Recent Adventures: Pittsburgh

Hello lovely people of the blog-o-sphere! After my recent hiatus, I have returned with updates on some of my recent adventures. First of all, I went to Pennsylvania for a little over a week to visit family. While there, I took the opportunity to visit sights that I had not yet seen in Pittsburgh. It was fun pretending to be a tourist! I visited the Strip District, Spaghetti Warehouse, and the Incline. Pittsburgh's idea of an incline differs greatly from the one in Manitou Springs. Instead of climbing up 1,000 feet in elevation on old railroad ties, you can just sit on the Pittsburgh Incline and let it carry you up and down. It took less than three minutes each way!

While home, I also visited the yearly Saxonburg Firemen's Carnival. I have great memories of the carnival, visiting almost every summer during my childhood in Pennsylvania. Alongside the carnival, they hold annual pageants. I was Little Miss Saxonburg 2004, Junior Miss Saxonburg 2006, and Miss Saxonburg 2009. This year was the fifty year anniversary of the pageant so I was able to meet some other former Miss Saxonburgs, including the very first!

After I returned to Colorado, it was pageant week! While I had an amazing experience as a Top Fifteen finalist last year, I remember not knowing what to expect as the pageant neared. I had such a great time this year and don't think there could have been a better group of girls! Though I did not perform my best and was not a finalist this year, I was genuinely happy and excited for those who advanced. The Miss America Organization has so many benefits: friendship with the other contestants, community service through Children's Miracle Network and a personal platform, and scholarship opportunities. I had the honor of receiving the Academic Achievement Scholarship presented by Miss America 1974 Rebecca King Dreman! I was also happy to receive the Duke of Edinburgh silver award and Non-Finalist Talent award. I have a whole year to work on my on-stage question and interview skills now! Thank you to everyone who supported me on my journey!

Tomorrow I will blog about my second trip to Boulder, so check back then!  As always, thank you for reading!

Question: What do you think would make a good on-stage pageant question?