Out and About!

Well in honor of my 42nd birthday today, I got an evening to actually sit down and post again~something I've been waiting to do for awhile now!

As Mrs. Central Virginia International, I've been invited to a lot of different events which have been SO much fun to volunteer at. It's hard to say which one has been the best but I would probably have to go with judging the WV Roadkill Festival Pageant!

I know, right? I had NO idea either this was a real competition but not only is this a very honored title in Marlinton, WV where this event is held, but the Roadkill Festival itself draws tens of THOUSANDS of attendees annually! I was very impressed with the amount of contestants we had, from Little Miss on up (I judged the pre-teen and older group, my daughter Alanna who is Miss Relay For Life judged both events since the pageant was split up into differing segments) to Miss Roadkill Festival herself, a beautiful and vivacious blond gal named Allie who stunned us from the get-go with her proficiency in interview and solid knowledge of her community and the festivals and history that go with it. One little girl even taught us a recipe with groundhog and ramps!

It was a fantastic event and we were treated like royalty and got the chance to see a part of the world we hadn't been to before but that I love all the more for having been able to experience 3 days with the people and the pageant itself. Director Shana Smith really did a terrific job with great prizes and making all the contestants a queen in their own right when they stepped on the stage on finals night.

Here on the left is Miss WV Roadkill Festival 2014 Allie Katarina Cole along with my daughter Alanna ;) Good luck Allie during your year!

Of course there have been a lot of other opportunities, not including my most recent one to become a Susan G. Komen Educator (that will be on an upcoming post!), that I was fortunate enough to be invited to as well as honored to be a part of. Here was one in Salisbury, Maryland where I served as a judge for the America's Brilliant Miss pageant as well as an earlier preliminary pageant that morning. Pictured with my daughter and I is Kimberly Sumner Williams, one of the new queens for ABM. One of the outgoing queens, Gigi Giganto (she is my Mini-Me #2 as I call her! I love this girl!) joined us for the photo which I thought came out fantastic given we all got the "memo" on what colors to wear!

With the ABM queens in Salisbury, MD! 

Here we are with one of the younger contestants,
she was the sweetest child and had the best smile all day!

One of the most terrific things about making appearances is getting to share "girl time", (even though these are WORKING events!) with my daughter Alanna. She too is a hard-working queen and has made a terrific year so far of holding her Miss Relay For Life title for Virginia. She rushed and was chosen for Alpha Xi Delta sorority, and as many of you might know, interview skills come in handy not just in pageants but in life as she found out during Rush Week. Yet because of her past experiences she was able to navigate the process with confidence. Not only that, she recently placed 4th runner up for the Miss DC Collegiate America title and Mom (aka her coach) couldn't be prouder!

Above you can see us taking a...you guessed it.... 'selfie' (LOL!) at the Curly Q pageants here in Richmond, VA where I served as the hostess and emcee and Mini-Me had fun doing what she does best, judging the little ones. One thing I love about her is that she's competed a lot herself so she understands as a judge just how important a kind word and constructive tip on how a contestant can do better is the best way to help a girl prepare to win the crown next time around. How amazing at only 18 she's already learned that? Think about that the next time someone thinks "Toddlers & Tiaras" represents anything at *all* about the REAL world of pageantry! A picture is worth a thousand words and I think the one below says it all about the friendships made in the journey to the crown :)

With Amy Berry, Ms Warren County and one of my DEAREST pageant sisters!