Forget about Kate -- I met Kay!

No need to hover outside Buckingham Palace (or Anglesey, for that matter) to get a glimpse of royalty. Here in Minnesota, we have our very own Princess Kay of the Milky Way -- can't get any better than that as far as royal titles. And here I am, with Princess Kay 2011, also known as Mary Zahurones in her other life. She's an 18-year old new freshman at the University of Minnesota (Twin Cities campus), and is apparently about 6 1/2 feet tall. Must be all that fresh milk back at the family farm.

Princess Kay, aka Mary Z., is from tiny Pierz, Minnesota. In case you, like me, don't know where that is, it's a town of about 1,500 residents in Morrison County in Central Minnesota. Her family owns a 400 acre dairy farm outside of town. Congratulations, Princess Kay, and thank you for the photo!

Princess Kay of the Milky Way: Butter Beauties, aka "Goodwill Ambassadors"

This group looks straight out of the stereotypical all-Minnesotan casting department, doesn't it? Perhaps that shouldn't come as a surprise, given that these young women are the 2011 Princess Kay of the Milky Way finalists. Princess Kay herself will be crowned later this month, but all 12 finalists get the fun of having their bust carved out of butter during the fair itself. I LOVE the Princess Kay competition -- what could be better than combining elements of pageants, the state fair, and butter, all in one package? How much more Minnesotan could one get? And how cool would it be to be able to bring your head home on a platter -- figuratively speaking, of course -- to share with friends and family at a big homecoming corn roast or pancake dinner? Watching the butter carving is a must-stop of any Minnesota State Fair visit, and I'm sure these lucky women will remember this summer for the rest of their lives.

Think you have what it takes to be a dairy princess? Check out the rules at the Midwest Dairy Association's website. My ship has sailed -- I'm too old, married, have a kid, and don't work in the dairy industry (or have parents who do) -- but there are plenty of other potential princesses out there, all ready and willing for their turn in the revolving butter case.