Spring Forum!

For those of you who don't know, Spring Forum is kind of like a Miss Washington orientation weekend. It's the first time all of the contestants are together, and we go to workshops and meetings and participate in the Miracle Bowl fundraiser for the Children's Miracle Network.

This weekend was fantastic! I had already met most of the girls, but I was really excited to meet the few I hadn't met yet. We have a really strong group of ladies this year, and it's going to be a great show! At forum, we also find out/choose our contestant order and we draw for roommates. I'm contestant #20 (out of 22), and my roommate during Miss Washington week will be Catherine Watters, Miss Columbia Basin, who is also a world champion baton twirler...no joke. It's impressive!

I also had the opportunity to meet with Don Baker this weekend, who is extremely well-known in the pageant world for helping contestants prepare for interviews. (He worked with Teresa Scanlan and Laura Kaeppler - Miss America 2011 and 2012, respectively.) I can honestly say that, after less than 2 hours with him, I feel ten times more prepared for my interview! I have a new level of confidence in my ability to answer a question and understand the interview process, and it feels great.

I also want to send a huge shout out to all of my family and friends who came to support me at our Miracle Bowl this morning. Mom, Dad, Tonya, Stephanie, Sarah, Heidi, Rachel, Dylon, and Liisa (and of course, Sue!) were the best team I could have asked for! Even Dylon (ever the Steelers fan) sported our Seahawks-inspired team shirts!

<3 Melissa