Pittsburgh Training Weekend :)

Training has officially begun!! I spent the weekend at the Pittsburgh Hyatt with an incredible group of people. Ohio, Michigan, West Virginia, and the Pennsylvania state titleholders were all lucky enough to spend the weekend with our wonderful directors Randy Sanders and Melissa Pitchford along with Melissa's sister, Kim Proctor. I am so fortunate to have these amazing individuals helping me through my journey to Miss Teen USA. Friday night when I arrived, Randy and Melissa gave us helpful tips that we will carry on with us to Miss USA and Miss Teen USA. We watched past pageant videos and discussed how the pageant is going to work at the national level. Their encouraging words and important tips really motivated me for Miss Teen USA! I honestly can't wait! I woke up Saturday morning for my photo shoot with Carter Studios. I had a blast with Jonathan and Heather! Heather did an amazing job on my hair and make up and she was one of the sweetest people I have ever met. We had so much fun together. Jonathan is a phenomenal photographer and he made the shoot such an amazing experience. He had the BEST music on his ipod too haha! He was laughing at me the whole day because I kept coming back while the other title holders were shooting just so I could dance to his music! I had such a great time getting to know both of them and I hope to see them again soon! I also can't wait to see the pictures! After my shoot, I spent some time with the best director, Melissa! We went over what I need to work on and what to expect at Miss Teen USA. She really has my best interest and I am so lucky to have her. Rima, Amanda, and I met Melissa later in the day for some walking training. We put on our bathing suits and walked for her....in the lobby of the hotel!! We were all laughing saying how we could be a reality show on TV for MADE or something! I have to admit, it did prepare me to walk in my bathing suit in front of people with confidence though! We spent the remainder of the day bonding and going over more hints to help us be the best we can be at the national level. I had such an incredible time throughout the entire weekend and I am so blessed to have the best sister queens and director. Rima, Amanda, and I grew to become so much closer and I love them both to death. We certainly missed Catherine though! She was at home sick :( Pictures to come soon!