Ready, Set, Cook!

Today was an exciting culinary AND pageant day for me. That's right, I managed to find a way to combine 2 of my favorite interests, and let me tell you- it was great! I volunteered at the "Ready, Set, Cook" competition in Lincoln City, OR and represented my title of Mrs. Portland. It was an afternoon of yummy food, awesome cooking and friendly conversation. Just how I like to spend my time.

"Ready, Set, Cook" is a fundraising event that benefits the N. Lincoln Hospital Foundation Samaritan Early Learning Center Fund. Samaritan Early Learning Center currently provides day care for 53 children ages 6 weeks to 8 years and is the only state registered child care center in Lincoln City. With plans to expand in the near future the center will eventual accommodate 100 children.

The event featured 2 rounds of cooking competition- The first round set Chef Neuman from Portland's OBA and Chef Sean McCart from The Bay House in Lincoln City against each other in a 30 min heat to create a dish using salmon and shrimp. The second round found Chef Justin Wills and a guest chef from Maui making dishes with Morels and lamb. Each chef received a sous chef who won their position through an auction. They were then judged by 3 guests who also won their positions through an auction. All the proceeds went to the Learning Center. At the end of the day, we managed to raise over $3000 in auction bids alone! Talk about supporting the community. :D

To my surprise, I was introduced on stage and given time to talk about the pageant and my platform. What an opportunity! I got to brag about our outstanding pageant family, then get the word out about Sallie's Faith Foundation. I felt honored to be allowed that time and hope I did both organizations proud. Another great moment was when I met Chef Neuman. I love OBA's atmosphere and food, but I am always ready to sing the praises of their happy hour. You better believe I got a picture with him! That one's going in the scrapbook.

All in all, an outstanding day! Once again, being a part of the Mrs Oregon family has given me an opportunity to reach out into the community and meet some wonderful people while pursuing a passion. If you haven't considered joining us, you might want to.

Training Sessions: Day 1

Oh my! That's about all I can muster at this point. I had my first day of training with Zach and Marie at Saturn Styles Studios last night, and as I feared... I can barely move today. I don't remember the last time my muscles have been this fatigued! I knew I was pretty weak, but today I KNOW. This realization makes me a little sad, because I remember the days I use to hit the gym everyday and really loved working out. Where have those days gone?

Before I had Ryker, I use to pride myself in my level of physical fitness. I was no body builder, but I was a distance runner, ate really well and enjoyed light weight lifting. Enter the little baby in my tummy- and exit all physical activity. I used  my pregnancy as an excuse to pretty much drop all my workouts and eat things I had long banished from my diet- Fast food, fried food, super high calorie food. I am fortunate that my pregnancy weight dropped off, but with it went my muscle. I keep telling myself I will dedicate more time to taking care of myself, but I can always find something else that needs attending too. Well, the excuses ended yesterday.

Zach and Marie are not only physical trainers of the body, but they are wonderful coaches of self confidence. They take the time to go over your personal, fitness and professional goals, look at your eating habits and talk to you about how your life is run. They take all of this into consideration when designing a workout program for you. Then, if that personal attention isn't enough, they are your one-on-one cheerleaders the whole time. Yes, they are making you sweat and groan in pain, but they tell you how awesome you are while they do it. They remind you what you are trying to accomplish, and assure you that you are VERY capable of reaching your goal. It is exciting to have that kind of support behind you.

I have specific physical goals I'm trying to reach for the Mrs Oregon pageant in Nov, and I am assured they are completely reachable, but I have a feeling I'm going to walk away with more then a sexy stomach. I'm going to have self confidence, satisfaction of achieving goals, and best of all- 2 wonderful friends. The gifts I'm receiving from joining the Mrs Oregon family just keep on coming!