Phone Call

I received a call this morning from the head broker at Keller Williams McKinney. Ironically his name is Matt, just like my middle brother. He wanted to set up an interview with me this week!!! The earliest we could both work into our schedule was Thursday afternoon. I will have to cancel one of my classes this week, but I will still be able to get five of my classes in and all my clients. It looks like we will be heading back up there this weekend.

Now, I have to attack this dusty house and the laundry.

Business and Pleasure

I can’t believe how much we just packed into one weekend. We saw some great locations for John’s baseball academy. We worked on designs until we couldn’t hold our eyes open any longer. The next morning immediately started off with meetings and number crunching at Lane's house. We worked as hard and as long as we could until our minds could not do anymore.

We took a little break to go look at some houses we had been viewing online. An agent named Cheryl came to meet us at the house. We immediately fell in love with the house. It had everything we were looking for and more. Cheryl was very interested in our backgrounds and somehow we got on the topic of me having my real estate license. She immediately started pitching Keller Williams to me and that I should join her agency when we move. It was definitely a huge possibility since they are the number one agency in McKinney.

We went back by Lane's house so I could work on a project with his youngest son, Ty. Ty is going into kindergarden this fall and Tammy was concerned about him learning his A,B,C's, colors, shapes and numbers. I had picked up some supplies earlier that morning so Ty and I could put together a little game to help learn a little faster. Ty is one smart little boy. Tammy doesn't have anything to worry about.

We went back to our hotel for about an hour. I started working on my Mrs. America paperwork while John passed out. We met Faith and her husband, Cameron, for dinner. Faith and I became good friends at the pageant. We had a fun dinner together. Before we knew it, five hours had flown by. It was great to see her again and meet her other half!

On the road again

We almost had our suitcases unpacked and now we are repacking them. We are headed up to McKinney for the weekend. John has some business meetings for his future baseball academy. We are going to look at possible locations and sit down and do some serious number crunching.

It was a different feeling driving by Corsicana this time. My how one place can change your life so much!

The Penny Record

Orange’s Patterson named Mrs. Texas
Robert Hankins, The Record Newspapers

Shannon Schambeau Patterson of Orange, a certified personal trainer and aerobics instructor at Bodyworkz Health Club in Bridge City, was recently crowned Mrs. Texas in Corsicana.

She will compete in the Mrs. America competition at the Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Ariz., Aug. 31-Sept. 7.

The winner there will compete for the title of Mrs. World – Oct. 3-24 in Korea.
To win Mrs. Texas, Patterson competed against 30 other delegates from the state in interview, swimwear and evening gown events.

As they say in Texas this was not her first rodeo. She was Miss District of Columbia 2005. She competed for the title of Miss America 2006, where she won the Preliminary Lifestyle and Fitness in Swimsuit Award and was named fourth runner up.

She has been actively involved with the organization as a judge and working with current state titleholders in their preparation for Miss America and helping them develop into confident women.

She is married to John Patterson and is the sister-in-law of Rebecca Patterson, who works with high school students in the nonprofit Scholarship Success program.

John Patterson played professional baseball as a starting pitcher with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Montreal Expos, Washington Nationals and Texas Rangers.

Shannon, who’s heard the question a few times as to what John thinks of all this, describes her husband as very involved.

“He’s very supportive, and judges with me,” she said. “Being that I’m a trainer, I’m always working toward the most healthy lifestyle possible, and he being an athlete shares those values and anything that he can do to have a positive impact on it.”

Shannon was sponsored in the Mrs. Texas pageant by local companies Rodan and Fields Skincare (Shannon is an independent consultant), Golden Triangle Industries, Grand Slam Batting Cages and Bodyworkz.

A native of San Antonio, Fla., she holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees in business administration from St. Leo University. She was chosen as St. Leo’s Distinguished Alumna for 2008-09 and was the Student Representative Commencement Speaker for the 2005 Graduate Programs. Shannon was a Magna Cum Laude graduate and received the Outstanding Student in Management and Outstanding Student in the School of Business 2002-03 Awards from the University.

Shannon has been a Special Olympics volunteer for more than 18 years and also worked for the International Headquarters in Washington, D.C., as the Manager for Donor Relations. She has volunteered on a local, state and international level. She had the chance to not only meet, but work beside her greatest role model, Eunice Kennedy Shriver.

“I moved to D.C. to work with Special Olympics and that’s where I met my husband while he was playing for Washington,” she said. “Eventually we moved to his hometown, which is Orange.”

Shannon has been on missionary trips to the Dominican Republic and Haiti and volunteered with the Jimmy Carter Work Project in Valdosta, Ga. Shannon has helped build more than 20 houses with Habitat for Humanity.

The Mrs. America Pageant celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2007. Former Mrs. America winners from Texas include Wendy Lewis (1994), Rhonda McGeeney (1982) and Carol McEwen-Ratcliffe (1980). The Mrs. America Web site is www.mrsamerica.com.

http://www.therecordlive.com/article/Hometown_News/People_and_Places/Oranges_Patterson_named_Mrs_Texas/55927

Back to work

I am not sure if you would call the last two weeks a vacation, but we are back to reality and work. I was excited to see all my ladies in class this morning. They were all extremely anxious to hear all the details about the pageant and how it feels to be Mrs. Texas. They all care about me like I am one of their own. They even surprised me with a huge vase of pink roses! It was a great way to come back to work!!

Last day at the beach.

Our time at the beach has come and gone way too fast. We seriously contemplated staying a few extra days, but John and I had to get back to work. Cheryl wanted to take some photos on the beach. Doug had just bought a new remote for his camera, so we were able to get some great shots of the four of us. The pictures will be a great memory of our vacation together.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father’s Day to all the great fathers out there. I love my Pappa dearly!! He is the rock of our family. He is a man of a few words, but the words he does speak are always meaningful.

When I married John, I gained another dad. He has taken me in like one of his own. I don’t know what the chances are of finding a husband who loves his family as much as I love mine!

My Brother's Wedding

John’s dad was sweet enough to drive us to FL. He was definitely the reason we arrived in safe and sound. Our condo was perfect and the beaches were incredible. There was not a drop of oil insight. It seemed like we blinked our eyes and it was already Thursday.

The rehearsal was short and sweet. My parents did an awesome job on the rehearsal dinner. My mom worked for hours and hours on a slide show of Matt and Becky. It was the highlight of the night.

The day of the wedding started off with plenty of sunshine. As the day went on, we were surrounded by rain clouds. I was in my element fixing my niece’s hair and applying Becky’s matron of honor’s make-up. We did all of Matt’s pictures inside and the rain let up enough for Becky to have her photos outside. It started to drizzle right before the wedding and Becky had to make a decision whether to have the wedding as planned or move it inside. She decided to go ahead as planned and we all cheered her on! God must have been listening because the rain stopped the moment the wedding started. The ceremony was beautiful. I loved when they filled the vase with two different colors of sand to represent their union as one. The reception was a blast. We danced until we couldn’t dance anymore. Before we knew it, we were wishing Matt and Becky on their way to happily ever after!

I am blessed to have a wonderful family and I am thrilled to have such a great new sister!

Orange Leader

Patterson wins Mrs. Texas
Special to The Leader
The Orange Leader

CORSICANA, Texas — Shannon Patterson, wife of John Patterson, was crowned Mrs. Texas 2010 this past Saturday at the Palace Theater in Corsicana, Texas. She competed against 30 other women from across the state in interview, swimwear and evening gown, and she will represent the state of Texas at the Mrs. America pageant in September in Tucson, Arizona. This renowned national competition is devoted to emphasizing that America’s 70 million married woman are extraordinarily beautiful, poised, articulate and versatile.

http://orangeleader.com/local/x1358987350/Patterson-wins-Mrs-Texas

Photo Shoot

There is no better way to start off my year as Mrs. Texas then a photo shoot!

I felt like I had just closed my eyes when the alarm clock went off the next morning. I said my goodbyes to my family and friends and then headed over to start getting ready.

I always do my own hair and make-up, so I loved just sitting in a chair and being pampered for the day. It was also great to have Tracy keep presenting me with fabulous gifts. The photo shoot was completely relaxed and laid back. We did the majority of the shots right under the awning of the hotel. We had the perfect wind and lighting. The finishing touches were completed when my husband gave me my first pair of cowgirl boots!

Before we knew it, six hours had flown by and we were finished. We all headed to downtown for lunch. Larry downloaded the photos and we were able to view them right there at the restaurant. I have never been able to see my photos that quickly.

After lunch, John and I said our farewells to the team and headed back to Orange for the night. We had to be on the road early the next morning to head to FL for my brother’s wedding.

Mrs. Texas 2010 Pageant

On June 12th, I competed with 24 beautiful women from across the Lone Star State. We competed in Interview, Swimsuit and Eveningwear. Our weekend immediately kicked off with orientation and a photo shoot. We caused quite a stir at the hotel as we pranced around in our swimsuits and heels. There were several young girl sports teams there who were thrilled to have “celebrities” at their hotel. If they were the judges, they would have crowned all 25 of us.

Friday was a packed full day of learning choreography, chit-chatting with all the ladies and a cocktail party with our handsome hubbies.

Saturday morning started immediately with interviews. I went for a 2 mile run before mine just to make sure I was alert and ready. After interview, we headed to the theater for the pageant. Rehearsal went smoothly except our group was struggling with our light formations at the beginning of the opening number. Edrienne, Mrs. Texas 1999, finally gave us something we could master and feel great about.

The night started off with us competing in swimsuit and eveningwear. Then the judges cut our group from 25 to 15. I could feel my nerves creeping up my legs as they called semi-finalist 11, 12, 13… My name was finally called as semi-finalist 14. We rushed to change and re-compete in swimsuit and eveningwear. Before we knew it, they were calling out the Top 5. I tried to keep my cool as each spot was being filled with one incredible lady after another. I was extremely excited when they called my name to fill the last spot. We were immediately escorted outside, so the Dawn could answer her on-stage question. One by one, each girl went inside to answer her question. It was a little surreal to be standing outside the theater during the middle of the pageant. They called me inside to answer my question and then our fates were in the hands of the judges. There were a ton of awards and preliminary awards, which I did not receive a single one. So when it was down to Abby Tracy, who won two preliminary awards, and me, I thought she had it in the bag. When they called her name as 1st runner-up, my mind had to take a second to process the fact that I had won!!! I was in complete shock. My family and friends were jumping up and down screaming and I couldn’t wait to give my Mr. Texas a hug! We spent the rest of the night celebrating and taking in the fact that I would be competing for Mrs. America!

I absolutely LOVE these ladies!