“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be
successful.” –Albert Schweitzer
After
writing lots of thank you cards, unpacking plenty of pairs of high heels, and a
relaxing week in Myrtle Beach, I give you my post-Miss New Jersey blog! I have tons of stories and pictures to share,
so bear with me!
Let’s
rewind to Saturday, June 8th….I traveled to Millville to attend the
Children’s Specialized Hospitals “Flapjack Fundraiser!” While I didn’t exactly eat any flapjacks, it
was nice to see some of my fellow local titleholders before pageant week. Not to mention-it’s always an honor to help
raise funds for CSH! From there I put on
my princess shoes and gloves in order to play “Belle” at my dance alma mater
recital. Some of my best friends
(including Ayla Gentiletti, Miss Cumberland County and Lindsey Petrosh, Miss
New Jersey 2012) spent the day together making little girls smile. All of the little dancers were thrilled to
see their favorite Princesses in the lobby before and after the show and I
think it really helped calm their nerves!
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Pageant girls make great princesses ;)
Distributing trophies to the deserving little dancers :)
On Sunday,
June 10th, I spend most of my day with my amazing seamstress, Debbie
Smith! She altered my interview dress,
opening number dress, swimsuit, talent costume, and both my walk-on gown and
competition gown. Together, she and I
used our perfectionist ways to find each and every fault in fitting and she
somehow made everything fit me like a glove!
I don’t know what I would do without you, Deb!!
On Monday,
I spent the day with my Mom, pampering ourselves, grabbing last minute
esentials, and packing the car! We got
manicures and pedicures, I got my spray tan by the lovely Karen McGowan, and we
were off! The drive to Ocean City was so
surreal! I’d been counting down to this
moment for months, and it was all right in front of me. Mom and I spent the night double checking
everything and trying to relax before the morning came and it was time to move
me into The Forum!
Before
check-in, however, I met with my sister shore girls and our directors for
breakfast and a few pep talks. I am so
lucky to be a part of the shore family!
I felt so loved and excited to share this week with my sisters!
Breakfast at the Point Diner!
The day
took off at the Forum with check-in, and I found out that I would be rooming
with Miss Gloucester County, Kelcie Klaus!
Kelcie and I had done several appearances together and I was elated to
have been placed with her. We briefly
unpacked and got changed into our homemade t-shirts for day one! Tuesday was filled with rehearsals, lunch at
Augie’s, filming our fitness video, a trip to the Smithville Inn, filming our
talent introductions, and more rehearsing!
It was the most active day of the week by far, but a lot of fun! Thank you to our Producer, John Zisa,
Choreographer, Gabby, and their assistant Christina for making rehearsals
smooth and enjoyable! I’d also like to
give the Miss New Jersey hostesses a shout out for all they do. My hostess, Audrey, ROCKS! All of these gracious women volunteer their
time to make sure we are protected, prepared, and relaxed at all times. Thanks for taking care of us and keeping our
spirits up all week!!
To the left, I'm representing my hometown of mantua as I sign the state! To the right is Kelcie, my roommate and Miss Gloucester County :) My T-shirt is decorated to correspond with my parade character, Kissing Kate Barlow, otherwise known as "The Kissing Bandit."
Lunch at Augie's!
At the Smithville Inn we were able to shop, learn about the history of the Inn, eat an awesome meal, and, of course, take lots of pictures!
Wednesday
we had breakfast at Uncle Bill’s pancake house!
While I refrained from ordering a nice big order of French toast, the
meal was still delicious and I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with some of
the veterans and hearing their anecdotes and advice. After breakfast, it was off to
rehearsal! I really loved our
choreography for each number and truly had a fun time performing (even at
rehearsal!). During a run-through of the
opening number, our Little Stars filed into the Music Pier and I had a hard
time finishing the dance without wanting to stop and hug my girls! They watched us rehearse for a bit, then we
had time to officially crown them with their star tiaras and have lunch at
Primo Pizza! Brooke, Olivia, and I loved
catching up and chatting about how excited we all were! I told them all about my experience so far
and they told me about their plans for a day on the beach! After lunch, it was time for more rehearsals,
but first, we were presented our “gift of the day.” Yes, that’s right. We contestants are gifted an item a day from
sponsors! We received a Honora bracelet
from Bernie Robbins jewelers on Tuesday, and Wednesday, we all got a Kindle!! When Joanie Lucas, the sponsor
extraordinaire, announced what our gift of the day was, we all shrieked with
excitement! I can’t believe how lucky we
are as contestants to have such amazing sponsors. Thank you to Harrah’s Casino for our Kindles!
I’d tell you what we received each of
the remaining days, but I don’t want to leave you green with jealousy ;) After
more rehearsing and dinner at the Chatterbox, it was time for the parade! With our theme of “Villains down the Venue” I
donned my saloon-style dress, boa, and bedazzled cowgirl boots for my
presentation of Kissing Kate Barlow, better known as “The Kissing Bandit!” Thank you, Jeff, for driving all the way from
Delaware to be my driver--cowboy hat, sheriff badge, bandana, and all! Also thank you to my director, Faith “Grammy”
Miller for driving with me and donning a nice cowgirl hat herself! (I’d also like to take this time to thank
Grammy for the NUMEROUS gifts I was showered with each day. She really spoiled me with the sweetest
treasures and good luck cards.) I had an
awesome time in the parade and was excited to see my fan club in full effect
for the first time. They are AWESOME!
We filed
back into the Music Pier after the parade and changed for another rehearsal to
end the night. I was excited to head
back to the Forum for some shut-eye before my interview in the morning! I woke up excited and ready to get
moving…which, if you ask my mother, isn’t always the case, morning person I am
not! Kelcie and I were contestants 6 and
4 respectively, so we got ready for interview together and talked all the while
to keep our nerves in check. I don’t
know what I would have done without Kelcie!
We would always chat before and after a long day to ease the stresses of
being Miss New Jersey newbies! I was
ready with a few minutes to spare and walked down to the lobby at about
8:15. Louie drove the first four
contestants over to another location and I felt like before I knew it, I was in
the interview room! I was surprised to
have had an interview I would call “intense.”
The judges had some difficult questions for me and the interview was
very fast paced! While I felt as though
I handled it well, I could only hope that the judges thought the same! Afterward we rode back to the Forum to get
changed for rehearsal. I was happy to
have an early interview, because for the rest of the day I could relax and
enjoy our practice! Thursday we had lunch
delivered from Del’s and dinner at Periwinkles before getting ready for our
first night of preliminaries! We all
looked a bit silly in the lobby because Thursday night brought a torrential
downpour! Shower caps, hoods, umbrellas,
and even trash bags, we were escorted by our AMAZING security team to the Music
Pier. They drove up onto the sidewalk to
avoid the enormous puddles at the Forum and even backed into the logia of the
Music Pier so as to keep us dry. Those
guys don’t get enough credit! I'd also be remiss if I didn't send a million thank you's to Richard Krauss. As our official Miss New Jersey Photographer he doesn't miss a thing we do all week and somehow always manages to capture the perfect moment and find our "good side."
Rain, rain, go away!
Opening number!
At Thursday’s show I performed my talent, “Cinema Italiano.” I myself had a blast and was so proud of my shore sister, Anna Negron for winning preliminary talent! She brought the house down with her rendition of “My Man.” Also, congratulations to my shore sister Kaitlyn Schoeffel, who tied for a swimsuit preliminary award, Krysten Moore for also tying for the swimsuit preliminary award, and another shore sister, Courtney Fairfield for winning the gown preliminary award! I was so happy to be able to see my family and friends after the show and am so grateful to everyone who came to support me. After visitation it was back to the Forum to get as much sleep as possible.
Gotta love a hug from my director, Grammy!
My fan club!!
Friday
morning came quickly, and we began with breakfast at Ove’s! We rehearsed, and had
lunch on the Pier courtesy of the Petrosh Family! They and their friends made a delicious meal
and decorated so adorably. Lindsey even
gifted us these beautiful hand-jeweled bags!
Thank you again, Lindsey and the Petrosh family!! After lunch, we were able to spend a little
time with our directors. It was nice to
have a little shore family bonding in the midst of rehearsals! Afterward, we had dinner at Yianni’s
Café. The food was SO yummy, and Kelcie
and I even boxed up a few desserts to eat in our room AFTER the swimsuit
competition was over. We did some
knee-high jogging and squats back to the Forum, and got ready to compete in our
second night of preliminaries! I really
enjoyed modeling in swimsuit and evening gown!
Congratulations to Venessa Baez, Ayla Gentiletti, and Katie Skwirut for
tying for the talent award. Also,
congratulations to Melissa Hoffman for taking home a swimsuit win and my shore
sister, Carissa Palumbo, for winning the evening gown preliminary award! I was thrilled to see my fan club and
soak up some family time. It was bedtime again and before I knew it,
time to wake up!
Roomie :)
Ove's in the rain!
Too cute!
Fiona and I at lunch!
Directors' visit at rehearsal!
Dinner at Yianni's!
So hard to resist...
Hard work pays off!
My little stars, Brooke and Liv!
Thank you Royal Court for helping me find this gown!
Ashley Shaffer, my Miss New Jersey big sister while I was
Miss New Jersey's Outsanding Teen back in 2009!
The "pageant posse'!"
Thank you, Aunt Chell, for being the best
photographer and biggest supporter out there!
My loving family :)
On our last
day of Miss New Jersey week, I was already sad to see it coming to an end, and
the show was still hours away! Since we
had our production numbers down, we were able to spend most of our Saturday
relaxing. We had lunch at the Promenade
Food Court, and several hours to ourselves before the show. Kelcie and I packed our bags and relaxed
together in our rooms before it was time to get ready. Since we had so much time I curled her hair,
which helped me take my mind off of the upcoming show! I felt nervous, but knew that no matter what
happened that night, I would be proud of my performance and grateful for the
blessings of my first Miss New Jersey Week.
The shore girls showing off our jackets :)
Lunch at the Promenade!
Lindsey's first stunt!
After
getting ready and walking to the Music Pier, we were all able to meet our current
Miss America, Mallory Hagan. She is
somehow even more beautiful in person and shared some heartfelt words of
encouragement. For the last time, our
breathtaking Miss New Jersey, Lindsey, led a group prayer and we all
participated in our “All For One” chant.
And with that, it was show time!
In the blink of an eye, Dena began calling the top ten. My name was called 6th and I
cannot express to you how truly elated I was!
I was happy to be able to perform for all of my family and friends (there
were over 50 in my “pageant posse”) that had traveled from near and far to
support me. The top ten girls performed
in talent, swimsuit, and evening gown before it was time to announce the top
five. I felt honored to be holding hands
with the rest of the girls in the top ten, and can truthfully say I did not
expect to hear my name called among so many amazing women. When I heard Dena say that contestant number
four had made the top five, I couldn’t believe it! It was hard to process what was happening
while I stood on stage waving at my fan club, whose jaws had all dropped to the
floor at this point. I had watched the
Miss New Jersey pageant for years, always wondering how it felt to make the top
five. Now I know that the top five is
also wondering what it feels like! I was
in my own little world on stage. I want
to congratulate every single girl for their accomplishments in competing at
Miss New Jersey- especially our beautiful new titleholder, Cara. She will represent our state wonderfully and
I cannot wait to cheer her on at Miss America!!
I’ve looked up to some of my fellow contestants for years, and it was so
humbling to have shared the week with so many qualified representatives.
Everyone with Louie before the show!
Making top ten!
Making top five!!
"Oh my goodness..."
Top five question with Dena :)
Final two!
Go Cara!
Top five photo :)
Mom, Dad, Grammy, Vicki, & Christopher at visitation!
I never expected to be first runner-up to Miss New Jersey, and while it has been my goal to someday hold the esteemed title for quite some time, I am glad to have many more years in the organization. I had an unbelievable amount of fun during Miss New Jersey week and am already hoping to hold another local title and participate next year. Until then, I will continue striving to live a life worthy of the Miss America organization. Thank you for all of the support before, during, and after Miss New Jersey week. I am forever grateful for the people who have been placed in my life. I’ll update you all soon with more community service and appearance news, but until then, take care!
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