Thank you Veteran's!

Every year as I plan the Veteran's Day assembly at school, I am reminded of the tremendous sacrifice our men and women in uniform make for us on a daily basis.  This year I was lucky enough to have a friend and Washington State Women Veterans Advisory Committee Member, Jurene Mason, speak to our school about the importance of Veteran's Day.  She gave a wonderful speech about service, teamwork, and what a veteran "looks" like.

This year, our school built a "Wall of Remembrance and Thanks".  Each brick had the name of a friend or family member of staff and students from our school who is a veteran.  What I thought might be a small 5x5 foot wall, ended up taking up the whole wall!  It was so touching to see kids and parents alike stop and look at all the names.  I'm glad we were able to honor our veteran's in that way.

Thank you again to those who have given of themselves so that we can enjoy the freedoms we have!

My favorite veteran-my dad, me, and Jurene

Crowns For Kids

Last Saturday I was honored to model in the 2nd annual Crowns For Kids fashion show benefiting The Children's Miracle Network and the Miss Spokane Scholarship Organization. 

Some of Spokane's best boutique's were on hand to show off the latest fashions modeled by current and previous local royalty.  I had the pleasure of modeling for Fringe and Tangerine.  Both stores have incredible clothing and jewelry and are owned by amazing women that were a lot of fun to work with.  Take a peak at their facebook pages and go check them out!

A big thank you to all the volunteers and boutiques that made this event a success-especially Cheri Moore, Richard Learnard of Image 1 Photography, Bev Ottoson Wood, and Angela Stepp Monson.  Thank you!

Fusion Youth Group

It's been a while since I posted about my girls.  We've started a new school year, which has brought some new faces and great additions to our junior high girls group.  Unfortunately, that also means that we've lost some girls to the high school group.  They will be missed!

My co-leader, Lindsey, and I continue to try and provide an atmosphere where our girls feel welcome, safe, and loved.  So many of our girls don't come from the ideal living situations, and we strive to provide them with the consistency and support they need to navigate through the difficult junior high years. 

Wednesdays are long days, but I wouldn't trade my time with these girls.  Love you all!

Best of Spokane Party

Last night I was lucky enough to work the "Best of Spokane" party hosted by Bozzi Media and Spokane Coeur d'Alene Magazine.  This was a sold out event to honor all of the best businesses and organizations in our area.  There was an awards presentation, local vendors, food, drinks and dancing.  It was definitely the party of the year.

I had the opportunity to work with representatives from the Miss Spokane organization by working the coat check and VIP swag bag area.  It was a great way to serve by welcoming everyone to the party.  Cheri Moore did a wonderful job organizing and leading the volunteers.  I had a lot of fun working with Genay Tucker-Miss Spokane, and a few Miss Spokane Outstanding Teen hopeful's.  It was a busy night, but a lot of fun.



Pageant Rehearsals

The pageant is coming up and it's time for rehearsals!  The first rehearsal took place in Lakewood at the YMCA, where Pam and Carla (Mrs. Washington 2010) introduced us to our opening dance number.  It was so much fun!  Although I'm not a dancer, I loved picking up the choreography, and was even chosen to be in a small group solo!

Before the rehearsal, a small group of us met at Mrs. Olympia's beautiful home for a lesson in color draping.  It was a fun way to get to know some of the girls and very informative.  Thank you LaReina!

I also have to thank my amazing travelmate and driver, Tiffany-Mrs. Moses Lake.  We had a great time laughing and getting to know each other in our 10 hours of driving. : )

The second rehearsal was in Moses Lake at the venue for the pageant where five contestants and Lisa Bluhm met with our pageant director, Pam Curnel, to work on the opening number.  It was a lot of work, but a ton of fun.  Thank you Pam for the direction and time from your busy schedule, and Jessica Riggs (Mrs. Snohomish County) for helping us newbies with the swimsuit walk.

I can't believe we're only three and a half weeks away!!



Finally!

Sorry for the break from blogging.  I haven't had a camera that would download pictures, but it is finally fixed!  Now time to catch up...

Moses Lake Kids Fair and Fashion Show

Just in time for back to school, the Little Miss Washington Pageant hosted a fashion show and raffle benefiting Children's Miracle Network.  I was so excited to have my daughters make their modeling debut at this fun event.  They were so cute!

Thank you to Pam and the Wal Mart staff for making it a success!

Valleyfest Hearts of Gold Parade

In mid-September I had the pleasure of participating in the Valleyfest Parade.  It was so much fun to ride in a parade that I've been attending since I was a child.  Although the parade route has changed, the sense of community has not.  Thank you to all the volunteers who helped make it happen and to Appleway Auto Group for providing the beautiful cars.

Of course the parade wouldn't have been complete without my pageant sister, Judy Baggarley.  We always have a blast when we're together.  Thanks Judi!

Head Shots

A huge thank you to my photographer Richard Learnard from Image 1 Portraits for his beautiful pictures, great advice, and amazing support.  Thank you Richard for everything!

Click on the link to see more headshots.