Ionia Free Fair: Last Parade as Miss Stanton

Kelsey, Alexis and I in front of the beautiful Blanchard House where a tea social was held for all of the Royalty to attend. We were able to meet other girls from all over including Miss Mint and Miss Ionia herself. The tea consisted of everything...except tea! There was coffee and juices accompanied by Danishes of every kind, cookies and other pastries. As soon as we walked in the door [pictured above], we saw a beautiful spiral staircase that led up to the second and THIRD story of the house. Every girl that was there filled the staircase for  a group shot. [If this doesn't describe how many girls were there, I don't know what does!] 

Directly following this, all the royalty were directed outside to the parade lineup. It was quite the site to see a bunch of girls in gorgeous gowns and rhinestoned high heals, all while ducked under umbrellas. However, due to the thundershowers and other unforeseen circumstances, the Miss Stanton girls did not participate in the parade. Instead, we took a tour of The Blanchard House. It was absolutely gorgeous. Being the goofy girls we are, we stopped to take pictures at every opportunity we were presented with!

Finally, we had seen the entire house and decided it was time to be getting home. We all loaded up and got ready to leave when we realized Kelsey was still standing outside by her car. My mom went to check on her while I waited inside. [Please note that it was pouring at this point, Haha] Kelsey just had a spare key made for her car and it wasn't fitting in her door to unlock it. It did, however, start her car that morning to get her to Ionia. Alexis's mom had some of her family members stop by to meet for the parade. They all tried to unlock it as well, hoping some had the "Magic Touch".....No one did. After everyone had their turn at trying to unlock the door, Kelsey called her parents for them to bring her her spare keys. 

After our little misfortune, if you will, my mother urged me to stand in the middle of the street to get a few last pictures. All in all, it was a great day and a success, just like all the other parades have been. It wouldn't feel right if we didn't have a small mishap along the way! ;0

There will be more to come soon. This Saturday [the 31st], I will be volunteering in Kalamazoo at the Special Olympics Softball Games! I am very excited for that, as I had a blast last time around! ;]

Greenville's Chalk it to Walk it with Royalty

Kelsey, Alexis, Stephanie and I.

Stephanie, Kelsey, Alexis and I with my friend Miss Danish Festival Chelsea and her Princess.

All the "Royalty" that attended the event from around the area.

Stanton, Greenville, Belding, Montcalm County and Harvest Festival are a few.

The four of us looking at the view.

We started off the event by getting to know the other girls before we began our walk down one of Greenville's trails. It had such a gorgeous view and went along the river. Kayakers and families were tubing down the river beside us. After we got back from the walk, ("Walk it" portion), we drew on the side walk("Chalk it"). Each person was asked to bring any canned food they could to donate.

It had been storming all morning and afternoon with funnel clouds surrounding us the entire drive there but, once again, the storm held off perfectly for the event!

Miss Michigan 2010

Miss Michigan Class of 2010

Buffalo Wild Wings hosted us for dinner one night.

Artistry, a huge sponsor for Miss America, came to the pageant and gave us some tips on makeup!

We worked with Big Brothers Big Sisters. It was my first time involved in the program and I loved it! I was paired with the girl beside me in the back, Taija. We all hung out at Chucky Cheese for the afternoon.

Me crowning Taija! Haha, she said she wanted to be a queen so I made her Queen for the day!

One of the preliminary nights in our opening outfits.

Before going out to a luncheon.

Singing the National Anthem at the Lakes Mall in Muskegon. We had a huge autograph signing there, then singing and performing onstage, followed by Big Brother Big Sister.

Chelsea, Ashley and I being our normal silly selves! 

Katie and I at House of Chan's. 

Katie is the new Miss Michigan 2010 and she is the sweetest girl in the whole world!!

Haley and I after finals night. 

Haley is Miss Michigan's Outstanding Teen 2009 and totally amazing!

My friends being totally awesome!!!

Me and my daddy! =]

My amazing family. They came every night to support me. Love you guys!! =D

The 9 days I spent in Muskegon for Miss Michigan were truly some of the best days I have ever had! Everyone always says, "Ooooh, I grew so much as a person!", but it is absolutely true! I made so many memories and have experienced so many things that I never would have imagined I would be doing and I have done them all at such a young age.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have been watching the Miss America pageant on tv, always telling my mom, "I want to be her!" Every little girls dream, I know. Standing in the position I am in now is absolutely crazy and yet phenomenal. It's so hard to believe. 

Although I did not win at the State level, I did however have a year of memories, experiences and life long friends. During this past year, I have become very close to the girls in the above picture. Closer than we really have to mention! Haha These girls are the sisters I never had and I know that they will always be there for me whenever I need them. They are the kind of friends that will last a lifetime!

"What's next for me?", some people ask. Only a select few people know that! I'll let the secret out of the bag soon enough. But for now, just know that I will be beginning my freshman year at Western Michigan University to study education.

Go Broncos!! =D

Carson City Frontier Days

This was a beautiful day for a parade! Tons of fun. Not many of the girls were able to make it due to previous obligations, but it was a great time to get to know the girls that were there more and I was also able to tell them about the Special Olympics!

Michigan Summer Special Olympics

When I asked to volunteer for the Special Olympics, I had not the slightest idea of what I was getting myself into! 

It was a three day event with athletes from all over Michigan and held at Central Michigan University. Thousands and thousands of athletes came. Each one of them have such big hearts and are so dedicated to which ever sport(s) they chose. Sports range from gymnastics, to swimming and even bowling. It was amazing to watch them compete in all of the sports. The confidence they portrayed is that of which everyone should feel for themselves. Just walking down the sidewalks to go to the next sport, the athletes would run up and give us hugs and tell us all about the medals around their necks. They are each so proud of themselves, which they should be! They each have such big and warm hearts with so much love! It was truly an eye opening experience.

All of the athletes were split into groups for the Opening Ceremony. This is Area 6 with all the athletes from Montcalm County. Miss Danish Festival(Greenville), Chelsea Kreiner is pictured here with all of us. We were able to be with the athletes from our own hometowns, so that was cool in and of itself!

A bunch of the phenomenal athletes at Kelly Shorts Stadium with Chelsea, Me, Mekeisha and Emily.

I hungout with Emily and Ashley just about the whole weekend. The first event we were at was gymnastics! The girls in the picture looooooved purple, just like me! ;] They wore purple outfits, skirts, hair accessories, makeup, you name it!

Chelsea and I with a couple of CMU's football players. The whole team helped out at the Special Olympics with all of us "Queens". Great guys!!

Nicole, Miss Michigan 2009 and I with one of the athletes at the Opening Ceremony.

Nate and I. He escorted me into the Opening Ceremony. He became my best friend for the evening; we found each other everywhere! 

Me doing these crazy fitness workout hool-a-hoops. It is a lot harder than it looks!

Emily, Ashley and I on an awesome motorcycle! Haha, too fun.

A little background information about myself...

I will be attending Western Michigan University this fall. The first question people ask is: What do you plan on studying? Well, I really want to study education. Therefore, the second question is: Oh really, at what level? But really, I have never been able to make up my mind. For the past few years I always knew I wanted to be a teacher of some sort. I cant think of any career that could possibly make me happier than helping a child understand a topic that they couldn't before or pushing a student to take that next step and fulfill his or her dreams. I believe a teacher can do just that...I have met teachers that have done that and it is truly incredible. Back to the FAQ. I have never known which age group I would like best: Early elementary, elementary, middle school or even high school. I kept going between elementary and secondary(HS).

Once I got back from my weekend with the Special Olympics, my mom asked me questions about it. And the only definite thing I could come up with was: I LOVED IT! Since then, I have been considering Special Education. I still am not positive what level I will chose, but I do not believe I could possibly go wrong with teaching!

Sheridan Memorial Day Parade

The weather for this day wasn't very promising, but it turned out well. My family and I picked the truck up from the dealership and they forgot to give us a hitch, (the dealership is of course closed on Memorial Day)! So we went to pick up the float, hoping we would be lucky enough that the hitch we used before would somehow find its way...(Our wish never came true) So, while it was pouring on us, (us being the boys, my mom and I sat dry in the car) we called my uncle and he came to the rescue with a hitch that we could use for the day!

All in all, the parade was a success! The rain cleared up perfectly in time for the parade, then began to rain once again once the parade was over! Very lucky.  : )

Catching up on 3 months!!!

Ahhh! I haven't wrote in so long! I have been so busy with school, college, applying to colleges, MMO appearances, dance class, work, Dr.Pepper and my fundraisers...the list seems to be endless! But, I love it nonetheless. I enjoy being busy, there's never a dull moment and I have met some of the most amazing people that support such wonderful programs each day. Also, I have met so many new friends that I plan to keep for a life time! Meeting all these people has been such a wonderful experience all on its own!

Anyways, I just wanted to catch up with all my adventures since I last wrote! I'll try to sum up the last three months as quickly as I possibly can!! =]

INTERNATIONAL PANCAKE DAY WITH IHOP

Nicole and I.

Rachel, Nicole and I talking to customers.

Nicole and I folding napkins! =p

The three of us[Miss West Michigan, Rachel; Miss Michigan, Nicole; and myself] met at the Lansing iHop to help out however we could and greet the customers that were coming in for International Pancake Day. As some of you may already know, the Miss America Organization(MAO)'s national platform is the Children's Miracle Network(CMN). On February 23, National Pancake Day, we teamed with iHop to raise money for CMN. Each customer was offered a free short stack of pancakes and was asked to donate to CMN once they were finished. It was, once again, an outstanding turnout! We were there for three hours and the entire time we were there, the lobby was completely packed with even more people waiting outside. It was absolutely crazy!

Orientation!

Rachelle, my roommate the week of Miss MI!!

All the title holders for both Miss MI &Outstanding Teen

Karaoke! "Don't Stop Believin'"

Rachel and I.

Wow...left Friday night with my mom to Muskegon. Miss Lighthouse pageant was that night. All of the first runner up's competed in this pageant, making it a lot of fun to watch! All the girls are so talented, each one of them deserved to win!! The winner at the end of the night was new Miss Lighthouse Coast Stephanie Frey. She did a great job. Her talent is Baton Twirling, and let me be the one to tell you...she is AMAZING at it!!!

The next day started sharply at 6am! My mom and I met Cheryl, my director for breakfast before we started the long day. Afterwards, we made our way to the ballroom with everyone else to start our meetings. The meeting went ALL day long. But luckily, it was extremely informative and I was able to learn everything that I hadn't already gotten from someone else. I also got to meet my role model, Miss Michigan 2007 and Miss America 2008, Kirsten Haglund! Ahh, I was so star-struck. =]

We also got to draw for out line up numbers at State. I am number 19 and in the Sigma group!!! That means I will be competing my evening wear and swimwear on Wednesday Preliminaries, with talent and on-stage question on Thursday! We were also told our roommates. I am rooming with Miss Washtenaw County, Rachelle Sweet. This was the first time I had met her, but she is awesome. We are going to have a great week in June!!!

Dr.Pepper/Snapple ACMA Talent Search

Jason and I. His son, Lars, received my 3rd ever Autograph..Such a little cutie! 

John Hurst and I

All the judges

John and I again

During the 3 weeks I spent involved with this, I was devoted to Dr.Pepper and only Dr.Pepper. Haha, I had to miss work and college for 3 whole weeks! I even spent my 18th Birthday with them! But it was absolutely worth it. Since receiving my crown in August, I have grown up so much! I have learned to manage my time much more efficiently. I think I might be ready for college now! =] Anyways, my location branch was the Lake Lansing Walmart. Dr.Pepper/Snapple hosts a Singing Talent Search every year at different locations across Michigan and this year they asked the MMO to help out. The first two weeks was promoting Dr.Pepper/Snapple and letting everyone know about the talent search. I don't normally drink a lot of soda pop but I have NEVER drank so much pop in my entire than what I did those couple of weeks! Luckily it was the amazing tasting Dr.Pepper! ;] The final night of my events was the actual talent search. About 20 of the most talented singers from the Lansing area came out and performed. It was an American Idol style talent show. Myself, along with Aaron of Walmart and Kelly from Citadel Broadcasting were the judges. We had a lot of fun with it! They were all so talented and it was so hard to pick a winner. But Dylan won it! He was an amazing singer. He sang "International Harvester"...I couldn't help but sing along! His performance was amazing all in its own. He brought a whole crowd of fans along with him. Dylan will be competing at the finales on March 25th in Fenton along with the winners from the other locations. I think he has a pretty good shot! I will most likely be there to cheer him on. =]