March Events

March was a blur of events...  starting with the American Girl Fashion Show.  My beautiful Teen and I were lucky enough to emcee both the Friday and Saturday Patron show, and got to help get the girls ready for the runway!  Right after the show, Jasmine and I hit the road to Kansas City for our official Miss Nebraska USA and Miss Nebraska Teen USA photo shoot with our Vanbros family.  It was so much fun spending the day with our amazing director and sponsors, Kim Forsyth, Aquillia Vang, and Brian Wood.  You can view my official Miss USA photo and the rest of my profile online HERE!

 The next weekend, I hosted a Miss Amazing Dress Drive for the 95 participants who were signed up to participate in the 2013 Missouri Miss Amazing Pageant.  It was so much fun watching these girls pick out their dream dress and get excited about taking the stage.

Rachel picked my NE Teen USA dress from 2009!  

I was asked to be a part of the Salvation Army Fashion Show which was organized by my professor, Florence Dewan.  Not only did I get to model with my good friend, Ellie Holtman Miss Missouri USA, but I got to wear a beautiful gown designed by my talented friend Amra Alihodzic.  

With Amra, Ellie, and AJ from Project Runway

The following week was the weekend I have been preparing for all year;  the 2013 Missouri Miss Amazing Pageant.  For those of you who don’t know, when I first became a director two years ago my goal was to have around 20 girls in a small, donated venue.  With a lot of hard work I was able to grow the pageant to around 50 girls in one of the largest venues in St. Charles.  The news of last year’s pageant spread like wildfire and this year we doubled in size with over 90 girls participating.  It was a huge success.  It is definitely the most rewarding job a girl could have.  I am so lucky to be able to give girls who rarely get the chance, the opportunity to steal the spotlight and feel beautiful.  We have six amazing girls traveling to Omaha this September to represent Missouri in the first ever national Miss Amazing Pageant! 

Here is KSDK Channel 5 coverage of this year’s pageant!  Enjoy!

http://www.ksdk.com/news/watercooler/article/371330/71/Miss-Amazing-pageant-celebrates-girls-and-women

February Update... extremely late!!!

Wow, what a whirlwind of a year so far.  I am taking this rainy day to cuddle up in bed and let you all know some of things I have been up to.

 The last blog I wrote was about my LASIK eye surgery and it has now been over two months. I feel great about my decision.  With my busy schedule, it is great not having to worry about falling asleep in my contact lenses.  I always forget my contacts and glasses when I travel and I have been traveling a lot.

    I was back in Nebraska for some great events in the month of February.  I braved the cold with Mrs. Nebraska, Kandis Friedenbach and Miss Kool-Aid Days, Kimberly Brennan for The Heartland’s Walk for Warmth. All the walkers helped raise funds to help metro area residents heat their homes in the bitter cold winter months and cool their homes during the hot and humid summer months and to broaden community awareness about the need for energy assistance in the metro area.

        I was then off to the Easter Seals Nebraska Wine Event.  This event was very special to me because the mission of Easter Seals Nebraska is very important to me.  They have been helping individuals with disabilities and special needs, and their families, live better lives for more than 80 years. Whether helping someone improve physical mobility, return to work or simply gain greater independence for everyday living, Easter Seals offers a variety of services to help people with disabilities address life's challenges and achieve personal goals.  It was also special in that I was joined by a few of my Miss Amazing girls from both Nebraska and Iowa, as well as my little sister, the state director of the Iowa Miss Amazing Pageant.  I gave the invocation before the delicious meal and got to introduce the Miss Amazing Queens and Princesses as well as talk about our organization. We had so much fun selling raffle tickets and helping with the auction. 

         To wrap up February, my sister and I got to shoot with Blacksheep Photography of Omaha.  Thank you so much Jim for such a fun day!  Here are a couple of my favorites!  Be sure to like his Facebook page!