Community Gathering

What a great time we had! The local community put together an Officer Appreciation Dinner. There was quite a turn out, with 50 or so pots of chili to be served to all who showed up. We, the finalists for Mrs. Wyoming America, were invited to come out and help with the silent auction, with proceeds benefitting the Police Officers Fund, which purchased badges, flak vests and such. We received a good reception and answered a lot of questions! I even got to sign a few autographs! Fun, fun, fun!! Here's a few pictures of the event.

In order of appearance from left to right are:

Brandi - Mrs. Northern Wyoming, Senator Alan Simpson, retired, Me - Mrs. Park County and Becky - Mrs. Thermopolis

I also got to share a laugh with Senator Simpson, while his wonderful wife took a picture. He is quite a character, having regaled us with tales of his youth. My husband, Jeff, is a huge fan of his, so this was quite cool!

For those that have heard his name before and don't quite remember when. Senator Alan Simpson was part of the Iraq Study Group that made recommendations to President Bush. Now no flaming Senator Simpson, but Bush is fair game. :)

Take care, that's all for now...

What a busy weekend!

I cannot believe all of the stuff that is going on right now! Since I was selected as a State Finalist in the Mrs. Wyoming America pageant, I have been more involved in things that I had no idea even happened! For one, I went to a Passion Party. For those who take offense to any reference to anything sexual, you should just stop reading now...

For those that have never heard of this, or want more information, a Passion Party is a way of learning about sexual awareness, while promoting a healthy relationship. This was a fundraiser for another State Finalist in the area. Our presenter was very professional and NOTHING embarassed her! It made everything more relaxed. I must say that if you have the opportunity to go to one, you should. And if you have the opportunity to go as a couple, I think that would just be the most fun way of doing this... But then again, maybe not!

For those that I may have offended, I'm sorry. For those that I didn't, well I knew you guys were awesome. And just so you know, my husband was very supportive, this was not done in secrecy. He took care of all of the kids, so I could have a bit of a girls' night out.

I'll let you know about the other events later on. :)

Women's clothing...

Alright, what is up with all of these different sizes. Here I am in one size that I've been in for a bit and I go to order my opening number dress, what a surprise I am in for. I'll admit it, I'm a size 7, I'm about 20lbs overweight because of some hormonal issues... So I think that I am a 7 in everything, right? WRONG! That beautiful dress up there is being ordered in a size 14, simply because I am not proportional. Now a 14 is not a big size at all, that's not what I'm saying. I'm trying to understand how I buy one size for years and now all of a sudden, I'm a completely different size in this one designer. I think we need to revamp the entire system and do away with 1,3,5,7,9, whatever and go with what the men do. Now for the most part, I would have to say that women rock, but men's sizing is much easier to understand. Do I want to admit I have a 30" waist, not really, but it would make it a heck of a lot easier when I was looking for something that is sized this way...

Ah well... There's my vent for the day. Thanks for hearing me out! On the other side of things, I am not getting much stitching done again, as school has started. This semester shouldn't be as trying as last semester, but nonetheless school work cuts into my stitchy time anyway. I'll post updates on Angel of the Morning and the beginnings of War Paint as soon as I can.

Diary of a Mrs. Wyoming America Contestant

Yes, you read it right. Here I am in the middle of nowhere and I am a finalist in the Mrs. Wyoming America pageant that will be happening in May of 2007. I know that some of you really liked my stories on becoming a Wyoming Wife, so I figured that this was a great follow-up.

I've recently transformed myself from this:

To this!!!

So far, I have to say that it has been a blast. I've had my title now since October and I have been out in my community, more like my county, volunteering, doing fundraisers, and seeking sponsorships, as this is not the cheapest hobby to have!

Here is a picture of our opening number dress:

I have chosen coral, which is like the color of the dress on the right. Now I just need to lose a few pounds that have decided that they like their current home and I will be looking good! Once I get my interview suit, evening gown, and swimsuit picked out, you'll be the first to know. I'll also keep you updated on how my volunteering is going and see if I can get some pictures of the other girls in the area.

And you all just let me know if you want my address, so you can send donations to help pay for this, because I'm starting to believe that crafting is a lot cheaper! :)

Feel free to ask any questions that you may have. Whomever wins in May goes on to compete in the Mrs. America pageant held in beautiful Arizona, so well wishes are definitely welcome!

A Finish, and an End

I am very proud to say that I completed my first project of the New Year. I've been working on this off and on for about 4 months. The design is "Olde Irish Blessing" from Erica Michaels. I loved the way it turned out. :)


The picture just does not due it justice. I am now working on L&L's Angel of the Morning, again... There are just so many similar colors, it is very hard to get into stitching. But, I'm going to try putting it on a rotation and see if that gets it done alot faster!

And then, there was the END....

Of course, something needed to give me a good slap of reality. I was uploading all of the pictures that I took at Christmas, of the kids and their bounty, when my memory card freaked out. After rebooting and trying every way that I knew, I have concluded that I have lost those irreplaceable pictures... It just upsets me! I guess the positive thing is that I didn't lose more than that. So, I'll be looking for a new memory card this weekend, so I can continue to take pictures of the kiddos.

I must say that the weather has been quite fickle here lately. This morning we awoke to driving winds and falling snow, so much so that it took Jeff almost 25 minutes to go about 8 miles up the road! >:o0 Now, however, it is sunny and calm... I'm just hoping that we get feet of snow this winter, as opposed to inches. :)

Happy New Year!!

WOW! It is hard to believe that 2007 is here already. It seems like 2006 just started a few months ago. Time really flies when you are busy! Between school, work, and family, I just do not know where time has gone... I'm looking forward to a slower pace, at least for the beginning of the year.

My New Year's resolutions have already begun and I am happy to report that I am off to a good start. :) Here are some things that I hope to accomplish this year:

Blog more often (I have gotten quite out of the habit, I'm afraid)

Finish my unfinished WIPs (Same resolution every year... )

Take time to fish ( I LOVE fishing!)

Don't work so much... (I don't know if there is much I can do about this one!)

Spend lots of cuddle time with the kids... :)

Take each day as it happens.

Take lots of pictures... (I love to look through my albums.)

Take a vacation! (I don't know if this one will happen or not, but I've got my fingers crossed!)

Keep in touch with friends. (Once again, I've gotten out of the habit...)

I think that all of these are do-able. I've started on a few and hope that at the end of the year, I will be able to say that I accomplished almost all of them.

Happy 2007 everyone!