Ups and Downs

Hello everyone, I have got quite a bit to write about so I hope I don't bore you!

Last week started with a very scary Monday morning. I was driving Westbound on I-80 and got into a car crash on the interstate right between Omaha and Lincoln. My car rolled into the ditch, but I came out without a scratch. I was very, very lucky to have come out of this with nothing but a headache and a little soreness the next day. The accident could have been a lot worse, so my family, friends, and I have been saying our prayers the past week because I was very lucky to have made it out okay. Things like this make you so appreciative of what you have. As I learned from my brother's accident in 2003, life can be gone in a matter of seconds, which is why it is so, so important to live every day like it is your last. Make sure that you are doing everything that makes you happy, because life is precious.

Here is a photo of my car after the crash, completely totaled.

But enough of the sad stuff, after a week of recovery and prayers, I was ready to start this week off on a much better note! Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend two events as Miss Lincoln. The first event was the annual Nebraska DECA Fall Leadership Conference. This event is held every year in Omaha, and it is for high school DECA students that want to learn leadership skills, and network with other DECA students across the state. There are rotations, where the students get to choose whose workshop they would like to attend, and I was one of their choices!

I gave a workshop titled "Hang Up and Drive," which is also the title of my platform! I gave two 30-minute presentations explaining the dangers of texting and talking on the phone behind the wheel. I love talking to high school students the best, because they are just beginning to drive, so I can stop the habit before it becomes to permanent!

Aleah Peters, the Nebraska DECA VP of Business Partnerships and I!

Presenting my first workshop..

Explaining the activity that shows how distraction can lead you into a crash.

I love talking to the DECA members, they are great kids and they were all eager to sign the No Texting Pledge that I wrote!

These two students from Millard South are working on a project about distracted driving, it was great to talk to them about what they are doing with the project!

With two of my fellow baton twirlers!

More students signing the pledge!

Always time for a Ralston Picture!

After the DECA conference, it was time to head back to Lincoln just in time for "Monday Night Live," one of the first events of Homecoming Week at UNL! This event is held at the lied center and any greek house or student organization can create a skit to compete with. The winner of this event scores major Homecoming points for the week! I was honored to be named a judge for this event this year! It was so much fun to see what all of the students had been working so hard on!

Here are pictures of each of the other judges and myself! What a fun event!

Needless to say, this week has started off much better than last week! I am thankful to be alive and well, and I plan on taking advantage of that and living life even more fully than before. 

Take care and God Bless!

Rachel Foehlinger

Miss Lincoln 2011

Video of the day:

Husker Season and my First Appearance!

Hello everyone!

It has been an exciting and busy month since I was crowned Miss Lincoln back in August! A week after the pageant was the first Husker game of the season and the two weekends following were also Husker home games! As the baton twirler (and part of the marching band) it takes a lot of work to have three different halftime shows ready three weeks in a row! We finally have a little break before our next home game and I must say it feels great to relax just a little bit!

Here I am with one of the Cornhusker Marching Band Drum Majors!

God Ol' Herbie

The second game of the season was the alumni band performance so I got to twirl with my sisters, it is always so much fun to perform with them at a game!

TOUCHDOWN!

The media caught this picture of me and I love the scene!

Another one of the Drum Majors!

I am VERY excited to announce that after three years of trying, I am finally being allowed to twirl FIRE at a Husker home game! I have been twirling fire for 10 years and I twirled fire at my high school football games, so I am excited to finally share that with the Husker nation!

Along with Husker football season being underway, I have also started preparing for Miss Nebraska (never too early to start!) I have written out my goals for the year and hope to accomplish all of them and then some! I had my first appearance as Miss Lincoln on Sunday (September 18). The event was "Knock Out Against Hunger" and what an event it was! There were over 200 people that showed up to play a huge game of knock out, as well as package food for Kids Against Hunger! I was joined by Miss Nebraska, Kayla Batt, and we started a pretty fun dance party if I might say so myself! The event was so much fun and I am so excited and thrilled that that event went so well under rainy weather conditions! I got to meet a lot of wonderful people and had a great time! Kids Against Hunger is a wonderful organization and I think the event proved that rain or shine, there are so many people who are willing to come together and help out such a great cause!

Come of the Creighton Basketball players showed up!

With Kelsey Joseph, who organized the event, and Kayla Batt, Miss Nebraska!

Kayla and I dancing up a storm!

Some of my dance party friends!

The Jays jumped in for a game of knock out with some of the kids!

Mayor Jim Suttle said a few words with regards to children's hunger around the world.

The packaged food, ready to ship!

It has been a crazy month, but I am ready to keep going! Who knows what September and October will bring! Lots of events, practicing, preparing, and memories I'm sure! 

I'll post again soon!

Rachel

Miss Lincoln 2011

Inspirational Video of the Day:

Out with the old, in with the new!

Hello everyone!

This past weekend was the Miss Lincoln/Miss Star City Scholarship pageant and since I was Miss Star City last year, I was only eligible to compete for the title of Miss Lincoln.  The pageant was a ton of fun and I got to see old friends and make new ones! As this pageant was my time to give up my title as Miss Star City, I am VERY honored and proud to be your new Miss Lincoln! Attending school in Lincoln has made me love the city and everyone in it, so it is truly an honor!

With Jessica, my "sister title holder" from last year!

4 of the Miss Nebraska Outstanding Teens!

Love these girls!

The beautiful Brooke Taylor and I!

All the miss contestants (don't mind the tables)

Miss and Teen contestants!

"The crowning"

Gamma Phi Sweep!!

With Miss Nebraska, Kayla Batt!

With our teen title holder, Alex!

All of the Miss contestants

With Jen, one of my great friends and biggest supporter over the years! :)

Oh and one more thing..

My dad received a call from me just a few hours before the start of the pageant and I hit him with the news that we may need to use our studio's sound system, for being such a trooper and loading the entire sound system and bringing it to Lincoln, my dad received the award of Mr. Congeniality! 

To wrap up, I just want to say that I am so thankful for everyone that I have in my life because if it weren't for each and every one of you I would not be the person I am today. I am VERY excited for the upcoming year as Miss Lincoln and I have already started working on plans and goals for the year to try to make the very best of my time!

I would also like to share a video with you (maybe I will start doing this on all of my posts) that inspires me. I have always been so inspired by talented vocalists. This is one of my favorite American Idol performances of all time and if I ever want peace of mind, to hear a great song, or to hear an amazing musician, I watch this video!

Excited and honored, 

Rachel

Miss Nebraska and then some!

Hello all! I realized that I have been majorly slacking on my blog! I never blogged about the rest of Miss Nebraska week or what I did in the following months! This will be a catch up blog before I compete in another local pageant next week and have more to share!

Friday night at Miss Nebraska, there was a very fun fashion show and Garden Party! We each got to choose our own theme for the fashion show, and with my obsession with Peacock..my theme was easily chosen!

Heather Loske helped with my accessories! She made this amazing hairpiece as well as some peacock shoe clips for the show!

My full outfit and purse! The fashion show was called "Purse-o-nality" so we all had purses that matched our outfits!

 My parents and I at the Garden Party...

My boyfriend Tom and I with Miss America, Teresa Scanlan!

Saturday night at Miss Nebraska, I felt that I had accomplished all that I wanted to.  I had the best interview of my life (which I was VERY excited about!) and I had won the talent prelim which was my goal for the week! Since there was only a top 5 this year, I knew that anything could happen and that either way I would walk away very happy!

 I was honored to be named a top 5 finalist! As it was my very first year in the Miss Nebraska Pageant, I didn't know what to expect, so this was very exciting! The top 5 competed in all of the on stage areas (talent, fitness, evening wear, and onstage question). I felt that I did my personal best in all of these areas, again, no matter the outcome I was going home happy!

I ended up being 3rd runner up and for my first year, I was ecstatic about this! After the pageant, I was so lucky to be reunited with all of my friends and family that had come to support me, I could not have asked for a better cheering section! I couldn't have done any of this without you!

The announcement of the Top 5..

The Top 5 just before the announcement of Miss Nebraska!

My family after the pageant, I am so thankful for them all!

I couldn't have done it without my parents!

My aunt and grandmother have always been so supportive! And we match!

Miss Nebraska was such a wonderful experience. I made a lot of new friends, learned a lot about myself, and had fun! I will definitely be competing again! I also was so happy for my MNOT sister Kayla Batt for winning the title of Miss Nebraska 2011! She is SUCH an amazing woman and she has so much fun with everything she does, she is very inspiring and I wish her the very best on her year of travels and I look forward to flying out to Vegas to watch her compete in the Miss America Pageant!!

On to the next thing..


The very next day after the Miss Nebraska final night, I had a "marathon" practice with my baton team, life never sows down! We practiced almost every day (sometimes multiple times) until the 3rd week of July when we went to the National Baton Twirling Competition at Notre Dame.  The winner of nationals would be representing the United States at the World Baton Twirling Championships in Switzerland. We had won the World Championship in 2009, so we felt a little pressure to return to the championships again!

The finals competition was on Thursday, and our "Alice in Wonderland" routine was ready. We had won the prelims against some of our hardest competitors, so we knew that if we did our job in finals, we could make it! I have attached a video and pictures so that you can see what happened!

Here we are competing in the finals!

Of course the Alice routine had to have a "tea party" and a Mad Hatter...and who is more mad than I? :)

After the performance of a lifetime, we were all greeted by our friends and family who were all so proud of us, at that moment we knew win or lose, that we would go home proud.

Some of our fan club dressed as the other Alice characters!

And then...it was time for awards..

My family and I with the 6 foot trophy, the "little brown jug", and the official red envelope making us the representatives for the United States at the world championships in Switzerland!!

The whole team..so happy!

After nationals was over, I had my one and only break of the year for two weeks before I returned to Lincoln for Band Camp and Sorority Rush! I am back in Lincoln now and SO excited to be twirling for the band again this year as Nebraska enters the Big 10 for the first time! Classes started yesterday and I can feel the hectic schedule coming on! I am also competing in the Miss Lincoln Pageant this Saturday! I will wait until after that until I blog again!

Until then,

Rachel

Live, Love, Learn, Leave a Legacy - Bobby Foehlinger