My Answer is WORLD PEACE!

With news that Carrie Prejean was "fired" from her reign as Miss California (supposedly because of her personal views on gay marriage) brought a memory to mind from my own past. When I was a teen I got an invitation in the mail to be a part of the Miss Teen Arkansas pageant....boy was I flattered!!! I didn't realize at the time they sent these notices to anyone and everyone! I had never done the beauty pageant thing -- so it was all new to me and I thought what the heck maybe it will be a lot of fun.


So I gathered my sponsors for the entry fee and then came the time to check in the hotel for the pageant. Boy, were my eyes opened fast!!! I shared a room with two other girls from somewhere in southern Arkansas who brought along thier "pageant moms" can we say scary!!! I had never seen moms act that way with their kids much less moms taking abuse by a smart mouth girl who wanted desperately to be Miss Teen Arkansas. Can we say I just didn't fit in but decided to go along for the ride anyway.


First we all had to go down and work on dance numbers for the opening and closing acts, then run through the introduction --- "I'm Connie from Little Rock." Then we had pictures made in this outfit and that outfit and then another outfit, etc., etc. But the moment that really stands out to me is the interview.....remember this was my very first pageant......I didn't know the girls were coached in what to say. So I was totally honest in my answers and stated exactly what I believed, etc. In other words, I wasn't "pageantry correct."


In the interview section they move you from room to room to answer the judges' questions. One question that was asked of me was "What do you want to do with your life?" Ok, so I wasn't prepped to say, "Oh I want to solve the worlds problems and bring about world peace." No, my answer was "I want to be the kool-aid mom." I think this shocked the interviewer somewhat and I am sure it was a unique answer. So he said please elaborate on that.....and my reply, you know, I want to be a mom and have all the neighborhood kids coming to my backyard to play. I want lots of kids and being a mom is important. This certainly wasn't the answer they expected or wanted. Because the interviewer proceeded to ask me questions about why I didn't focus on a life long career instead of focusing all my energy into being the "kool-aid" mom. Needless to say in the end I was eliminated in the first round!!!! Yep, no top 10 for me.....however, one of my roomies made it to the top 10....probably due to her pageant mom coaching her on interview questions.

Sad part is due to a divorce I didn't get to be the kool-aid mom afterall....I juggled my daughter with work and school ..... maybe now that I have a second chance to be a mom again (with my 5 year son, Caleb) I will get to be a kool-aid mom for his friends......and then again, maybe kool-aid mom is a little overrated....

For now the doctor is out........contemplating her part in solving the worlds problems to bring about world peace...hmmmmm

A mother's love

A few days ago I had a conversation with my cousin that touched my heart and I decided I needed to blog about it.

My cousin, Cheryl, has been a single mom for a very long time. She has two wonderful kids who are grown now. A few years back Cheryl took her son, Michael, to the doctor because he wasn't feeling well. After a tremendous number of medical tests Micheal was diagnosed with colon cancer....he was 23 years old. So off to the cancer specialists they went to find out what their options were. As Cheryl talked with a surgeon about Michael's options, the surgeon suggested they do nothing for Michael....yes, you read it correct, NOTHING. WHY you might ask???? Michael was born with Fragile X syndrome. Babies with Fragile X tend to have many disabilities and health problems. This doctor firmly believed that with Micheal's Fragile X he would not be able to tolerate any chemo therapy, etc. By tolerate, he meant that Michael wouldn't understand what was going on and therefore would just be aggitated through the process. Cheryl refused to let Michael die without a fight. She requested another opinion and another doctor. Michael eventually had his surgery and many months of chemo. Each time Michael was scheduled for chemo Cheryl would take him to UAMS for admittance the night before. They would help him through the process. He might spend a week there or just a few days. He did get sick many times and had to return to the hospital for treatment. Eventually the chemo treatment ended and the wait began to determine if the treatment worked for Michael.

Cheryl and I have cancer in common. My daughter had cancer too so we tend to revert our conversations back to the cancer topic. We tend to compare notes on how things went for both Sarah and Michael (who are the same age). Sarah just had one of her 3 month check ups and she is fine right now. She will have 3 to 4 month check ups for probably another year and then we hope they will go to the 6 month check ups.

Cheryl shared with me that Michael has been cancer free 4 years now. He is on his 6 month check ups and at five years will move to his 1 year check up. As she shared with me Michael's progress (no cancer and lots of weight gain towards being a healthy person again) I could see the happiness in her eyes that he was surviving this ordeal. I could also see the determination of a mom who loves her son with everything she has and wasn't willing to let a doctor pronounce his death sentence just because he had a disability. I suggested she march Micheal up to the doctor's door on his 5 year checkup so this doctor could see a healthy young man and a very blessed mom who didn't give up on her son.

For now the doctor is out.......and extremely greatful she has such a wonderful extended family!