Kate's "Miss Alabama" Shower

I hoped to share these blogs months ago - but this Summer and Fall we kept ourselves busy preparing Kate's room and our home, and dealing with unexpected issues on the adoption front. Now here we are - just days away from meeting our little girl! As many things as I have on my heart to share - I want to first take the time to recap Kate's four beautiful showers here so that someday, when she looks back on this blog, she will see that she was loved by so many who anticipated her homecoming!

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I had no idea what to expect when it came to Baby Showers for our little girl. With so many "unknowns" and long wait times with adoption, it is hard to know when or how to plan a shower. I wondered if we would have the opportunity to have any showers for Kate. Imagine my surprise, when mere days after our matching, I was contacted by two sweet friends from my Miss Alabama Pageant days - begging me to let them throw our first shower! I was so touched by their excitement, and soon plans were underway. Our very first shower for Kate was held on July 10th and announced with this beautiful invitation.

My time in the Miss Alabama Pageant and the Miss America Organization impacted my life in extraordinary ways. Growing up without sisters - that void was quickly filled when I began to compete in pageants. It meant the world to me to have so many of my "Mu Alpha Sigma" (Miss America Sorority) sisters, my very first director (from the year I was Miss Gadsden Area), and so many of the Miss Alabama volunteers and pageant moms (who took such good care of me in my competition days) come together to celebrate our little princess! These ladies have helped "pray Kate home" from the moment we announced we were adopting almost 5 years ago. It was so special to celebrate our little girl with them at this beautiful event! 

The "theme" for this shower was "sugar and spice and everything nice" - because that's what little girls are made of you know! 

The decorations were lovely - there were pink roses, pink banners, and pink details everywhere! The food was delicious - and in keeping with the theme everything was sweet and spicy! We had the most delicious cake bites, candied jalepenos and cream cheese, and of course Pad Thai. I loved that so many of our friends got to try this delicious Thai dish for the first time that day!

I loved having 3 of my precious "Impact Award" winners there to celebrate with me too! These girls are so special to me, and I cannot wait for Kate to meet them someday! I am blessed to know so many women through the MAP that I know will be wonderful role models for our little girl (and these are 3 of them!)

This beautiful day was made possible by these two precious ladies below! Katie (left) was one of my very first friends I made the first year I competed in the Miss Alabama Pageant. I just adore her - and have been blessed to stay in touch with her long after we "retired" from pageants. Her incredible mom Laura (right) is the person I lovingly refer to as my "Fairy Godmother". She made the gorgeous custom Belle costume I used for several years in my side job as a "Party Princess"! Both of these women are so beautiful, kind, compassionate, talented, and full of LOVE and JOY! It blessed my heart to have them throw a shower for Kate! Thank you Boyd Ladies! 

At the end of the day, Kate was incredibly spoiled with so many beautiful gifts! She received her very first smocked dress and her very first monogrammed shirt (necessities for any southern lady!)... her very first Auburn dress (from an Alabama fan no less! She is loved!)... fairy tale blocks, princess pajamas, a box full of Princess Belle goodies from my director Amy (she knows me so well) and so many other beautiful things you can see pictured below. She also got an adorable radio flyer tricycle that I couldn't fit into the picture, and lots of gift cards! 

Thank you to my Miss Alabama family for showering our little princess with so much love!