Happy Holidays from Mrs. Colorado!

I hope you all had a blessed Thanksgiving. I know it looked different this year and while many of us would have rather been in a big group, I must say my immediate family and I had a pretty chill day. I cooked but I didn’t go overboard. We also put up our Christmas Tree which I would love to make a yearly tradition. I have so much on my mind right now that I don’t even know where to begin.

I've been saying a lot of prayers lately for those suffering. Being a hairstylist and being Mrs. Colorado means I talk to a lot of people. It seems that I am hearing of even more suffering than normal (which of course I do because we are in the middle of a pandemic). I'm hearing of younger people losing their lives to cancer and sudden death and some of my friends are losing parents. Some of this is to be expected and some is not. My thoughts are with you all.

I have so many things to be thankful for even though Jason and I have had a few unexpected blows this past couple of months. We have a family member sick with Cancer and Jason suffered a professional blow recently but we just have to keep on keeping on and be thankful we are one of the families out there that still have jobs, a roof over our heads and food in our stomachs. Its all relative to your normal and its hard to put it in perspective but I thank god daily that we are still ok, have amazing kids and are not suffering like many. Grace, Garrett and Jayce have officially been online schooling the past few weeks. Garrett is in a private school and is going back on Monday the 30th so I hope it will stay in person for a while. I used to complain that kids nowadays(yes I sound like an old fashioned soul) don’t know how to cope because they never have disappointment to deal with, but I think the last few months are proof that they are now experts on how to cope with disappointment! Ha ha.

Ok last thing on the boo hoo front…who struggles with spending quality time with their kids? I always admire the super moms who throw trivial things out the window and sit down and play legos with their kids, read with them and play dress up with them. I have never been that mom. I let all of the things that hang over my head like housework, errands and now my public responsibilities take over. Heck, I even let facebook scrolling and Instagram scrolling get in the way sometimes. I go to bed sometimes feeling like a failure and thats not good for my psyche. Wednesday, our local sledding hill was full of snow and I took a deep breath and put all my “to-do’s” in the back of my mind. I took Jayce (7) sledding and we had a great time. Such a great time in fact that we went twice that day. I placed my head on my pillow that night and felt like a good mom. I must do those little things more often. I certainly take care of my family and I love it but being able to be a kid with them sometimes goes a long way! I want them to have fun memories with me. I am better with the teenagers to be honest. I listen to rap with them and laugh about adult things but the littles are the bigger challenge for me. Im making a pact to “go sledding” more often!

I have so many fun things going on! I've been invited to participate in the COVID style Colorado Springs parade of lights next Saturday at the World Arena with Miss Colorado Springs for America Laurel Barrett. I am helping Mrs. Colorado American Sylvia Waller teach etiquette at the annual Beautillion Cotillion on December 6th along with Miss Colorado for America Juliet Abdel. I am volunteering weekly with Secor Cares, a local food bank with deliveries and I have just wrapped up a successful Coats for Colorado drive. As always I am working hard to raise awareness and funds for Treeline Pass. The first 30 people to donate this month will receive an adorable tree ornament made by their Client Cole this holiday season! www.treelinepass.org. I hope you will all continue to watch my interviews with Treeline Pass employees and board members! They are doing amazing things to help adults with developmental disabilities! I was invited on Thanksgiving morning to visit VFW 501 as they fed homeless veterans and the welcome I received made my heart burst. I love our veterans and appreciate them inviting me! Im very exited to compete for the title of Mrs. America January 23-30 at the Westgate resort in Las Vegas. It will be an amazing, once in a lifetime experience!

Happiest of Holidays to each and every one of you. I am so honored to represent our amazing state, Colorado!

Love,

Nicole