A contest was open to all 2012 Miss America Outstanding Teen contestants: The Divine Debutantes’ Divine Fashiontante Contest. Contestants were asked to submit a fun feminine back to school outfit that was also modest. I was excited to be a finalist and submitted another outfit choice that I have worn to youth group activities. Outfit choices were asked to pass a “modesty test”.

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I’m home! And have been for four weeks! It is honestly hard to imagine that only last month I was in Orlando, Florida competing with 52 of the most incredible girls in the nation. Often times it did not feel so much as a competition as it did a huge sleepover. For an entire week, God placed girls around me -girls who were inwardly beautiful, confident, and above all else devoted to making a difference. In short, I can hardly wait until January rolls around and I will be reunited with all of them once again.

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When I was a little girl, I never understood the statement "Time Flies." As a kindergartner, High Schoolers were huge, intimidating figures to be revered. My brother and I even formulated a game called "Evil Teenagers" where we would scream and yell for my mom to drive faster if a teen driver appeared in the car behind us. Needless to say, I thought I was never going to grow up. For me, time certainly did not "fly".

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To kick off the beginning of this month , I headed down on a road trip with my mom and MKOT producer to the Miss America's Miss Texas pageant. It was an early morning from the start, and for some reason I was trusting that my hair was going to be nice and cooperate with me. It just so turned out that after we had arrived at our hotel and began getting ready for the evening ceremony, my hair decided to be difficult. I ended up in the restroom surrounded by five ladies ( my mom, Mandy, and three extremely kind Texans) all trying to situate my crown and hair in a put together style.

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