FINALLY!

Well.. this post is titled "FINALLY" for a number of reasons:
1. I have FINALLY caught up with posting what I feel like are the most important events since my crowning.
2. I am FINALLY ready for Miss Arkansas this week.
3. It is FINALLY time to load everything up and hit the road!!!

I cannot explain to you how much joy I have received from acheiving my goal of winning a local preliminary and competing at the state level! Of course joy hasn't been my only emotion.. there has also been excitement, stress, nervousness, doubt.. you name it and I have probably felt it within the past few weeks! THANKFULLY, I haven't procrastinated for one of the first times ever... and feel pretty prepared for what is to come. Of course... things just don't go that smoothly...

After a long weekend of singing with my family and traveling for pageant preparations.. I was riding home with my mom Sunday evening and I told her my throat was really dry. We just kind of blew it off because a dry throat is nothing to worry about. This kept up all the way til Tuesday and I just thought it was because of the heat and not having enough water so by this point I was taking my huge water jug with me everywhere I went.... including talent practice Tuesday night. It was about 10:30 when I left and this time rather than a dry throat I had a scratchy voice and a really sore throat. Wednesday morning came and I woke up with no voice at all. For someone like me who loves to sing and can basically talk to a brick wall this was a catastrophe!! I had to miss singing with my family for the 4th of July! We always sing on the forth of July, at least we have for as long as I can remember and this time I had to sit out. The day went on and my throat continued to get worse... I went to bed worried sick and hoping that I would wake up the next morning and have my voice back!