A Long Needed Update...

So, I have been horrible and haven't updated the SJ Newz in over 2 weeks....this is horrible I know. But the good news is I am here and ready to type and update all of you readers!

When I last wrote, I was in Des Moines at the very beginning of the National Junior Angus Show. So, I will go on an update from then...

Saturday night, July 12th, the NJAA Junior Board all arrived and little did I know what they had in stock for me! 2 of my new good friends, Miss Dana May and Rebecca Tokach hosted a get together for me. When I arrived at their room, they had a sash, crown, martini glass, my favorite drink (pineapple, malibu and grenadine!) along with homemade cupcakes that were confetti with pink icing and decoriations on top that included my name, 21, crowns and hearts! It was simply adorable. We soon visited Miss Kitty's dance hall in West Des Moines for quite a night. Once again I do not have pictures (I will just have to put all the pictures up at once as soon as I get them since I am the idiot who lost my camera at the chi, maine, shorty jr natties!)

So after everyone recovered from what we didn't realize would be the funnest night of the week, we were hard at work to make NJAS 08 Chrismas in July the best yet! Also, on Sunday, my bestest Jessica was on her way to Oklahoma to stay the night with Amber, where they would then road trip together on Monday to come up with the SJ booth to Des Moines!

The highlight of the week for SJ, was our new found little Princess, Torri DeMeyer! When the girls told me all about her each night at the hotel room, I could not wait to meet her. They said she was 3 years old, that she came to visit them every day at the booth picking out which jewelry and colors she liked. To make it even better she was Andrew Fosters girlfriend she said (he is on the junior board and judges at OSU!) She even had a necklace on one day that he had bought her! Then when the girls told me her mom would push her by on her stroller and she would say bye to the girls, I just could not wait to meet her. So, of course I had to make her a custom design one night just to make her even more fabulous than she already sounded. So a little pink crown and some clear and pink sparkly beads later, we had Torri's new necklace done and I could not wait for the girls to give it to her the next day!

Torri's dad was helping us judge the team fitting contest and Thursday evening when I was getting ready to leave and head back to the hotel, I just happened to stop by the Pavilion to see if the contest crew needing any help wrapping up......and then and there I got to meet the princess Torri herself! She had on her necklace and LOVED it! She kept telling Andrew, "Your friends, your friends, look what your friends made me!" She was just as adorable, if not more, than what the girls had told me. And, she made it very clear that Andrew was her boyfriend! Anyways, she decided she would wear her pink cowgirl outfit with her matching pink boots on the last day along with her SJ piece and take a picture at the booth for the blog, so as soon as miss Amber gets those to me, they will be up on here!

I guess the other super cute thing that happened that week that deals with SJ........

Saturday afternoon after Jessica and Amber had left, I went to the building where the trade show was (of course, it was basically shut down by now) to get my stuff to bring back with me to St. Jo and to take down NJAS contest stuff including posters and photos. Well, when I got to what was left of the SJ booth (sad to see it taken down), I saw at the corner the cutest little blonde girl. She was wearing a little skirt, white shirt and what I could tell was an SJ piece with a little crown on it. Her mom had worked the booth next to mine all week and she of course made good friends with the girls. Needless to say, she told me her name was Sara and that the girls had made the necklace for her! I asked her if she was a Princess, and of course, she said YES! So, we asked her mom if she could spend some time with me, and she was the biggest help taking down pictures from display! All in all, I'd say just from these two little girls, SJ had a very successful week! The Angus ladies LLOOVVEEDD all of the jewelry and once again a big big big thank you goes out to Jessica Carter and Amber Skinner for making it happen!

Since Angus Jr Nationals, I have done a lot of laundry, a lot of jewelry, have been down to Springfield, Missouri for the Ozark Empire Fair, went out on the town in Kansas City with some great girls including Holli Parke, Kelli Armbruster, Rachel Burtzlaff, KC Kinder, Crystal Young and then Chris Stevens! Yes, Saturday night when I returned from Springfield, we planned to go out since my summer is coming to an end! We went to the new Power and Light District in downtown Kansas City! Needless to say, it was a wonderful girls night plus Chris and we all had a killer time!

So yesterday, I met up with Holli to shop at Legends Mall on the Kansas side of Kansas city and I had my first Hibachi experience! And loved it! Of course we had to throw some sushi in the mix....the Godzilla rolls were very good.....not as good as the Chuck Norris Sushi from Des Moines, but a close 2nd.

So today, I am at work in the office and I only have 2 more days after this....tear. I leave for LEAD (Leaders Engaging in Angus Development) Conference in Billings, Montana on Wednesday morning and will be there until next Tuesday. I am way way way looking forward to one last she-bang with the NJAA Board and of course the white water rafting experience. I will have my last day here next Wenesday, then head down to the Missouri State Fair, then on the way home make a stop in Stillwater and finally home to TEXAS!!! Look for updates all along the way, and until then stay super fabulous!

Randa :)