I dream, I test my dreams against my beliefs, I dare to take risks, and I execute my vision to make those dreams come true. Author Walt Disney

Walt Disney always spoke so eloquently, and it is almost as if he could read my mind! I am a dreamer. Each and every day I test those dreams and take risks. My dream did come full circle on the Miss America stage. I had an amazing experience with sights, sounds, and adventures that will remain a part of me forever. I had the opportunity to spend time with 51 remarkable, talented, and beautiful women from across our nation. These young women embody the ideals I hope I can pass on to my little girl one day. Miss Indiana, Katie Stam, now our Miss America 2009, is an incredible and deserving young lady, and to her, I send sincere congratulations from the Tarheel State. Folks have asked me, What was the best part?, or Who did you meet? or What took your breath away? Well, dancing right beside Mario Lopez was not too bad. He is even more handsome in person. He has a huge personality and kept us all entertained and laughing during rehearsals and the pageant.

Also, we all had the opportunity to ride in our very own gondola inside the Venetian Hotel. The gondolier serenaded us the entire time with his beautiful tenor voice.
Having the opportunity of see the Phantom of the Opera, for my very first time, was certainly a highlight of the beginning of the week. Honestly, the chandelier fell right above my head. My heart skipped a beat as I listened to all of the music I have studied and performed over the years. If you ever get the chance to go, this one comes highly recommended from Miss NC 08.
I hope you all got to visit the MAO website and view the pictures of all 52 of us driving a race car in the indoor racing arena. We wore real racing uniforms and helmets and, for a minute, felt as though we were at the Charlotte Speedway. After driving a real race car, I am a fan for life.

I was honored to be named a finalist for the Quality of Life award. I was one of eight young women recognized for their hard work and dedication to their platforms, and I was so pleased that ALS was among those. It goes to show you that hard work and perserverance can, and does, make a difference.

I would like to thank all of the NC supporters who made the trip to support, clap and cheer. You will never know how much that meant to me. I love you all and am eternally grateful. To those of you back home, I could feel your warmth and prayers with me at all times. And a special thanks to Isabella Grape for my lovely wardrobe. I have so much for which to be thankful. God Bless you all.

As soon as I returned home, I hit the ground running with appearances. I had the wonderful privilege of emceeing and performing at the Miss UNCP pageant. It was a great evening full of entertainment and fun. I had the opportunity to attend a delicious dinner with the judges, committee, and UNCP chancellor and his wife before the pageant. The town of Pembroke was extremely hospitable and very supportive of their pageant. The auditorium was packed with excited and eager fans, awaiting the judge's decision. Congratulations to Katy Locklear who won this coveted title of Miss UNCP 2009.

After UNCP, I headed to the wonderful town of Clayton to co-emcee and perform at the Miss Johnston County Pageant. I was privileged to co-emcee with Mayor Jody McLeod, who was simply delightful. Congratulations to Ashley Beasley and Ciarra Ellis, our two new Miss and Teen representatives from Johnston County.

That very same morning I had the opportunity to speak at the Miss Eastern Wayne High School Pageant luncheon. What an honor it was to see their bright, smiling faces, eager to see and hear from me and any words of wisdom that I might be able to offer. Many of these young ladies will be competing for the very first time, and I am going to do my very best to be in attendance on February 27th as they put their talents and skills to use on stage. Whichever girl is chosen will make a great high school representative.

Jessica Jacobs, Miss NC '07, and I had the opportunity to be the keynote speakers at the Communities in Schools conference in Pinehurst. This was such a wonderful event because we were able to give back in a small way to all of the teachers and volunteers who give so much to their students everyday. I also have the unique privilege to serve on the steering committee for this year's CIS education ball and fundraising events. We had our first meeting last week at Michael Deans Restaurant to discuss upcoming plans for fundraising. It is an honor to serve with such dedicated and hard-working individuals.

Next, my family and I headed to the beautiful mountains of N.C. for the Miss Hendersonville and Miss Hendersonville's Outstanding Teen pageant. The pageant's theme was Through the Decades, and I had the opportunity to perform songs from the 20s and 30s. On Friday evening, Miss Katie Holder won the title of Hendersonvilles Outstanding Teen. On Saturday morning, the newly crowned Teen, Miss NC OT Mya, and I joined our families for a beautiful and delicious luncheon at the Hendersonville Country Club, overlooking our gorgeous mountains of NC. We could not have asked for more delightful weather or a more lovely view. Mya and I were thrilled to be given a key to the city by Mayor Greg Newman at Saturday's luncheon. We then headed back to our rooms at the Saluda Mountain Lodge to get ready for Saturday nights events. The pageant was a formal affair and everyone, even audience members, looked so beautiful, and handsome, in their evening gowns and tuxedos. After a wonderful night of competition, Miss Ciera Newman, Miss NC OT 2006, was crowned as Miss Hendersonville. She will return to the NC stage yet again, this time as a Miss competitor. The mayor and the generous Town of Hendersonville then hosted us at a dessert reception at the Hampton Inn of Hendersonville. Mya and I, along with the newly crowned queens were introduced and then took many, many pictures with the excited residents of Hendersonville.

Sunday morning we headed home early in order to make it back to Chapel Hill for Princess Amanda Lopeman's 4th birthday party. Chelsea Ingram, Miss Garner 2009, and I were honored to be the special guests of the event, as 40 little girls gathered around us to get our autographs and then be sashed and crowned with their very own tiaras. I am honored to share the name of such a beautiful birthday princess.

A large part of my time since returning from Vegas has been consumed with my work with the ALS Association. I am excited to share that I am in the process of recording my second cd, entitled, Crowned for the Cure. The last few songs are being recorded this week. Special thanks to Hubert Dean at Snowhill Music for your willingness to make this possible. I am hoping to have the cds in hand by March 15th, so please let me know if you would like to pre-order one today.
Each cd is $15 (includes shipping costs)/please make a direct donation at:
http://web.alsa.org/goto/AmandaWatsonTR09

As soon as you make a donation, please email missncbookings@yahoo.com with your name and address, and I will put the cd in the mail to you. All proceeds from these cds will go directly to the ALS Association-Jim Catfish Hunter Chapter. If you do not want to purchase a cd, but still want to donate, please go to my website http://web.alsa.org/goto/AmandaWatsonTR09 which also describes the different ways that you can join my walk team for the annual Walk to D'feet ALS on May 9th.

My dream is to raise $10,000, so please join me in this fight against ALS.

Stay tuned, I have many more appearances to come.

Amanda Lauren Watson
Miss North Carolina 2008