It's already day 9 of "Camp Mary" and I'm having a blast.  Mary Sullivan is so much fun.  This won't come as a surprise to anyone who knows me personally but I absolutely love to laugh and I find humor in almost everything (sometimes a good thing, sometimes not) so we spend a lot of time giggling.  Mary is clever, fun, insightful, and kind.  To the next Miss Florida: make sure you enjoy her.

On July 25th I did a fun interview with Emerald Coast Magazine.  This magazine tells the stories of people with ties to the Destin, FL Panhandle area.  My family moved there when I was 10 and we lived in the area for three years during my awkward middle school years.  Of course people that might remember me from that area and ages 10 to 13 are appalled at the idea of me winning Miss Anything (I don't blame them).  But, this interview was a wonderful trip down memory lane.  We talked about the sparkling white sands, the delicious fresh seafood, sunsets where the sun melted into the ocean like butter on a biscuit and a crucial part of my childhood.  Some of my best memories were from these years in Blue Mountain Beach playing by the sea and learning to embrace what I could become.

Mary and I trekked up to Orlando in the afternoon on the 25th to make sure we were already in O-Town for a hair appointment and head shot photos the next day.  We stopped by Regalia to visit with Carry O'Neil and see Miss Florida's Outstanding Teen Jennifer try on a few dresses.  I don't envy Jennifer as her pageant is right around the corner but she is going to be ready and she will represent this state wonderfully.  We stopped by Copperhead Salon to see Chris Martin and he gave me a new do that is much more manageable and current.  I had some crazy long Rapunzel locks going at Miss Florida but this hair cut is great as Miss Florida should be modern young woman.  Chris Martin at Copperhead is an incredibly talented hairdresser but, more importantly, he radiates kindness.  Chris and his wife Jen are so giving and their love for the Miss Florida pageant comes from a genuine place.  I could never express how thankful I am to have Chris in my life as a friend and not just a hair magician.  Speaking of magicians, our next stop was Deanna Meredith's photography studio.  She took some beautiful pictures which is very hard to do because I don't take good pictures.  I am so impressed by her and she made our shoot exciting and fun.  Thank you SO much Chris and Deanna!  Now Mary gets to embark on the exhausting journey of picking the right headshot for Miss America.  I'm pretty sure she's having nightmares about my face where my potential headshots are dancing like sugar plums in her head.  Terrifying.

July 27th: My first meeting with The Everglades Foundation.  Miss Florida's partnership with this amazing organization has always fascinated me and I could not be more excited about the work I will be doing with them.  They understand the value Miss Florida can bring to their cause and we understand the benefits our organization can reap just by being associated with The Everglades Foundation.  It is a beautiful relationship that has grown and evolved every year with each different Miss Florida.  I plan to put my own stamp on it but I am so thankful to the Miss Floridas that came before me and paved the way for the rest of us to have this enriching opportunity.  Mary and I met the new CEO of The Everglades Foundation, Eric Eikenberg and we talked about the plans he has to use Miss Florida this year, their internal mission, and even a little Major League Baseball.  I learned so much about this ecosystem that supplies 7 million Floridians with water.  Here are a few quick facts I found interesting:

-On average, each Floridian uses 180 gallons of water a day and one out of every 3 Floridians rely on the Everglades for their water supply.  

-For every dollar invested in Everglades restoration, $4 are generated in return with the real estate sector benefiting most from improved water quality.

-Everglades restoration will generate about 442,664 jobs over 50 years.

-The freshwater Everglades ecosystem is currently less than half its original size...about 2 million acres of the ecosystem have been lost.

But, the main point that really stuck out to me in our initial meeting is this: water is not a renewable resource.  We have to conserve what we have and work to make sure our children and grandchildren will have water in their lives.  What we do now directly affects the future generations that will need this water to survive.  

I encourage everyone to go to The Everglades Foundation website www.evergladesfoundation.org and learn more.  This is a cause I will be talking about often but it's worth familiarizing yourself with and finding out how you can help.

With The Everglades Foundation's new CEO Eric Eikenberg

July 21st:  According to the dictionary, a 'classy' person is stylish, admirably smart and elegant.  I cannot think of a better description for Ann Marie Griffin.

Ann Marie is so generous and she genuinely cares about the Miss Florida Organization and what it stands for.  Mary, Ann Marie and I had a wonderful time in her new store.  I am so excited about all of the beautiful clothes she is so kind to give to me and I can't wait to wear them everywhere!  If you haven't visited her store yet, you need to.  It is gorgeous and she has so many beautiful dresses and outfits.  Her new location in Homestead, FL is at 606 Washington Avenue.

Take a look at her website as well: http://annmariesbridalboutique.com/

After trying on clothes, we went to a lovely dinner in Homestead.  Somehow we started talking about one of our favorite culinary phenomenons: Starbucks cake pops.  Ann Marie informed Mary and me that there was a recall on the birthday cake pop pink icing because the dye was made with some sort of bug.  Of course, we were appalled but it lead to lots of laughter.  Thank you, Ann Marie for a wonderful evening.

July 19th:  At what point do you put the crown on when you're driving to an appearance?   If you put it on before you start driving to an appearance, you're bound to run into some interesting characters on the road wondering why on earth some girl is driving around with a crown on her head.  If you arrive without a crown on, people may say, "Shouldn't Miss Florida have her crown on?"  After much thought and consultation of those who know more than me about these things, I've come to the conclusion that you should find a secret place to park your car and put it on right before you reach your destination.  Problem solved.

Once I finally got my crown on today, I attended the Westminster Shores Groundbreaking Ceremony.  Westminster Shores is a retirement community in St. Petersburg and they are opening a new building for residents to move into soon so this ceremony was honoring their addition.  We did a full on breaking of the ground which meant I had to shovel some dirt with the Mayor, city council members and some other contributors.  Apparently I didn't know my own strength because I dug the deepest hole of anyone and had to quickly fill it back in before anyone noticed I had broken too much ground.

My tip of the day: if you're going to any appearance that may be outside or may require standing in dirt, it's wise to wear wedges.  This may seem like a no brainer but I wished I had used my brain when getting dressed as I sunk deeper and deeper into the sand.  The man next to me said, "Are you getting shorter?"

One of the speakers at the ceremony said a great quote: "Striving for excellence is inspiring.  Striving for perfection is demoralizing."  His point, of course, was based around building this new complex but I love this quote because it's something I struggle with every day.  Always trying to be perfect is simply exhausting whereas excellence is attainable and motivating.  Learning to accept that you can't do everything perfectly is a big step in the right direction on the path of excellence.

July 15th: I'd hate to make too many people who don't live in the state of Florida jealous but I'm going to say this anyway.  Waking up in Florida is magnificent.  We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful state and I am always reminding myself to enjoy the post card scenery that surrounds us daily.

I attended the "Joe Maddon Summer Social" today at Tropicana Field.  It's an event that allows fans to interact with Rays players and coaches in an intimate setting.  More importantly, however, it benefits the Rays Foundation which raises money for those in need all over Florida.  It has been truly amazing to talk with people about what Miss Florida does and tell them why Miss Florida and Miss America are representative of a modern woman with intelligence, poise, beauty, dreams and tangible goals.  I've enjoyed talking about all the women I've competed with and how they've changed my life and inspired me.  All of YOUR stories are great conversation starters and I love to brag about the dynamic ladies dispersed throughout this state.  Most of the baseball fans at Maddon's Summer Social weren't necessarily interested in pageants...or at least they didn't think they were.  When they learned more about MAO, the scholarship, the talent, and the community service, I watched their eyes light up and their demeanor change drastically.

Medical Home Doctors Grand Opening

                                       

July 17th:  One man's trash is another man's treasure.  Those were the words that occurred to me as I listened to the St. Petersburg City Council members speak about the Medical Home Doctors Grand Opening.  This Grand Opening was to recognize a building that used to be an auto repair garage and will now serve as a medical clinic.  Talk about making the most of a situation!  This clinic is a welcomed addition to an area in need of good medical care.  Dr. Jonadab Uzoho is a Board Certified Family Medicine Doctor and he has special training in physical therapy.  He will be offering free weight loss consultations to the community among other great services.  Dr. Uzoho said it was very important to him to come back to a community that was important to him because he wants to help and that's his primary motivation.  It was exciting to see all of the city council members, St. Pete Mayor Foster and more supporting a new business in the area.  Oh, and we even cut a ribbon :)

Rays Pitcher David Price at Dugout Club

July 18th: Up bright and early this morning for an adventure with the Rays Dugout Club.  Rays players David Price and Desmond Jennings participated in the Dugout Club and spoke to four different groups of children around the St. Petersburg community.  We were greeted by cheers and bright eyes.  All of these children were vibrant and curious and it was an invigorating morning. Our main emphasis was fitness and encouraging these children to go outside and play. It's simple but it's something that's very important to me and I know it's a crucial part of the Rays Dugout Club's mission.

Dancing with Betty!


I left the younger generation to spend some time with the greatest generation at the Senior Tea Dance.  This is an event for senior citizens in St. Petersburg where they learn how to ballroom dance, socialize and enjoy snacks.  I got to dance with some of the "dance hosts" who promptly taught me the fox trot.  As a ballet dancer, I figured I'd be pretty good at ballroom dancing but it turns out I have two left feet and they don't do anything remotely close to fox trotting.  Either way, we "cut a rug" as they kept telling me and it was a wonderful event.  I look forward to attending as many senior tea dances as I can and hope I don't wear out my welcome!

Senior Tea

So much fun having a sleepover with Jennifer! Miss Florida's Outstanding Teen rocks!

A Visit to St. Petersburg All Children's Hospital

Whew, what a week it's been!  They say you're supposed to take time to smell the roses so I'm doing that as I write this and once again reminding myself how blessed I am.  I can't even begin to thank everyone enough for all the support and kind words I've received.  It is truly amazing and something I'll never forget. The opportunity to be Miss Florida is incredible. I have always felt every contestant competing for the title is worthy of winning and would do a wonderful job and I've been fortunate to meet numerous women who have changed my life over the past three years.  We are intelligent women with career goals and high aspirations.  We are classy and clever with quick wits and kind hearts.  We excel at what we do while staying humble and focused on a bigger picture.

I had a conversation the other day that really impacted me.  A Tampa Bay Rays fan who is a friend of mine approached me at Starbucks the other day and told me he had seen all of the Miss Florida contestants at the Rays game on July 1st.  He said he got some autographs from some of the women and talked with them for a bit in the rotunda.  He came away SO impressed and said he couldn't believe how smart, funny and kind these ladies were.  He said it made him feel better about our country because he knows the future United States is in the hands of powerful women like these.  The story gave me chills and I told him I couldn't agree more.  I am honored to know all of you.

One of my goals is to make Miss Florida as transparent and accessible as possible.  I will be using social media (Facebook and Twitter) to do this but I also want to update this blog daily so everyone knows what types of appearances I'm making.  Furthermore, I think this could be useful for the next Miss Florida as there are many things I've learned already that I wish I knew beforehand.  Here's an update of what I've done so far:

Sunday July 8th:  The morning after Miss Florida finals, I did an interview on ABC news in Tampa.  Mary had told me the previous night at the gala that I would be doing this interview and I needed to be ready to go at 7 am Sunday morning.  Much to my dismay, however, I realized I hadn't brought anything to wear for something like this!  I never thought I would actually win Miss Florida so I had only packed enough dresses to wear to the appearances we had scheduled during the week.  Bad move.  Miss Florida always needs to be prepared for anything that could come her way.  My parents and I drove back to my house in St Petersburg to grab a dress for the next morning but this could have been avoided had I prepared myself properly!  So, back to Sunday morning...when Bill Doniel and I arrived at the station, they told me they would be interviewing me and having me do a sportscast and then do the weather.  I was feeling great until they said "weather."  I've never done a weather broadcast in my life and I knew this could be a recipe for disaster.  But, I think one of the biggest parts of being Miss Florida is learning how to recover when being constantly thrown out of your comfort zone.  I did the weather...or something like that and I think we can all agree weather broadcasting is not in my future but it was a great learning experience.  After my meteorology experiment, I met my parents back at the Hilton and we had our first meeting with Mary and the board.  I was so excited and I still can't believe the board volunteers the time they do.  It's amazing how much all of them give back.

Monday July 9th:  On Monday I had an interview on FOX news in the morning.  I have never felt safer in my life thanks to Bill Doniel and the Miss Florida security detail.  They are all so wonderful and do so much to help us all.  After the FOX interview in the morning, the station told me they wanted me to come back that night as well so we scheduled that and I went over to the Hilton to meet with Mary and Miss Florida's Outstanding Teen Jennifer!  They were frantically working on Jennifer's paperwork as it all has to be in so fast so I watched and tried to learn from what they were doing so I would be more ready for my paperwork.  We all went back to the FOX station that evening and Jennifer got interviewed as well!

Tuesday July 10th:  Mary and I had an interview with the Tampa Bay Times on Tuesday morning which was really nice.  They gave me a chance to talk about the scholarship aspect of the Miss America Organization and also to praise the amazing women that compete for these titles.  Then, I decided it was probably time to hit the gym.  Mary and I are working on our plan for fitness as well as talent, platform, hair, wardrobe...you name it.  There is so much that goes into Miss America preparation and I am determined to represent Florida the best I can so I want to be as prepared as possible.  I've had so much fun bouncing ideas off Mary and getting her opinion on things.  This woman knows what she's doing!

Thursday July 11th: Mary and I worked on some more paperwork and I visited St. Petersburg All Children's Hospital.  I have a friend named Matt (he's 16) and he's confined to a wheelchair.  He had an accident and was rushed to the hospital so I ran over to see him and was able to visit some other children there too.  It's so important to me to make sure I don't limit myself in appearances.  I want to do anything and everything I can even if it's not related to my platform at all.  I'm still getting used to what it's like being Miss Florida but I've already noticed the impact it has on people when you walk in their hospital room with that crown on.  I will never forget the smiles that instantly take over these children's faces.

So honored to be Miss Florida 2012!  I will have daily updates throughout my year on this blog.  Stay tuned!

Love,

Laura