Ashley for President!

Ok so I'm not really running for president (what?? I know), BUT I will be moving to his neck of the woods!! On August 25th, I will be moving to Washington, DC. Yeah! My boyfriend is coming too, & he'll be getting his LLM in tax law at Georgetown - so proud of him! Of course I will be blogging about all of our new adventures in a new town. It will be so fun! Here is a picture of the house I'm trying to rent while we're there. I hear Pennsylvania Avenue is pretty nice. Haha!

It'll be great to be near the new Miss Teen International winner - she lives in Maryland! I hear she already has some great appearances set up for us to do. Plus, DC is a great location for traveling. The transportation over there on the East Coast is better than here in Texas, so I will be able to go to more events in more states! 

I'll be sad to leave the Lone Star State, but we are taking enough Rockets, Aggie, Longhorn, & Texans stuff with us there will be no doubt where we're from :) I'll always be a Texas Girl!!

XOXO

Miss International 2010 - Days 5-9

Looks like I got really behind on updating my blog while I was away!! Chicago kept me BUSY BUSY BUSY, but it paid off because I am the new MISS INTERNATIONAL 2010!!! But that's skipping ahead. I want to be fairly detailed with my account of Nationals because I want the girls for next year to be able to come back & read this, so they will feel really prepared!

The cocktail party on Tuesday night was really great! All the girls looked so beautiful, & after dinner we got to hear a great motivational speech about finding our destiny. My favorite part was when he reminded us that our goals should not be something where we don't have control of the final outcome. Those types of things (pageants, sports, etc) should be our fantasies, but our goals should be things that we want to accomplish that we can control. It was a great concept to keep at the front of our minds as we went into pageant week! Here I am with some of the other contestants & again with Sydney (my Teen) & Kristin (our director - and Director of the Year Award Winner!!!)

Wednesday we went to the Skokie Public Library (which is AWESOME), & we got to read to the children. Here is our group!

Later Wednesday, we had rehearsals! Thursday morning was interviews. Hardest interview I've ever had!! Which was actually good. I like a challenge :) I didn't take a picture of my group before going into interviews though. Sad! Later that day was more rehearsals!! Mostly we just watched the Teens because they had their prelims that night. I loved going to watch them because they were all so amazing! Every girl had stage presence & confidence to be admired. Here I am with some of the gals before Teen Prelims

Friday was rehearsals - EARLY!! And all day long! Teens had the day off...lucky girls. Then Friday night was the Miss Prelims. I loved seeing all the girls' Fun Fashion outfits & Evening Gowns. I wish I had taken more pictures! Our opening number outfits were HOT! What do you think??

Saturday was more rehearsals & then FINALS!!! I was thrilled to be called into Top 10 along with my Teen!! And I was even more excited when she was called 3rd Runner Up. She really did wonderful!! And after the 4 runners up were called, I was okay with the fact that I had made Top 10. I was happy with that placement, so you can imagine my surprise when I was announced as the new Miss International for 2010!! WOW! Look at this amazing TOP 10!

And below is Top 5 in order at the Coronation Ball following the pageant

Finally, below I am with Clay & Joey from the Competitive Image. I am so very excited to work with them this whole year as they are sponsors for the Miss International Pageant!! They do beautiful photos & fabulous wardrobe. Look for many posts about my visits to Alabama to see them!!

Again, I am so thrilled at being crowned Miss International. A big thank you to my mom (who made my fun fashion!) & to all the girls who let me borrow clothes & shoes to complete my pageant week wardrobe - y'all are the best! And I am happy to report that I won each category at Nationals just like I did at State! Couldn't have asked for a better week with a better group of girls!! Thanks for your support!

XOXO,

Miss International 2010 - Days 3&4

My time in Chicago is going by so quickly!! I can't believe it's already Tuesday night!!!!! Monday was a lazy day for Momma & I. We were thinking of going into the city because she has never been, but instead we stayed in the room so she could continue sewing my Fun Fashion outfit - talk about last minute! But it looks FABULOUS, & she is the absolute BEST mom for making it for me! It's almost done - very exciting!

Then Monday night pageant activities finally started! Orientation was really great! Here I am in our messy room before going down.

Not only did I get to meet the other girls, but we had two incredible speakers from Go Red For Women. They were both women in their 20's who suffer from heart disease. I couldn't do their stories justice by trying to post them here, but let me just tell you I was truly touched. One of the girls was in her early 20's & just had her 5th heart surgery. I can't even IMAGINE what that is like. It just goes to show us that heart disease is real & can effect anyone! Please visit www.goredforwomen.org  to learn more about the signs, your risk, & what you can do to stay heart healthy!!

Today we met early in the lobby & boarded a bus to Navy Pier in downtown Chi Town.

We went on a SeaDog (speed boat!) to view the city from the water & then went to the contemporary art museum. That just reaffirmed what I already knew - I don't understand contemporary art AT ALL. Ah well. Then we headed to the Boys & Girls Club for lunch, autograph signing, picture coloring, & general merriment :) They were soooo fun!!! Here I am with my bff, Frankie

We had a blast! In about 30 minutes we have a cocktail party where we get to dress up allll fancy! YAY! I will start taking more pictures, but in the mean time you can check out Paula's website. She is the photographer for the week!

XOXO,

Miss International Pageant 2010 - Days 1&2

Howdy from Chicago!! Ok so the picture is of the musical, but it's still cool!! Mom & I actually got here on Saturday afternoon, but we have been busy little bees since arriving! We woke up early, early (5:17am - AH!) on Saturday morning, got ready, finished packing (me), & headed to the airport! Sebastien came over to pick us up (coffee in hand like the sweet boyfriend that he is!) & of course had to help us carry our luggage to the car. We have...drum roll please... too much stuff! Duh. We're going to a PAGEANT! But I have to admit it was a little excessive. Even though Mom & I both made lists of clothes for the week (mine was a color-coded Excell sheet! COOL!), we still probably over packed. What can ya do?

As we sloooowly made our way to check our bags at the airport, the man behind us offered to help us with our bags since he only had a carry-on - see duffle bag above. I'm guessing he's just going somewhere for the day because who can just take one bag anywhere?? HA. The airport check-your-bags guy even turned a blind eye to the fact that one of my bags was overweight - so sweet! So we made it to Chicago without incident! Our hotel is great & the staff is really nice. The cookies at check-in are D-E-LICIOUS! After we unpacked everything, we took a nap :)

Saturday evening was the Mrs. International finals competition, so I made my way over to the theater to cheer on Mrs. Texas, Natalie McLarty. She looked absolutely fabulous & represented our state well!! I also got to meet some of the other Miss Contestants at that pageant, so that was a lot of fun!

Sunday we discovered that there is a grocery store right next door & then across the street - dun dun dunnnnn - a mall!! We went & got some food for the week & then did some SHOPPING! Nordy's is having a fall sale already, so as you can imagine our suitcases will be even more full on the way home :)

Sydney, Simone, their momma, Kristin, Isabella, my mom, & I all went to dinner last night & had a blast! Today is my first day of activities - Orientation tonight at 8! I'm so excited to get things started & share what I've been doing to promote Breast Cancer Awareness & Early Detection as Miss Texas International!! I'll try & post a blog each day about the activities so you can keep up :) Have a wonderful week, I know I will!!

XOXO,

Website Information Updated!

Just wanted to let y'all know that my website, www.ashleyelizabethsmith.com, has updated information about breast cancer & new appearances photos! Check it out!

XOXO,

Judging National American Miss

This past weekend, I was asked to be a judge for the National American Miss pageant in Houston. It was actually my first time judging, & I was nervous! I did the overall competition for the Princess, Jr Preteen, & Jr Teen divisions & the optional contests for the Teen division. SO MUCH FUN! I really enjoyed being on the other side of the table, & I think it is really going to help me in my upcoming competition J I got to see a lot of pageant ladies that I hadn't seen in a while, which was nice. Alyssa gave me some great tips!

Rachel was 1st Runner-up in the Teen Division

Alyssa was Miss TX Int'l 2 years before me

& is a current title holder for NAM

One of my favorite parts was hanging out with the other judges though - they were really great!! NAM is a great pageant system for younger girls whether they are experienced or not. Thanks to Mr & Mrs Mayes for letting me be a part of the special weekend! It got me even MORE excited for Miss International!!

XOXO

Muscular Dystrophy Association

Back in May, I was asked to be a Celebrity Judge at the annual North Dallas Lock-Up event for MDA - I got a gavel & everything!!

It was a Jail & Bail themed fundraiser where local business leaders are asked to raise a “bail” of $1600 leading up to the event. On the day of the “hearing,” MDA sent out volunteers as Sheriffs with an arrest warrant for each of these leaders. They were brought to the III Forks restaurant in Dallas where I was waiting to sentence them! 

Here I am with a local business leader

I charged them all with having a kind heart & sentenced them to time unless they had made their bail. If they had yet to raise all $1600 before they came, I told them they were to be shackled to a cell phone for an hour calling everyone they know to help bail them out of jail! 

Here I am laying down the LAW!

The participants even had their pictures taken behind bars. Such a cute idea & the event raised over $100,000!! 

I even got to do a TV interview regarding the event & my title of Miss Texas International. 

You can see the "jailbirds" in the background

Even though my platform is breast cancer awareness, I love doing other events in my community too! This was one was a LOT of fun! The MDA is a great organization. Part of the money raised will go toward summer camps for children. Each year, the MDA sends more than 4,000 children with muscular dystrophy to an MDA summer camp. The cost of sending just one child is $800, but none of that is put on the families! All the children are sent to camp with the funds raised by the organization & people like you!! For more information on the organization, please visit their website.

**Side note: This event was held at III Forks Restaurant in Dallas. The decor was really neat & different, & the food was so yummy! I would definitely recommend it J

Komen North Texas Race for the Cure

Race for the Cure is a great way to show support & have a good time! Sydney (the Teen queen), her mom, my mom, & I all got together Saturday morning & drove out to Plano for the Race. I woke up as we were supposed to leave (oops!), but we actually got there right on time, & everything worked out J We ended up seeing another titleholder there, Kayla who is Mrs. Texas Galaxy, so we teamed up with her & her friend for the walk. Kayla’s mom has survived breast cancer twice! Amazing!!

Mom & I before the Race started

Sydney & I 

At the Finish Line!

The whole experience is so uplifting! I really couldn’t have a better platform. I get to participate in events like this one where everyone is soooo happy to be there. Everyone was there for a purpose, & it was really evident.

The winner of the Race - a little over 17 minutes!

Because my mom is a survivor, she got a lot of special attention – duh! Survivors all got pink t-shirts, while the other participants got white ones. They also got pink hats & adorable bags J

Mom in her Survivor shirt! She let me wear her hat because my hair was a mess!!

After the Race was over, we went around to the different booths gathering information, taking pictures with people, & getting lots of free goodies!

With Kayla at the Victoria's Secret Booth

How cute is she??

My favorite part of the whole day was when my mom got to be in the survivor parade! Each group had a sign showing how many years they have been cancer free. I was so glad Mom decided to participate in it!! I teared up seeing her there underneath the “15-20 Year Survivor” sign.

Mom with some of the others in her group

50 Years! Incredible!!!

Some of the ladies walking during the parade

Main Stage

My mom even teared up too while she was up on the stage. She told me that she realized that while it’s something she is aware of (of course), she never really thinks about it. I was so glad she got to have that experience!

With some survivors!

I love this picture!!

Don't forget to go to The Breast Cancer Site everyday!!

It's Been Too Long...

Well hello! I've been gone for so long because I have just felt SO BUSY! I have been doing some appearances as Miss Texas International, finishing finals, graduating, going to MANY weddings, & going back & forth between Dallas & Houston. A few pictures to sum up the last month:

So, I am finally done with school forever - YAY!

The whole family (plus our extras!) came out to watch me graduate. So sweet of them!! Then we went & had yummy mexican food together afterwards. Momma & Daddy gave Sebastien & I such sweet gifts for graduation. I got a diamond necklace to go with the earrings Daddy gave me when I graduated from college, & Sebastien got Longhorn button covers & cufflinks! Sebastien gave me beautiful flowers, & his parents are sending us on a cruise to Mexico!! I don't think we really deserve all that stuff, but I sure am glad it's over!

I helped out on the staff of the Miss Dallas/Miss Dallas Teen USA pageant. It was sad to not be able to compete anymore, but being on staff was a lot of fun too :) The winners are BEAUTIFUL! Here I am with the Teen Winner, Haley. She is the one who lent me some pageant clothes for the state pageant. Such a sweet girl!

I don't quite have pictures from all the appearances I did yet, but here are a couple. I was the emcee at a children's tropical pageant, & I helped organize skin screenings with a fellow pageant contestant who has an organization called Cherish Your Skin.

In other exciting news - my college roommate had a BABY!!! Her name is Bailey Kay. I cannot wait to meet her! Here is the proud Momma before Bailey was born. We were at one of her baby showers, & she is showing off the gifts I gave to Bailey :)

That's all the updates for now, but I'm sure I'll think of something else as soon as I post this! I'll be updating more frequently again with the same posts as usual, but now I hope I will be able to add in fun things about the Dallas area as well! Happy June!