...And the Journey Begins!

Hello again! To pick up where I left off, I was crowned Miss Wyoming 2011 on the evening of June 25, 2011. My mom and I were on cloud nine! Mom called a few key people and from there, all our wonderful friends and family helped to spread the news! I heard from so many amazing people, even people that I hadn’t had contact with for years! The support and excitement was overwhelming. Mom and I headed to the hotel around midnight. I told her that all I wanted was pizza or a burger… as it turned out, there was nothing open to feed us junk food at that time of night! I ended up with a protein drink-hahah! Too funny!

After I showered, Mom and I started to wind down and decided to try and sleep. I woke up early the next morning to hop in the hot tub with my wonderful friend Angela Cotherman. Mom woke up with me and before saying anything to me, she threw off the covers of her bed, walked over to my crown box (a wooden box lined in soft material to protect the crown) and opened it, taking out the crown! We started to giggle, giddy with excitement as it hit us all over again that I had been blessed with the title of Miss Wyoming 2011!

After the hot tub, I got ready for the day (Mom and I were driving back to Laramie) and headed down for my first breakfast as Miss Wyoming! The Board of Directors for the Miss Wyoming Scholarship Organization, hereafter referred to as ‘the Board’ was meeting my mom and me for breakfast in the lobby of the Holiday Inn. I finally was able to indulge with waffles, eggs, etc! After we ate, we got down to business. Being a title holder in the Miss America Organization is an incredible honor and with it comes mighty responsibility. It is an “all or nothing” endeavor and I was ready to jump in head first! The very first question one of the Board members asked me was, “Do you want to become Miss America?” Without hesitation, I quickly replied, “Absolutely! I want to be the next Miss America!” J

One of the items on the agenda that morning was filling out the necessary paperwork. One of the sections to fill out was my address. At that moment, it hit me that I didn’t have an address. I had just moved back from three months in Hawaii, all of my belongings (sans 2 suitcases and 4 boxes) were in storage, and I had been planning to head to Nebraska to confirm a job offer in Scottsbluff after the competition. As I found out that morning, the Miss America contract states that a state titleholder must live in the state she is representing. I realized that I wasn’t going to be able to take this job in Scottsbluff as one of the Board members asked me what she should type into the computer as my current address. I choked back tears and replied, “I…I don’t have one.” Instantly, my Board banded around me and assured me that everything would fall into place. Since I would be staying at my aunt’s house in Laramie quite a bit, we put down her address and moved forward.

As my mom and I headed out of town on the drive to Laramie, the whirlwind that is now my life began! We stopped in Casper to visit my grandfather at his retirement home, my first appearance as Miss Wyoming! I was able to talk with many of the residents about my platform of traumatic brain injury prevention. After the age of 65, the rate of falls for people while standing, walking, or even sitting goes through the roof. It was wonderful to talk with them about what they can do to protect themselves and prevent these falls. While visiting with my grandfather, the look of pride and joy that shone on his face gave me the most amazing feeling!

Mom and I made it to Laramie where we got a great night of sleep at my Aunt Susie’s house. The next day was a HUGE one for me! I went to visit so many of the wonderful people in Laramie who helped make my dreams come true from the first day of college in 2005 to cheering me on from the audience at the Miss Wyoming competition. I visited my hair dresser, Trina Wood, who told me she never thought she would be so excited to watch the Miss America pageant. Next, I went to the Division of Communication Disorders in the University of Wyoming College of Health Sciences. This program had nurtured my love and passion for the field of speech-language pathology and they helped to make my professional dreams come true! They helped to send Amber and me to Hawaii and they had just finished putting together my “final clock hours” sheet! One of the last pieces of paperwork needed for graduation! Check out my flickr (pictures) account to see the picture of me with a few of my supervisors and our division secretary! We are proudly displaying my final clock hours form!

After catching up with my department, I headed over to Old Main to visit my friends and coworkers in the President’s Office and other departments. It was incredible to see them again! The President’s Office and the wonderful people that work there were and continue to be an integral part of my college experience and my journey as a professional. I tell you what, it was different being in my old office with crown on my head! Walking through campus with the crown and sash was a whole new experience! Talk about being conspicuous! It was absolutely wild!

I met with my mom, my friend Angela VerPloeg, and her mother Mary Alice at a coffee shop after visiting campus. Angela and Mary Alice rooted for me in every way and their support was one of the only reasons I was ready to compete for the title of Miss Wyoming! I am so thankful for them and their continued support!

Mom and I headed to Denver the next day to leave for Dallas. I let exhaustion take over and fell asleep on the ride to the airport. We turned the car in and got checked into our flight! As we waited for the flight, we were told that our flight had been cancelled! We tried desperately to get on another flight that evening but in the end, my sweet cousin Maureen and her husband Erich picked us up at the airport and we stayed over at their house. We got up at 3:30 the next morning to head out on the first flight to Dallas. Dad was there to pick us up at the airport and boy howdy was there ever a celebration! As we arrived at my childhood home, I caught sight of a beautiful sign on the front door with balloons and bright colors saying, “Welcome home, Miss Wyoming!” What a fabulous sight. My little sister Michelle greeted me at the door and we giggled and screamed in joy and excitement. After taking my bags back, I slept for 5 hours, got up for dinner, then went back to sleep! Finally, a little rest!

It was amazing to see my family in Dallas and truly, every interaction was a celebration! I am so excited to finally get these memories down on paper. They are forever ingrained in my heart and in my memory and I’ve been so excited to share them with the world! I have more stories to come! Much love!