Iowa State Fair!

August 16th I packed the kids up and took them to the Iowa State Fair! I had a scheduled autograph session sponsored by, none other than the radio station, KGGO! My older 2 kids were a tremendous help in entertaining Wyatt (16 months) while I greeted listeners, talked on the radio and signed autographs. It was a lot of fun and Zach (my 10 year old) even got a chance to be on the radio!! He thought that was the most awesome part of the fair! For me, it was when a gentleman came up and said, "I've been watching you a little bit and it is nice to see that you are as sweet & beautiful in person as you sound on the radio." To me, that is one of the best compliments anyone could have paid me! After my "duties", we walked around the fair grounds...me in my sash & crown, which my daughter loved! We stopped by the Marines booth and visited with the soldiers a bit and then I "competed" in their contest of strength. So here I am dressed up, wearing my sash, (I took off the crown for safety) hanging from a bar about 5 feet above the ground! The contest was to see if you could hang in a chin-up position for 1 minute 10 seconds (women only). The men had to complete 20 full pull-ups. I had to prove to myself that I could do it and dispell any notion that "beauty queens" only look good, for the gathering crowd! I am happy to say that I accomplished the task at hand! The picture that my daughter took, unfortunately, does not show how far above the ground I was, so you will have to take my word that I was NOT standing on anything! :)

After the "test" of strength, we headed to the cattle barns. I am a farmers daughter, after all! We stopped to pet one of the calves and I ended up attracting so much attention that there was a traffic jam in the aisle! I had many photo opportunities and signed a few more autographs for people. I even had one taken with the calf!

We ended up staying at the fair until 9:30pm! We had arrived around 10:30am, so it was a pretty long day for everybody! As is our tradition, we bought a bucket of warm chocolate chip cookies, a couple glasses of milk, found a comfortable place to sit, and enjoyed the feast! It was a fantastic day and one that I always cherish with my kids. They have never missed a year at the fair since they were born. It's a great family tradition I hope they will continue with their families!!

Life 107.1FM Radio Interview

This is my all-time favorite radio station! This will be the third time that they have fit me into their programming to talk about my walk with the Lord and my journey through the world of pageants. Dave St. John is the morning DJ and it was wonderful to talk with him again. I had the opportunity to discuss, in a little more detail, the Liz Claiborne "Love Is Not Abuse" campaign and what we can do to help those who might be in an abusive relationship. He is currently working on having me as a regular guest on their station to help get this message out in the hopes of saving some one from going through what I did as a teenager. If you have been reading my blog, you will remember my story from my speech at the Iowa Lions Club International Camp. At the age of 16, I was in an abusive relationship and almost lost my life because of it. I am finally talking about what happened and how you can protect your loved ones from suffering the same fate. Please check out these websites for further information.
http://www.loveisnotabuse.com/
http://www.loveisrespect.org/
http://www.breakthecycle.org/
I am thrilled that I have had so many chances to speak out on my platform over the airwaves and I look forward to many more occasions over the next year and maybe beyond! If you want to check out Life 107.1FM you can go to their website at http://www.knwi.nwc.edu/.

Photos coming soon!

Albert City, IA - Thresherman & Antique Show

The Thresherman show was a last minute appearance opportunity. My children were staying with their grandparents and we decided that Albert City would be a great place to meet so I could pick the kids up. It also gave me the occasion to squeeze in another appearance. I brought my crown and banner with me and wore them as I walked around the grounds. My daughter, Caisha, and I stopped at one of the buildings that was on display and the lady that was the "hostess" said I HAD to be in the parade! I said, "I would love to! When is it?" She looks at her watch and says, "In 5 minutes!" She quickly flagged down a gentleman with a golf cart and he whisked me off to the starting point of the parade. As we waited, someone else went through all the entries in the parade looking for someone who had a convertible. A lady had a beautiful, old convertible from the 30's and she allowed me to ride with her through the parade! It was great fun and a chance to "greet" the people of Albert City. I did take a picture of one of the most interesting entrants in the parade. I have posted that picture for your amusement! Thank you to the Thresherman's show in Albert City for being such a wonderful & gracious host!! We all enjoyed ourselves immensely!

Iowa State Fair Parade - You Gotta Love It!

It's August 6th and it is the kick-off for the Iowa State Fair and I get to be a part of it!! It is a beautiful evening and I have a great car and a great driver to keep me entertained! One of the morning show DJ's for KGGO provided the car (it is his own), and was able to have "Fast Signs" make a magnetic sign for the car! 95 KGGO has been one of my biggest fans and they have sort of adopted me as one of their own! "Round Guy", the morning show DJ, has been great! He has gone above and beyond what anybody else has ever done for me! We all affectionatly refer to him as "RG" and he, in turn, refers to me as "LD". I have been lucky to be a guest on their show numerous times, before I was Mrs. Iowa and after I won my title. "RG", along with Lou and Heather, have been a big part of my preperations for Nationals. Thanks guys!!!

Now, back to the parade. ;) Like I was saying, it is a beautiful evening with a huge turn out of spectators! Since this is my first experience with this particular parade I am not sure what to expect or how long the route is, or anything. The parade starts at the State Capitol grounds and proceeds through downtown. Spectators are lined up on both sides of the road, including the parking ramps and resturants along the way. I've been in many parades over the years, but never one quite as big as this and it is FANTASTIC! I didn't know anybody in the "audience" but they gave me a very warm welcome......in fact, I even received a marriage proposal!! I had to point out that I was already married, but that didn't seem to deter the guy! :) It was a lot of fun, but a very long route! I am glad that I workout and lift weights on a regular basis, because I can't imagine how sore my arms would have been otherwise!! As it was, my arms were a little tired by the end! To top off this great evening, I also was able to watch the whole parade on TV after I got back home!

Just a side note: That's the Iowa State Capitol in the background.

WOI TV Interview

What an opportunity it was to speak on the morning news cast for our local ABC affiliated station, WOI-TV!! It was fascinating to watch behind-the-scenes of how a newscast is done! I was very impressed with how at ease Stephanie and Sara were in front of the camera. I suppose they really need to be to do their jobs well! When it came time for me to be on camera, I was initially a little nervous, but soon settled into a comfortable conversation with Stephanie and almost forgot that the camera was there. I did try to make a point of addressing my TV viewing audience, which I found a little strange since I was essentially talking to the cameraman! It was such a great opportunity for me to reach a larger audience about my platform and hopefully get some information out there to prevent domestic abuse. We did talk briefly about how a recent incident in Ames may have stemmed from an abusive situation and how knowing the early warning signs may have prevented it. I was also able to talk about the upcoming Mrs. America Pageant and what preparations I have been making for the competition. The best part is the station posted the websites that people can access for more information regarding my platform right on the television screen during the telecast. I have to say, that I hope I get many more opportunities to be in front of the camera! It is an exhilarating experience!