Crafts and Spaghetti and Kansas Oh My!

Last Sunday, Aly and I made our visit to KU Med Center to do crafts and deliver Christmas presents to the kids staying there. We made cute little Christmas ornaments, and let the kids write their names on them and decorate them however they liked. Nothing like getting in the holiday spirit! Violet the Wolf from the Great Wolf Lodge even came to help out. :)  It was amazing to see how strong the patients and their families are during such a scary time. Seeing the joy that the gifts and the crafts brought to the children is an experience I will never forget, and this definitely won't be my last visit!

After our hospital visit, Aly and I decided it was the perfect day for a little ice skating! I have only been ice skating a few times, so I was a little shaky at first, but once we got the hang of it we ventured away from the side walls and skated all around the rink. This was the first time I made it the duration of skating without falling at least once! We decided that we are going to go pro. ;)

Thursday night, I volunteered with the Holiday Express Train at Union Station in Kansas City. The train travels to different cities and collects donations for the Salvation Army to buy warm clothes for children in need. The inside of each train car is decorated in a different Christmas theme, and it was really cool to get to go through it and see all of the displays. It is such a great cause, and I had so much fun being one of Santa's helpers. :)

The next morning we were off to Wichita, Kansas to watch the Miss Kansas USA 2014 and Miss Kansas Teen USA 2014 pageant! We arrived in Wichita on Friday afternoon to volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House before all of the pageant events began. Amy, the volunteer coordinator, gave us a tour of the house and told us more information about the Ronald McDonald House's history and mission. The Ronald McDonald House provides a place for the parents and siblings of pediatric patients to stay for the duration of the child's time at the hospital. The house was so nice, and the volunteers were all so welcoming. We prepared a home-cooked spaghetti dinner (salad, garlic bread and all!) for the families staying there to eat. I absolutely LOVE to cook, so I had a blast and it was great to know that I could help out somehow. I highly recommend volunteering your time with such an amazing organization and charity!

Saturday was my 18th birthday! I had a great day, all thanks to my friends and family. That afternoon, I had lunch at Panera Bread with Erica, and then my mom and I did a little Christmas shopping until it was time for the preliminary competition. The weather started to get a little bad, but luckily we made it to the show on time. :)

On Sunday, Miss Oklahoma Teen USA, Brooklynne, and I had dinner at McCalister's Deli together and then went to the final show. I had so much fun helping out with crowning the new Miss Kansas Teen USA 2014. Congratulations to both the new Miss Kansas Teen, Claire, and the new Miss Kansas, Audrey.

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I am looking forward to spending lots of time with my family over the next few days. :) Next weekend I will be traveling to Omaha, Nebraska to watch the new Miss Nebraska USA and Miss Nebraska Teen USA be crowned. I am also hoping to speak at a school about healthy relationships, self respect, and the importance of self esteem sometime soon. This is something I am passionate about, and I am excited to start motivating kids to be the best that they can be. I can hardly wait! Happy Holidays everyone! :)