If the thought of spending a 4 day weekend with some of the most adorable little ladies and some of the most outstanding young women makes you want to throw on pink and party, then this post is for you! I was fortunate enough to be the Head Judge for the National All American Girl Pageant held right here in my hometown, Portland, Oregon. Tracy and Lisa, the Directors of this fast-growing pageant, invited me to represent my title as Mrs Portland and to be a part of this great event. I moved into the Holiday Inn Hotel by the airport on Thursday, August 12th and settled in for what was bound to be an enlightening weekend. Little did I know...
The All American Girl Pageant is an all natural pageant for girls ages 0 - 21. They promote family friendly pageantry and the all natural idea of beauty. These 2 ideas are what really drew me to participate in this event. If you've ever watched "Toddlers and Tiaras" (admit it, you have), you have seen just how insane pageants for young children can get. Little girls all dressed up to look like mini adults, fake eyelashes and all. That is the style of pageants I try to steer clear of. If you choose to become a contestant with the AAG Pageant, girls under 10 cannot wear any makeup and older girls are allowed only a little. Nothing false is allowed and clothes need to be realistic for the age group, in appearance and price.
I left for the hotel slightly apprehensive... my pageant experience is minimal at best, and I've only been on the contestant side of things. Was I really qualified to judge? I wasn't going to get much time to warm up to the idea of being a judge either, because things were set to roll as soon as we arrived. Interviews on Thursday afternoon, banquet in the evening. With a little help and support from my own pageant director, Libby, I walked into the interview and claimed my table, armed with my little notebook stocked with "thought provoking" questions I was sure would make me appear to be a serious judge. Then, the first contestants toddled in... seriously, toddled. 0-2 years old, the Baby Miss division stopped by each of our tables so we could ooohhh and aaahhh at them, then they all played together so we could see how they interacted with others. I was smitten! They were just so darn cute! And the girls got cuter and more charming as the ages went up. At one point, I found myself involved in what felt like an adult conversation with a 5 year old! My questions went out the window and I just chatted it up with the girls all afternoon. At dinner that night, I got to socialize a little more and meet some parents.
Friday was casual wear and personal introduction day. Each girl dressed in their casual wear of choice and came out to present themselves. They each had a little intro that told us about their state, their interests and their goals. It was great to see the amazing stage presence of all these ladies. Saturday was party wear, so imagine lots of poofy dresses. Both evenings held parties for the contestants, families and staff to enjoy, with themes like "Red, White and Blue" and "The Pink Party". We danced, did the limbo, hula hooped... and ate enough sugar to require an entire mouth of fillings... I had such a good time!
Then came Sunday... dreaded Sunday. All games aside, it was time. Finals were in the afternoon and Vickie, Stacy and I had to make our decisions. As head judge, I spent the entire morning organizing head shots, writing out different lists of awards, double checking all our work. We wanted to head into finals with a good idea of what we needed to see to make all our final decisions. The girls gave it their best one more time and we were wowed... as we headed up to the suite to finish making all our choices, we jokingly threatened not to come back because we didn't want to be forced to make a decision. Up until then, we had really been enjoying ourselves, but we were all nervously eating chips and avoiding all eye contact. The awards were announced, the winners were crowned and the night came to an end. As we surveyed the stage, we silently nodded at each other, knowing we had made good choices and that we didn't regret the outcome. That's a good thing, right?
It was definitely a VERY emotional weekend, but I would say that all the good times outweighed the tears that were spilled at the end (both by the contestants AND judges). It was such a self-esteem building experience for the girls, who made a ton of new friends and, more importantly, made some outstanding memories with their families. And for me... well, I don't know how judges can do this. I enjoyed meeting the girls and watching them shine, but I saw first hand the hard lesson that only one person can win at the end of the day, and you have to be willing to reach over and offer a hug of congratulations to your friend as she receives the crown you had wanted so badly. I hope that as I near the day I will, once again, be back on the contestant side of this lesson, I will remember how important it is for me to support and uplift my fellow pageant sisters... and I hope that if I am not crowned the next Mrs Oregon, I will be gracious, understanding and ready to celebrate my new friend's success. Looks like humility is yet another quality offered through pageantry.
