Children's Hospital

February 9th

Seeds of Hope Chapter

Here is the Logo we created for our Chapter at Children's Hospital

Starting a foundation or a non profit has always been a dream of mine even before becoming Mrs. Colorado.  After participating in the "Queen for a Day" event at Children's Hospital earlier in my year, I was touched by not only the brave children but also the courage of their parents.  Having three children myself, it was hard not to put myself in their shoes.  I could not even begin to imagine the strength it would take to look at your little one and feel so helpless.  I needed to do something to give back to the parents.  After brainstorming, Becca Smith and I decided to create a chapter at Children's Hospital geared towards refueling and rejuvenating the parents of the patients.  We decided to put together a spa day for the mothers of the NICU.  It was a HUGE success.  These women were pampered with manicures, chair massages, blow outs, and snacks.  We also provided instruction on crocheting and offered yarn and needles for them to pass the time.  I am incredibly proud of this event and our chapter, Seeds of Hope.  I am looking forward to hosting many more events in the future.

With Becca Smith at our first Seeds of Hope event

Due to confidentiality we did not take photos of the participants.

Go Red for Women

February 4th

Ambassador Search

It was a true honor to be asked to judge the Go Red for Women ambassador search.  The American Heart Association is a close personal friend of the Mrs. Colorado organization especially since a former queen was an ambassador herself.  Christina Sacha, Mrs. Colorado 2008, became an ambassador for the American Heart Association during her reign, after her husband suffered a heart attack.

Christina Sacha, Mrs. Colorado 2008 and Go Red Ambassador

I had the pleasure of meeting and listening to the courageous women who have been effected by Heart Disease and have a passion for sharing their stories and spreading awareness.  Heart Disease  is the number one killer of women and up until recently was perceived as an older male dominated disease.

 The Go Red For Women movement works to make sure women know they are at risk so they can take action to protect their health.  Please educate yourself on the warning signs, many women dismiss the symptoms as being tired, stressed, or malnourished. Visit:  http://www.goredforwomen.org/index.aspx

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

February 4th

Menchie's Yogurt

The ribbon cutting ceremony.

Who doesn't love frozen yogurt?  When I was asked to participate in the grand opening of the Greenwood Village Menchie's Yogurt, I jumped at the chance to lend a helping spoon.  Even the snow did not stop patrons from coming down to check out the new store and have a free tasty treat.  The first 50 guests were also given a free t-shirt.  The kids had a great time having their faces painted, receiving crazy balloon animals, as well as, personalizing their own frozen yogurt creations.  They have several flavors of yogurt to choose from and a wide range of toppings.  I even got my picture taken with Menchie himself!

with Menchie the face of Menchie's Yogurt.

Picture Clue Answer

Where in Colorado,

is Mrs. Colorado?

 

Dee Dee Congratulations for being the first to give the correct answer!

 

 

 

Thank you all for being so patient,

it has been a wonderful yet crazy few weeks.

This will be the last one as I am preparing to finish up the blog and hand it to the new

Mrs. Colorado!

Thank you all so much for playing,

it has been fun.

 

 

Get Your Pageant Tickets

The pageant tickets officially go on sale to the public today. The state finalists had an opportunity to purchase tickets yesterday, and they sure did! I am beginning to believe there just might be a sold out theater to watch Mrs. Colorado 2012 be crowned. We have so many celebrity guests coming to watch including a former Miss America, Mrs. America, Mrs. World, Mrs. Ohio, Mrs. New York just to name a few. This will be an exciting night.

Come watch the preliminary pageant where you can watch all the contestants compete in swimsuit and evening. This is your only chance to see all ladies compete in these phases of competition. To buy your tickets, http://mrscoloradoprelim.eventbrite.com

To buy final night tickets, http://mrscolorado.eventbrite.com

You can always pop a check in the mail for tickets and I will mail your tickets to you. Preliminary tickets are $15 each and final night seats are $25.

Blessings to you!

Blush Auditions

December 19th


Competing in the pageant for four years may seem daunting and frustrating to some, but for me it has led to some great experiences and friendships that I will have for a lifetime. I met Jessica Mason, who now owns Studio 21 Dance, my first year competing. I was thrilled when she asked me to come down and be a guest judge for her Blush dance team. Like many of you, I believed I was a pretty good dancer and could carry my own on the dance floor, boy was I mistaken after watching these girls. I love watching people use the talents they have been given, these girls were amazing which made my job that much harder. I am looking forward to catching them on the big stage when they perform.

Special Needs Christmas Party

December 17th

There are some incredible people in our world and many of them go unknown because they don't like to draw attention to their generous doings. I had the opportunity to meet a couple doing just that, giving back without expecting anything in return. For many years Bob and Rita have been organizing a fun - filled Christmas party for the disabled children in our county. Most of these children have to take a specially equipped bus to school because of their disabilities. The bus drivers were also involved in coordinating and volunteering for this event, which has been taking place for over 15 years. Chaparral High School provided the back drop which was decorated in a luau theme. A band played as the kids ate, danced, and did crafts. Santa and Mrs. Clause were also in attendance. What a great way to spend an afternoon, these children are simply amazing.

Bob and Rita the wonderful couple who continue to bring smiles to the faces of these special children year after year.

some of the many volunteers who spread their love this holiday season.

with Carly and Kendall two special gals who drug me out to the dance floor only to show me up.

with Beth, what a sweet girl.

Christmas Parade

December 10th

Being from a small town has many perks and one of my favorites is the closeness we share as a community. There are many gatherings, celebrations, events, and parades in our town of Parker. The town has been so wonderful and encouraging to me over the years and I am honored to represent them. Being a mom and having my children share in the traditions of the community is important to me and my husband, it creates a sense of pride, a feeling of unity, and gives them a foundation.
With the holidays in full force our town is gearing up for many special events one of which is the Holiday Parade.
"Another Parade?" my oldest son says with a roll of his eyes, I respond with a simple, "Yes".  While it may be just another parade to my kids, I am always happy to see the smiling faces of the children enjoying our local parade and waving at a real live "princess". For me wearing this crown is about what I can give to others and sometimes that is just a friendly smile and a wave.

with the Boy Scouts, what an amazing organization doing great things for our young men.

with Santa and Mrs. Clause.  (Mrs. Clause was a teacher at the elementary school I attended)

Care 4 Kids Worldwide

December 7th


Earlier in my reign I had attended a Care 4 Kids event and was impressed with their organization. One of the co-founders is a friend of mine, Valentina Anderson, whom I met competing in the Mrs. Colorado pageant. She is extremely passionate about finding funds and other ways to help orphans all over the world. This event was a luncheon held at a wonderful little Russian Cafe, Teremok-Russian Crepes Cafe. It was an emotional afternoon for the two founders of the organization because they had a very generous donor match their efforts when they reached $5,000. Alex Bourlakov graciously wrote out a check at the event and I was honored to receive it on behalf of Care 4 Kids. The funds will be used to build a playground at an orphanage in Russia.

Watching as Alex writes out his generous donation.

with Alex, Valentina, and Julia.

Picture Clue

CLUE: This place has been opertating since 1920.  In 1999 they opened to the public, offering free tours and an annual Candy Cane Festival, an event which is still held the first Saturday in December.



Congratulations to Rita Case for guessing Coors Field.
This next one is going to be a little more difficult.  If there are no correct guesses by Sunday I will add more clues.  Good Luck!

Where in Colorado,

is Mrs. Colorado?

No it is not your computer, it is a horrible photo.



Picture Clue

Congratulations to Melissa Kraft for guessing The Old Spaghetti Factory on the last picture clue! She will be receiving a $25.00 gift card to the famous restaurant.

Remember some of the clues have prizes attached and unfortunately, some do not.

 

 

Where in Colorado,

is Mrs. Colorado?

 

 

 

Good Luck!

Don't forget to answer under comments on our blog

Queen's Christmas Party

December 3rd

What an amazing holiday tradition I now get to be a part of every year, the Mrs. Colorado Queen's Christmas party. I have heard stories for the past four years about this party and how special it is for all the former queens to gather and celebrate the holidays together. As you can imagine I was a little nervous being the "new" girl attending the party, but riding in with Emily, our director and Mrs. Colorado 2002, and seeing so many familiar faces, I was immediately put at ease. Besides, I had competed with three of them and knew them quite well. It is customary for the former queen to host the gathering and Shalon Polson went above and beyond. As part of the tradition, she gave everyone a special gift, a robe embroidered with the Mrs. Colorado emblem. It was a beautiful evening!

with Debbie Moore (94), Marney Duckworth (06), Emily Stark (02), Elisabeth Cartmill (03), and Christina Sacha (08)

The beautiful table setting.

with Laurie Kole (86) and Megan McCarter (09) wearing our fabulous gifts from Shalon.

An amazing group of women!

Body Statement Gym

December 2nd

Tiffany Yee owns the Body Statement Gym in Denver and was a guest judge last year at the Mrs. Colorado pageant. She has also recently signed on as a sponsor. Tiffany and her knowledgeable staff have been helping me get back and stay in shape with this crazy schedule I am maintaining as wife, mother, volunteer, and Mrs. Colorado. I have always been active and looking for ways to stay in shape, these guys have stepped my abilities up to a whole new level. It was great to be able to celebrate the holidays with them at their Holiday Open House. Looking for a little motivation? Need help getting over that plateau? Or would love some nutritional resources? Then check out The Body Statement Gym. I would highly recommend Tiffany and her staff. www.bodystatementgym

 

with the amazing trainers, Carissa, Justin, Tiffany, and Brandon.

 

Parker Tree Lighting Ceremony

November 25th

It is no secret that I know, and have become very good friends with the Mayor of Parker, Mr. David Casiano. We have partnered up for many events in the Parker community, which is really special to me because this is where I grew up and it is the town I represented before winning the title of Mrs. Colorado. Every year the town of Parker gathers for the annual tradition of lighting the Christmas lights in our town. There are vendors selling delicious treats and warm beverages, carolers singing, and friends and families gathering to celebrate. It is an honor to be invited as a guest to these events where I used to come as a child with my parents.

 

with David and my daughter Miale.

 

United Way

Turkey Trot

 

November 24th

United Way is an organization my family has supported for many years. My husband Billy and I have been running the annual United Way Turkey Trot since before we were even married. We now participate with our three little ones. Every year we get up early and head down to Washington Park for all the excitement. We usually run the 5k race, but this year we were asked as the "Royal Family" to lead the Family Fun Run. The kids thought it was pretty great that we were asked to come up front to the start line and be introduced. I thought it was pretty great that my two boys were 2nd and 3rd to cross the finish line. I was one proud mom.

 

with Tom the Turkey at the Start of the race.

Disabled racers kicked off the start of the 5K.

with my fabulous family ready to kick off the family fun run.

 

Ad Pages

November 20th

I have always loved working with Megan Anderson from Graphique Photography. She is the official photographer for the Mrs. Colorado pageant, but through the years we have become very close, and I respect her talents and treasure her friendship. I have been planning and preparing my final ad pages for some time and was looking forward to collaborating once again with her. It was just as I had hoped it would be and I look forward to sharing it with everyone in the 2012 pageant program book.

Parade and Tree Lighting

 

Southlands Mall

November 19th

I have mentioned before the importance of making and creating relationships. I believe that people are brought in and out of your life for reasons, some are meant to stay and others are only meant to pass through for a short time. I am in the eighth month of my reign and many of my current appearances have come about because of relationships or appearances I had done in the earlier part of my year. I have been invited back or met someone new at an event and they invited me to be a part of something they were creating, nonetheless here I am back at Southlands Mall. I was here in September judging the Project Style Fashion Show. Joyce, the event coordinator called and invited me to ride in the parade with the winner of the Project Style Fashion show, Karly. It was great seeing her again and it was nice to share another event with my family who cheered on the side as we rode by in our horse drawn carriage, after the Grinch but before Santa.

 

(Pictures to come soon)

Where in Colorado?

 

 

November 6th

This beautiful Sunday was spent with my best gal pal and booking agent, Becca Smith. I thought it would be fun to create an interactive game online to showcase some of Colorado's hot spots. We traveled around taking pictures all over town in front of well known places in Colorado and then planned on posting the pictures once a week for individuals to guess where I was. I have had so much fun each week posting and watching as people participate. Many of you really know Colorado!

 

Look for the next picture clue Wednesday, January 4th as we get back on track!

Brass Ring Luncheon

Children's Diabetic Foundation

November 1st

I have a few very special people in my life who live with Diabetes, which made attending this event that much more meaningful. From family to friends we all know of someone who lives with diabetes. Many people don't know, but it causes more deaths than breast cancer and AIDS combined.
I was thrilled to be invited by a close friend of mine, Karen Foos, to the Brass Ring luncheon which benefits the Children's Diabetes Foundation. Karen has a son who was diagnosed with diabetes at 9 years old, now in his mid 20's he has an insulin pump which helps regulate his blood glucose levels. She has worked closely with the Barbara Davis Center which helps nearly 6,000 children and young adults from all over the world receive diabetic care.
The event, which hosted 800 individuals, began with an amazing display of silent auction items. I was honored to help with the live auction by wearing a gorgeous $19,000 Amorist necklace and then asked to walk the runway, while the necklace was vigorously bid on by a few gentlemen in the audience who were obviously looking for that special gift. After, the fashion designer from Vancouver, RozeMerie Cuevas, brought an amazing line from her fall collection for the cat walk, which was all part of the entertainment for the afternoon. We also heard from a few key note speakers on the importance and need for this wonderful organization.

with my friend and date, Karen Foos

with Ed Greene, the emcee for the afternoon.

Walking the runway for the live auction. Notice the beautiful necklace!

with Judy McNeil, the president of The Guild and her husband Charlie.

Her Life Magazine

 

November 2011

When I first shot with Her Life Magazine last year through Donna Baldwin Talent, I had no way of knowing our lives would cross many more times throughout the year. I have been blessed with the connections I have made with many of the individuals who work for the magazine. My sister- in- law and her family have even graced the cover of the magazine, when they did an article on them about their decision to use in vitro fertilization. The magazine covered my Send Off party for Mrs. America in the May issue, and I was so excited they featured our Stop Child Trafficking race for the Scene and be Seen section which hit news stands in November. Keep your eyes peeled for the upcoming issues in the new year, there just might be a fabulous advertisement for an organization which is really close to my heart.

 

Shooting for Her Life and advertising for Soignee Boutique

Playing around after the shoot.  This was just one week before leaving for Mrs. America.

My sister in law, Anne and her family on the cover.  It is a great story!