Miss Colorado High School America Pageant

I attended the Miss Colorado High School America Pageant. I sat with Joy who is Emily Schlehuber's Mom. Emily is our Miss Teen Colorado International 2009.

Congratulations to the newly crowned Miss Colorado High School America, Annika. She has a lot of preparation for Nationals to be held in Branson, MO in March. Good Luck!

After the pageant, I had the opportunity to catch up with Christine Warembourg, Mrs. Colorado International 2006 and Mrs. Colorado United States 2007. She is a wonderful sister queen, friend and also Emily's pageant coach.

Christine and I were so proud of Emily! She made top 10!

There was a large group of visiting queens. Many of these young ladies I have had the privilege of meeting and working with them and Chaplain Rourk. We have a wonderful network of queens all making a difference for Colorado.

Super School News 30th Anniversary

I was a greeter for the Rocky Mountain PBS Super School News 30th reunion. This was a celebration of 30 years of this wonderful program that incorporates 5th and 6th graders with the station to produce a 2 minute program that airs four times a day. What a great way to teach kids about broadcasting.

There was a lot of memorabilia around the station. There were photographs of students and where they are now including one who went on to the Naval Academy. That was special for me since my husband graduated from the Academy.

This is me on the set for Super School New. I think I look pretty good behind the desk. Maybe I have a future in broadcasting?

This is one of the more recent students that did Super School News. I even met some people who did it back in the 1980's and were now bringing their children to see it. This is a wonderful outreach to the Elementary Schools.

St. Louis Catholic School Health Fair

When I arrived at the 9 Health Fair for St. Louis Catholic School, a group of girls were coming to the Civil Air Patrol Booth. When they saw my crown and banner, they just had to try them on. They are so cute! Maybe the future Miss America or Miss USA is pictured here today. "Dream Big" I always tell them.

Erin Feltes, Mrs. Colorado Galaxy was on hand to help tell the kids about "better things to do than drugs". She is a beautiful young lady with so much to give to our community. I am always blessed by our time together.

I was invited by Chaplain Rourk. We traded "hats" for this picture. I'm not sure I would want to wear his for very long. He is a wonderful mentor and roll model.

These "crash dummies" were walking around reminding everyone to "buckle up". Car seats and booster seats are so important. My family was in a horrible car wreck in 2005. My son who was in a booster seat actually walked away without any injuries, while the rest of us sustained injuries including my middle son who suffered a skull fracture. For more information go to Safe Kids Denver.

Grand Junction Bridal Show

My wonderful director, Cindy Harwood, for the Colorado International Pageants, invited me to attend the Grand Junction Bridal Show. After all, I do represent the married women of Colorado. Cindy and her husband own Dream Catchers Photography Studio in Montrose, CO.

Getting to spend the day with Roni Bibb, Mrs. Colorado International 2010 was the icing on the cake, Wedding Cake of course. She is beautiful even with her eyes closed!

Snow Sculptures Breckenridge, CO

I attended the Snow Sculpture Championships in Breckenridge, CO. It was warm for snow sculptures and many of them were already showing the effects of the bright Colorado sun. Nonetheless, they were breathtaking and and an amazing display of artistry.

The beautiful Roni Bibb, Mrs. Colorado International 2010 joined me for the afternoon of picture taking and signing autographs. I always love spending time with her. Roni has a wonderful way of making each person feel special.

We stopped in to the D'Vine Wine Tasting Room. Pete Baldwin of Naked Pete was setting up to be the entertainment for the evening.

The owners of D'Vine Wine actually are on site to customize your experience. If you are ever interested in hosting a fundraiser, they would love to help you. I know I will be calling them again.

Arrow of Light/ Crossover Ceremony

As you know by now if you have been following my blog with any regularity, Boy Scouts of America is my platform. Recently, my den had its Arrow of Light and Crossover Ceremony. The Arrow of Light is the highest award a Cub Scout can receive. It is one of only two awards that can be worn on a Boy Scout or adult leader uniform once earned. Here I am receiving my thank you gift for my years of service as a Cub Scout leader.

Grey Wolf lead the ceremony along with Dancing Doe and Sleeping Bear. Although this ceremony is very important, they kept it light with stories and quips.

Story telling is still the best way to pass information from one generation to the next. Grey Wolf had the youngest Scouts called Tiger Scouts sit behind the Webelos 2s so that they could remember and pass along the story of "stones in the water".

Grey Wolf lit the flame of worthiness. Each boy would have his arrow pass through the flame to see if they were worthy to receive the arrow of light and cross over to Boy Scouts.

We first tested Kelly Willard's arrow. Kelly is our Cub Master. Would his arrow burn through meaning he still had work left to do in the pack, or would it stay in tact indicating he was ready to move on? Sorry, Kelly, it burned through. You must stay another year as Cub Master.

Grey wolf looked deep into Matt's eyes to see if he is worthy to have his arrow pass through the flame.

Matt and Sleeping Bear hold the arrow over the flame.

Sleeping Bear inspects the arrow. It has not burned through and Matthew is worthy of the the Arrow of Light Award.

I am so proud of my Den 4, Pack 175 boys. All of them received the Arrow of Light Award. It has been a long journey to get to this point, but it has been so worth it. These young men give me hope for a bright future.

I am so proud of Matt. I will look back on these years as a Cub Scout leader as time invested in our country and the future of America.

Colorado March for Life

I attended the Colorado March For Life on January 26th. You may wonder why I would attend something that is considered controversial. I support life, whether it is through the Susan G. Komen foundation or the American Heart Association. All these groups share the purpose to preserve life. At the end of the kick off rally, pink and blue balloons were released. Each one represents a child who was born in 2009 thanks to the efforts of this group.

It was wonderful to see so many children at this event. They are learning early in life to fight for what is right. What a terrific example for future generations.

I always try to take time for pictures or autographs, especially with young girls. I have short time to be a role model to these girls. I believe this is probably one of the most important things I will do as Mrs. Colorado International 2009.

Many of our legislators came out to support this event. Scott Renfroe (L) is one of our state senators. He believes there is so much work still to be done and he is willing to work hard for it.

I can not even begin to articulate what an honor it was to meet Rebecca Kiessling. She is the product of a violent rape and is here today because abortion was illegal in her home state. Her own mother attempted to abort her three times. She was adopted at birth and now has her own amazing story to share. We are pictured with Bishop Conely who also came to support the Colorado Walk for Life.

King and Queen of the Ridge 2010

Emily Schlehuber, Miss Teen Colorado International 2009 invited me to co-emcee the King and Queen of the Ridge 2010 "pageant". The event was held at Fossil Ridge High School. Here we are at practice.

The opening number featured the students in super hero costumes based on an essay they wrote.

Here are all 27 contestants on stage. The entire production was well organized and ran like clockwork, most of the time.

After the top 12 were announced, Emily and I asked each contestant two onstage questions that were carefully timed. Each answer had to be 30 seconds or less in length. Their answers determined who would make the next cut.

After each of the top 12 performed a talent, we announced the top 8, four from each gender. Any one of these students was well qualified for the crown. Unfortunately, we could only crown one King and one Queen. The tension mounted as we waited for the final tally.

And the new Queen of the Ridge 2010 is Mariah Betros! The new King of the Ridge 2010 is Mike Shutte! Although there aren't any formal obligations that come with the title, I wish them the best!

Emily has been the best Miss Teen Colorado International to work with. I have truly been blessed with getting to know her. I am honored to be called "pageant mom". Her family has welcomed me with open arms and always been so kind. As my year is coming to a close, I will remember all the wonderful memories we have made together.

Western Stock Show Rodeo

Chaplain Rourk invited us to attend the Western Stock Show Rodeo with him. It was an exciting show with bull riding, dramatic synchronized horse riding and calf roping. I think I held my breath for most of it. I actually saw two cowboys have horses fall on them and one was kicked in the head by a bull. Luckily, the bull rider was wearing a helmet.

Of course, we queens take a lot of pictures for our blogs. I love getting to spend time with Erin Feltes, Mrs. Colorado Galaxy, 2009. She is not only beautiful on the outside but has a kind and generous heart.

What a wonderful afternoon. Roni Bibb, Mrs. Colorado International 2010, myself and Erin all had a great time. It is always a terrific time when I get to spend it with my sister queens.

Boys and Girls Club Volunteer TKU

I was invited by Chaplain Rourk of the Civil Air Patrol to attend the Boys and Girls Club of Denver's Volunteer Thank You event. We started the evening at Marco's Pizza in Downtown Denver. Marco serves great coal fired pizza and his deserts are even more amazing.  I attended with Roni Bibb, Mrs. Colorado International 2010 and the newly crowned Courtney Carter, Miss Colorado Teen USA 2010.

This gentleman is from the Boys and Girls Club. He was so thankful for all that Chaplain Rourk and the queens do for them.

After pizza we attended the Nuggets versus Magic game at the Pepsi Center. I had never been to a professional basketball game. It was so exciting to see it live!

Chaplain Rourk invited us all. It is so wonderful to spend time with a man who gives so much to our community. He is a true inspiration to me.

As you can see by our smiling faces, this was a fun evening. I look forward to speaking with the Boys and Girls clubs at the end of January. Stay tuned for more.

Mrs. Colorado International Christmas Party

I hosted the Colorado International Queens Christmas Party at my house. It was so much fun to get together and share wonderful memories and make new ones. (L-R) Me,2009, Christine Warembourg, 2006, Jessica Smith, 2007 and Roni Bibb, 2010. I am hoping this will be the first of many get togethers for the International Queens.

Salvation Army Bell Ringer

One bright and warm Saturday in December, Roni Bibb, Mrs. Colorado International 2010 and I volunteered to be Salvation Army Bell Ringers. We were honored to be Celebrity Bell Ringers.  I have wanted to do this for years and this was a dream come true for me.

Did you know that the song, "Silver Bells", is actually about the Salvation Army Bell Ringers? Here I am, proudly ringing my silver bell.

This is what it is all about. This little girl put in some money her mom gave her. Right behind her was her sister who put in her own money. We set good examples for our kids when we volunteer and give to others.