Christmas in Florida

We drove back to McKinney on the 26th and then caught a flight to Florida to spend the rest of the holiday with my family. Mom loves having everyone together and she even cooked another traditional dinner especially for John and me. My oldest brother Sam and his wife Farrah have been building a house. We went down and checked it out. The house is close to being down, so we were really able to get a feel of what the finished product is going to look like. They have put a lot of special details into the house. I am very excited for them!!

We were also able to see some of my cousins before we left town. My mom’s side of the family used to have a very traditional sit down dinner every Christmas at my grandparent’s house. It would range from 30 to over 40 people. My mom is one of seven. All of her brothers and sister would attend every year with their families. It was an organized chaos, but we loved the opportunity to see everyone. It has been a hard tradition to let go of, so I still try and see some of my cousins when we are home.

Christmas in Orange

We spent the first part of Christmas in Orange with John’s family. John’s mom knew how much I missed my traditional dinners, so she bought me a little baby turkey to cook. I called my brother Matt who has become quite the chef. He walked me through the rub down and how to cook it. 6 hours later it turned out to be the best turkey I have ever eaten!!! It might be first timers luck, but I really hope we can repeat it.

John’s dad had an extremely special surprise for me. They have a baseball mosaic on their bulk head by the water with all of their handprints surrounding it. After talking about it for 3 years, we were finally adding my handprint next to John’s. It was a very symbolic and meant a lot to John and me.

Once the handprint was set in cement, we took some family pictures on the steps. We were in need of a current family picture. With all of us together, it didn’t take long before we were goofing around. John’s dad was still able to capture some really great shots.

Kiwanis Christmas Party

John and I attended the Kiwanis Christmas party tonight. It helped us to get more in the Christmas spirit. The gift exchange was hysterical. I love to see what gifts people fight over. The cheese balls were a major hit, but immediately had one owner when they started getting eaten mouth first!! The holidays always seem to bring out the kid in all of us.

Miss DC Weekend

This weekend is dedicated to helping Stephanie Williams, Miss District of Columbia, prep for Miss America. Her flight lands in a few hours and she is staying through Monday evening. We are going to work on interview, walking and mental preparation. Stephanie is an extremely intelligent young lady who only has one more year of medical school. We are looking forward to getting to know her better this weekend. There is no experience like walking across the Miss America stage. I want every young lady to have the best experience and wake up the next morning with no regrets.

Bingo Night

I helped my fellow Kiwanians host Bingo Night at Homestead Nursing Home. I had no idea bingo was so competitive. These residents were not playing around. They were there to win and let us know it. I was thrilled when my lady won a game!!! There was one table of ladies that won over half the games. Next time I am going to try and get a seat at their table!

Serving Lunch at the Samaritan Inn

Our Keller Williams North Collin County office donated money to host lunch at the Samaritan Inn. It is the largest homeless shelter in Collin County. We heard a spokesperson for the Inn at a local networking meeting a few weeks ago and we decided to find a way to get involved. We were able to raise the money quickly. We also collected gift cards to local stores so the parents staying at the Inn could have the pride of buying their children Christmas gifts. We collected over $400 in gift cards and we are already have a great to start to host another lunch in January/February. Six of us went over to help serve lunch. We were greeted with big smiles and positive attitudes. They were excited about having choices and fresh vegetables for lunch. It broke our hearts, but reminded us how grateful we should be for the luxuries we have in our lives. We left the Samaritan Inn humbled and wanting to do more.

Breakfast with Santa

I made an appearance at a Breakfast with Santa this morning. A local dance studio was performing Christmas dance numbers. During one of the breaks, I had the opportunity to speak to all the little girls and sign autographs for them. Rose, my of my friend’s daughter, is destined to be a beauty queen. The crown fit her head perfectly!!

Keller Williams Christmas Party

John, Doug and Lane headed to the panhandle to go pheasant hunting. John and Doug have never been, so I can’t wait to hear about their experience! Our Keller Williams office party was help at one of the new Darling Home models in Tucker Hill. I was greeted at the front door with Christmas carolers and a lively crowd inside. There was tons of food, drinks and even a Grinch dressed up as Santa. It’s nice to be around all my colleagues in a social setting. I love being a part of this office!! They are truly endearing and fun to be around!

Twin Babies

We took dinner to the Bradley’s tonight. God has blessed them with beautiful twin girls. They are extremely tiny and only weigh 5 pounds. I am amazed by my friends who are able to juggle twins!! While I would love to have twins, the reality of it is a little scary! Congratulations to Jeff and Jenny.

Derozett'e Rodan+Fields Big Business Launch

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving in Orange with John’s family. We came back early so I could help Derozette host her first Rodan+Fields Big Business Launch. The event was great. Derozette has some great prospects for future business partners and clients. I can’t wait to watch her business grow. She is changing her skin and changing lives!!

Newest Member of Kiwanis

I am elated to say I am one of the newest members of the Kiwanis Club of McKinney!! With all the volunteer work I have done for many of the members, I already feel at home with the group. A few members already started booking events for me to appear at in December. I am truly going to enjoy being a part of this club!!

Brunch with Matt and Becky

My sweet brother picked us up from our hotel this morning. Matt lives in Atlanta, which is less than an hour away from Cartersville. We went back to his and Becky’s place to spend some time with them. They cooked us a great breakfast with fluffy waffles, an egg casserole and fresh fruit. We hung out and caught up on what was going on in our lives. Matt had to leave to go play in his championship baseball game. He pitched 9 innings and they won the championship!!! Becky and Rocco drove us to the airport. We said our goodbyes and headed back to Dallas. I am so glad we were able to spend the morning with them!!

After Party

We relaxed and enjoyed ourselves at the after party. It was wonderful to spend the weekend with old friends and to have the opportunity to make new ones. Holly was the life of the party and a blast to spend the weekend with. I loved seeing David again. I might have convinced Tonya to compete for Mrs. GA. I think she would be awesome!! Kristen now knows what it's like to be on the other side of the table. We toasted to a great weekend and many more to come!

Miss GA USA and Miss GA Teen USA

We finished up two long days of judging with two beautiful winners. Kaylin Reque was selected as Miss Georgia USA and Kristen Robinson was selected as Miss Georgia Teen USA. Kaylin really rocked it and Kristen just glowed on stage. We can’t wait to watch them on stage at nationals. I know Kim Greenwood will have them looking fabulous!!!

Prelims for Miss GA USA

Prelims were great tonight!! We had the opportunity to see the girls in swimsuit preview and then work the stage in swimsuit and gown. I can’t wait to see how the interviews go tomorrow morning. John started his day with interviews and wrapped it up with swimsuit and evening gown prelims. He gets to sleep in tomorrow like I did today. Tomorrow we have the opportunity to change two girls’ lives. I am excited!!

Flying to judge Miss Georgia USA

John and I are headed to Cartersville, GA to judge Miss Georgia USA and Miss Georgia Teen USA. John has 73 girls in the teen division and I have 79 in the miss. We know it will be a tough to narrow the field down to just 1 winner. I was thrilled to be judging with one of my old friends, David Lang. David and his partner Carry run Regalia’s Magnificent Apparel in Orlando, FL. They helped dress me for all my years competing in FL, Miss DC and Miss America. John was judging with Kristen Motil who he selected as Miss Tennessee 2009. We had a nice dinner with everyone and then headed to bed. We were definitely going to need our rest!!

Penny Lane's Vet Visit

We had to take our little baby to the vet for her annuals. Penny Lane HATES to be put in a kennel, so we have to keep coming up with creative ways to trick her. The one thing that definitely needs to happen is her claws seriously need to be cut!! They are way too long and we can’t hold her down long enough to cut them. The vet assistant was super sweet with Penny Lane. But Penny Lane was positive that this was the end of the road for her!! Penny Lane went completely limp and would let out a deep meow to let us know she wasn’t happy. The vet’s assistant called her a drama queen and we couldn’t agree with her more. We were in and out of the office in less than 15 minutes, but it wiped John and me out for an hour after. I hope this is not a sign of how our kids are going to act.

Rebecca's Birthday Dinner

Doug and Cheryl came up to visit us this weekend. This is the first weekend we all had available. Rebecca’s birthday is today and I have an amazing meal planned for everyone. I love cooking for special occasions and have been tweaking the menu all week trying to make it perfect for her. We started with appetizers around 4:30. I had bought some fresh ahi tuna that was perfect for the tuna tartar. The French onion soup was extremely good, but I definitely need some different soup bowls. The Caesar salad was the only thing I didn’t make from scratch and I should have! We had a big break between the first few courses and the main entrée. I was definitely a little over ambitious with my selections. I made wasabi-crusted ahi tuna, macadamia-crusted tilapia with a white chocolate buerre blanc, truffle mac n’ cheese and green bean with toasted almonds. It didn’t seem like that much of a challenge until I was trying to see how many burners and ovens I could use at one time!! All I can say is that it was worth the stress and time. Dinner turned out amazing!!!! The only problem is we didn’t have stomachs big enough to even touch the amount of food on our plates!! We waited an hour before we even attempted to eat the cheesecake and chocolate covered strawberries. I had so much fun cooking for everyone. Now, I need another special occasion to celebrate!!

3rd Anniversary

I can hardly believe that 3 years ago I was walking down the aisle to marry the man of my dreams. While the road we have traveled down has been a little bumpy and stressful at times, I am glad it has brought us to the place we are now. I am blessed to have a husband who comforts, understands and loves me. We were definitely meant for each other!!

Race Day

Today is race day!!! We headed for the race track bright and early. You could feel the energy the moment we entered the infield. We walked the garages and watched the different crews stress over every detail of the cars. The opening ceremonies were very moving. They had hundreds of soldiers there to honor and thank them for their service. NASCAR fans may get a little crazy, but they praise our troops and take time to pray!

We stayed in the pits for the start of the race. It was amazing how loud it can get down there. I would be amazed if the pit crews and drivers didn't have serious hearing loss. We watched one of the pit runs. It seemed like the cars had just stopped and they were already driving down the track again with fresh tires and fuel. The rest of the race we watched from on top of the Richardson’s bus. Doug was unstoppable with his camera. I would love to know how many great shots he captured! They have a prime time spot right on turn 4!! We finished the night off with dinner at Cracker Barrel and were home by 10:00. Yes, you have to eat at a southern cooking restaurant after a NASCAR race.

Qualifying at Texas Motor Speedway

 

We went to the Texas Motor Speedway to watch qualifying for the race this weekend. John’s dad came up to join in on the fun. We had pit passes. Robert Richardson, Jr gave us a tour of his trailer so we could see first-hand how they put their garage on 4-wheels for the race season. John was almost too tall for the tour. He had to slump over a little to be able to walk around the trailer.

Doug had a field day with his camera!! He was sweet enough to grab a few quick shots of us with Carl Edwards and Bobby Labonte. We spent the rest of the day watching the cars zoom around the race track trying to get the best spots for the races.

Kiwanis and Allegiance Title Company

Today was a long, but very fun day. I started the day before the sun and drove to a local Champions School of Real Estate. We spoke to students who are working on their real estate about joining our office.

For lunch, I was asked to be the guest speaker for the Kiwanis Club of McKinney. The members were extremely welcoming. I talked about being Mrs. Texas, my pageant experiences, my sweet hubby, education and mission work. We wrapped up the meeting with some Q&A. I received an invitation from many of the members about joining Kiwanis. It was such an honor and I think I will take them up on it.

I spent my evening at Allegiance Title Company in McKinney. They were having a fundraiser for the Samaritan Inn. It is the largest homeless shelter in Collin County. They had tons of fun games for the kids, silent auctions and a raffle. The night was a success by raising over $1,000!!

Mrs. Texas Girls' Lunch

Sally Mesa, one of the fabulous ladies I competed with at Mrs. Texas, invited me over to Southlake for a girls' lunch. Dalana and Edrienne, Mrs. Texas 1999, also joined us for lunch. We talked about my Mrs. America experience, all the prep work and the different appearances I had been doing. Sally also wanted to hear about Rodan+Fields, so I had brought some different products and information with me. They loved the new AMP MD roller and the Anti-Age serum. AMP MD is the best spent minute in anti-aging. These are definitely the hottest products on the market right now!! We had a wonderful time and I think it would have gone even longer if I didn’t have to rush back to McKinney for an appointment. We need another girls lunch soon!!

Open House and Especially Needed Annual Fall Carnival

The Miracle League didn’t need volunteer this morning for their final games, so I had the opportunity to sleep in a little bit.

I hosted an Open House at 3504 Rottino Drive, which is just around the corner from our house. I had some great families that stopped by to check out the house.

I wrapped up the open house and headed home for a quick change. I headed up to the Ballfields at Craig Ranch for the Especially Needed Annual Fall Carnival. Heather Astuto organized the event and it was an amazing success. 150 families attended the event. They participated in games, cake walks, moon walks, trick or treat alley and tons of other things. I signed autographs for almost every kid there. I received lots of hugs and took a ton of photos. It was great way for special needs kids and their families to have a safe and fun place to go.

Dinner with Mrs. MO

This week really flew by. I can’t believe it is Friday already!! John and I had dinner tonight with Carrie, Mrs. MO, and her husband, George. They were in town for Carrie’s high school reunion in Fort Worth. We met in Los Colinas at the Ranch. If you are looking for great Southern food, this is the place! We enjoyed sharing stories and talking about our adventures around the world. Carrie bubbles with enthusiasm!! I love the way she tells stories and the energy she brings to the conversation. I could have listened to her all night! Carrie is a fabulous person, incredibly smart and absolutely beautiful!! Three hours with her is gone in the blink of an eye. The only thing I was disappointed with is I forgot to take a picture of us until we were all in our cars heading different directions. Hopefully, there will be a next time!

Here is a picture of us together at Mrs. America.

Godsmack Concert

Tonight John and I went to the Godsmack concert tonight. Heather, Mrs. New Hampshire's, husband is the bass guitar player for the Godsmack. Robbie got us tickets and backstage passes to the concert. Seether and Papa Roach were also part of the show. We loved it when Robbie took the stage!! He was so much fun to watch in his element. They really put on a great show.

After it was over, we headed back stage to hang out with Robbie for a little while. We talked about his beautiful wife and our Mrs. America experience. Robbie is such a nice and warm guy. I hope our paths cross again very soon!!

Senator Florence Shapiro

Texas Senator Florence Shapiro came to our office today to speak about the issues the Senate will be facing in the next session. I had the honor of introducing her at the meeting. Senator Shapiro is a strong advocate for children and education. You can tell her passion comes from life experiences and being a very value-based individual.

I had the opportunity to speak with her after the meeting. When she found out I was Mrs. Texas, she immediately invited me to be introduced on the Senate floor in January. I think that will be wonderful exposure for the Mrs. Texas Pageant!!!

Get Motivated Business Seminar

John and I went to Dallas with a huge group from my Keller Williams office for the Get Motivated Business Seminar. They had an incredible panel of speakers including Gen. Colin Powell, Laura Bush, Steve Forbes, Troy Aikman, Terry Bradshaw, Zig Ziglar, Emmitt Smith and many more. It was an inspiring day and I was glad that John went with me. He signed up for an investment class that I am sure he will get a lot out of. I love when I feel full of life!!

Nebraska Sunday

This morning the guys headed to the golf course to play a round with ESPN announcer, Sean McDonough. Nicole and I spent the day with her family. We took her daughter, Ava, to Twinkles practice. She is a little cheerleader and is nothing short of adorable.

We grabbed lunch and went home for a Rodan+Fields presentation. We watched some of the clips from the dvd and talked about the business opportunity and products. Nicole is opening a high-end dress store on December 1st and thought this would be a great addition to her business. If you are going to have a great wardrobe, you definitely need to follow it up with incredible skincare! I am thrilled to have Nicole on my team!

We walked down to the golf course to take some pictures with the guys. They were definitely having a fun time. By the time they finished up with golf, it was time to head to the airport. This weekend flew by, but we were thankful for the wonderful weekend we had with Nicole, Mark and their family!!

Texas vs. Nebraska

Mark and Nicole picked us up from the hotel this morning and we head to straight to Lincoln for the football game. We met up with Nicole’s sister, Renee, and a lot of their other friends at a tailgate party. I have to say that I love Nebraska fans. They are some of the nicest, most hospitable fans across the country. John and I sported Texas shirts and we didn’t hear a single mean comment! Nebraska fans are true class acts. The only hostility we received was a funny photo I took with Jennifer, Mrs. Nebraska 2009, and Nicole acting like they were beating me up.

We went to the stadium for the game. It’s amazing how tightly they squeeze you together in those seats. At half-time, we went back out to the tailgate party. We were having such a great time that we ended up just staying there for the rest of the game. It was amazing how fast the day flew by. We had such a fun time!!!