everybody had a great time! But let’s be honest, it’s pretty hard not to have a good time when you’re surrounded by the very welcoming and very beautiful Zeta sisters and friends. I hope this tradition continues, and I’m looking forward to starting off all of my Round Up’s with even bigger and better Backyard Bash’s!

ZL,

Chiara Geremia (PC '12)

PC '12 girls Caleigh Campbell, Sarah Roe, Aubrey Crenshaw,
Amanda Brauer, and Chiara Geremia pose in their Round Up gear!

Get Crowned Up for Round Up

 

This past weekend was one that I had been counting down to for roughly 364 days. This was my third Round Up! However, being that I’m a member of PC ‘12, this Round Up was my very first one as a member of a sorority. Further, it was my first one to get to cover myself head to toe in letters, and cheesy as it sounds I really can’t describe how good it felt that those letters were ZTA. I agonized in class Friday morning like a fifth grader on the last day of school, and the second the clock ticked :50 I practically pranced back to West Campus. I had my Day 1 outfit already set out and the second it was on my body, tattoos on my face, and stickers on my clothes, I was out the door headed to the house for the First Annual Zeta Spurs Backyard Bash!

PC '12 Francesca Herro and Sarah Poe

The zistas I was with and I felt like VIP’s bypassing the long line by flashing our wristbands at the door and fit in perfectly in the sea of neon and fanny packs in our backyard. I had a hamburger AND a hotdog and got excessively excited to get my face painted. Essentially, I had the time of my life and in true UT Greek life spirit things only got better. My zistas and I frolicked around West Campus hopping from house to house for a few hours before figuring out where to spend Friday night. It’s hard to choose when there are ten late nights… but Lil Flip and Slim Thug won out, of course and we danced the night away.

Saturday morning felt like Christmas as I jumped out of bed and immediately yelled to my roommates “IT’S ROUND UP Y’ALL!” Ain’t no darty (day party) like a Round Up darty. After all, there were 12 to choose from and Chamillionaire, Lil Flip, Travis Porter, Crime Mob, Ying Yang Twins, Kyle Park, Driicky Graham and Juicy J to see. After a lot of darty hopping, crawfish eating and slip & sliding, I settled down in one place and enjoyed the show Chamillionaire put on (after all, I am a Houston girl).

After a pit stop at Torchy’s, it was home to change into Outfit #3 and head on out for the last leg of Round Up. Two late nights, three raves and Z-Ro to hit up, it was sure to be a great night and it sure was.

Sarah Poe (PC '12), Katie Kratkiewicz (PC '11),
Sloane Schaumberger  (PC '11), and Ashley Allison (PC '11)

I awoke Sunday morning to a little PRD (Post Round Up Depression), but consoled myself by starting a new 364 day countdown. Though I’m reminded of it daily, it’s weekends like these where it hits me hardest how special of a school I go to, how special of a Greek life I’m a part of, and how I’m a member one of the most incredible chapters in the country. Being a Texas Zeta is a good good life. ZLAM!

ZL,

Sarah Poe

PC '12