The Dudley Brother's 50th Annual Sale

On Thursday, October 13th, the Dudley family had there 50th annual sale. I find it pretty incredible that their family has maintained there ranch for way over 50 years, but even more amazing that they have held their sale for an astounding 50 years! What an accomplishment!
As always, it's a joy to be around the whole family. They're a part of my Texas Hereford family, so I've known them for quite some time. One of the family members even works with my sister at Texas Tech University. Small world! Before the sale, I had the opportunity to visit with all of my Hereford friends. We took pictures and discussed how great things were going for everyone! The sale started at 1 PM and went fast and furious! There were almost 200 lots so it was going to be a LONG sale! After the sale, I met a lady from Herefordshire, England that was on her honeymoon. It was so neat getting to meet and converse with her! She's from Herefordshire! That's so cool!! The Dudley Brother's Sale was a huge success and getting to see my Hereford family was more than worth the trip!

The Hershey state of Pennsylvania!

From College Station, Texas to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, this was without a
doubt a distance to travel! My flight left early on Thursday morning and I arrived
in Harrisburg Around 7 PM that night. I met up with my Dad at the Dallas/ Fort
Worth Airport, we traveled from therein together. I definitely slept on ALL
three of my connecting flights, while dad was wide awake reading every magazine
and newspaper. While waiting for our shuttle we ran into Mr. Hawk of Delhawk
Ranch. We took the shuttle to our hotel together, visited on the way and met up with him for dinner that night. He was there to judge the Angus show, but it is
always nice to see a familiar face!
Friday was the day of the Open Show. The show wasn't early, but I definitely had
a full day ahead of me being the only royalty there. I did have the honor and
privilege, however, of working with Ms. Terri Barber as she was judging the Hereford Show. Mr. John Meents was the Field Representative on duty, as well as, Ms. Amy Cowan
being there. Of course, my father was put straight to work by lining up cattle
in the the make-ready arena. I'm sure he enjoyed lining up cattle much more than
sitting by the awards. The show lasted from 2:00-7:45, including pictures and all!
It definitely is not the longest day that I have experienced as the National
Hereford Queen, but it was a great day! From watching people excitedly jump up
and down after a win, having the opportunity to meet the Pennsylvania Secretary
of Agriculture, and watching Mr. Meents hand out ribbons to a class while I was
taking a division picture, it was a wonderful day! I will have to say though, I
was expecting some very COLD weather, seeing as Texas is starting to get chilly.
Boy was I wrong, the weather was beautiful in Pennsylvania! I definitely should
have bought my summer queen outfit because at one point I thought I was going to
pass out in the process of handing out ribbons! Luckily, I had water directly brought to me that made me feel much better. After the show had come to an end with pictures and all, it was time for me to get my beauty sleep because I had an EARLY flight the next morning. Regretfully, I was unable to stay until the junior show. It basically takes me a full day to fly back to College Station, therefore, I would've missed much more school than I necessarily needed to. I would like to give a special thanks to the Firestine family. They were so supportive and helpful throughout my time at Pennsylvania! It was a breath of fresh air having them there. Overall, KILE was an incredible show!

Kickin' It In Kansas Part II

The rest of the week during the National Junior Hereford Exposition flew by! Tuesday was a day full of competitions and gathering with friends. That afternoon the National Hereford Women sponsored an Ice Cream Social for the juniors. All of the queens showed up looking lovely as ever in their official dress with their sash and crowns.

The girls and I mingled throughout the crowd talking to adults, children, and members of the National Hereford Women’s Board. (Mrs. Paula Acheson and I at the Ice Cream Social)
We talked about the show and life and anything that came to mind! It was nice having the Ice Cream Social with all of the queens around interacting with anyone that wanted to talk. After the social, I had to fly to Lubbock, Texas for the State FFA Convention to receive a scholarship. That was a trip! My flight was canceled in Denver, Colorado; therefore, I had the honor of staying the night in the airport. Do you think I slept? No! It was a creepy airport during the night, but I survived it! The next morning I got the earliest flight to Lubbock and received my scholarship then flew back that night. It was all definitely worth the trip… just a LONG trip!

(My friends and I at the State FFA Convention before we went on stage)

While I was away from the NJHE, the girls worked the show arena for showmanship. They gave ribbons and congratulated all exhibitors. I had many compliments for them when I returned. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday were definitely the busiest and most exhausting days of the week. It’s non-stop work! Thursday morning, we all took our official quuen's picture for the Hereford World Magazine. Although it’s work, work, work, it’s the best part of the week. This is the time when all of the queens truly get to bond! We sit together, laugh together, and work together. Thursday was a long, long day. We seriously worked ALL day long! We did every show but the owned show. All of the shows included the cow-calf pairs, bred-and-owned bulls, junior AI bulls, bred-and owned-heifers, and the junior AI heifers. It was a successful day for many exhibitors.Friday was a long day as well! The owned show lasted all day long. We seriously didn’t end with pictures from divisions and all until the beginning of the banquet. I was running to the banquet with my parents and when they introduced all of the State Queens and me as I was walking through the backdoor. The banquet went well with retiring speeches and award presentations. After the banquet pictures were taken and everybody got back to the barns to do their work. Friday started early and was bittersweet. I was FINALLY the last day of the NJHE which also meant the last day I would see everyone! We had all gained some hardcore muscles from holding the insanely heavy rocks as well as me holding the bronze bulls. The awards were definitely the coolest and most unique I’ve ever seen! As the show progressed, people were anticipating the Grand Drive. This is honestly my favorite part of any National Show. Everyone circles around the edges of the show ring, the stands are full, the cameras are on, and the queens are smiling. It is such an exciting moment! After the winners were chosen, pictures were taken and goodbyes were given. By the time the queens and I were done with pictures, the barn was practically empty! Everybody was already loaded up and ready to head out. My week of the National Junior Hereford Exposition as the National Hereford Queen was incredible! There are so many people that helped me throughout the week and so many I want to thank. Even my National Hereford Queen's Basket raised an astounding amount of money! Thank you to all that to contributed to my basket! Thank you especially to my wonderful queen coordinator, Ms. Margeaux Firestine! She was like my "big sister" all week long! My family and Texas Hereford family were so amazing and supportive. I always love getting to meet back up with ALL of my Hereford family because of the continual support they give me!