June 22nd - Three Year Blog Anniversary! Thank You Viewers!

Three years ago today I started this blog when I was modeling abroad in Singapore! The time has flown by but many great things have happened! A quote of mine that I still stand by is "If you work hard and truly believe then you will achieve." You can accomplish what you want to and anything that does not work out the way that you thought it would, the Universe will show you the truth and guide you on the right path. It is comforting to know that if you try to be the best person you can be, put in effort and stay positive then the Universe will provide everything that you need in life. 

I know that I am a little detailed in my posts but to me every day is special; I enjoy each place that I go and I am thankful for all of the people in my life. I am also thankful for each and every person that views my posts! I have received many views from all different countries and I think it is amazing that we have the internet to connect the world. I wish that I could mention every country that people have viewed from but Blogger shows that the top ten countries are:


    

 United States of America!              Canada!                         Germany!           

      

             Singapore!                          Russia!                         Philippines!         

          

         United Kingdom!                   Australia!                          Malaysia!         

                                          

                                                       Ukraine!

I truly feel that each person's journey is special and beautiful in it's own way. Thank you again for sharing mine with me and I look forward to your continued support by viewing my posts and feel free to leave comments!

Life is in the journey.

Dec 7th-Dec 17th - Good-bye NYC & Miss NY USA Orientation!

On Saturday I flew to NYC to move out of my apartment there with my roommates Sarah and Dennise. 

We had great memories of living together and I was sad to move out but I was mostly in Rochester, New York and Los Angeles and it was costing me money to have the apartment. The whole next day I spent packing and cleaning the apartment. On Monday I met up with Ritz at the BET offices in Times Square to go to lunch together.

I was so glad that we got to celebrate her birthday and hang out! Afterwards since we were near Rockefeller Center I had to stop by to see the tree! I love Christmas decorations and being there was so lively and beautiful.

The rest of the day and night and all the next day was nonstop cleaning and packing! It was cutting it close to getting everything done but it felt good when we were finished! Then it set in that this was good-bye to living in NYC with Sarah and Dennise. It was sad to think about but I could not afford to be in three different cities. Our time together in the city is something that I will always cherish! 

When I got back home I spent time with my kitty Cookie Dough and our doggy Massimo. We also went to the archery range to shoot and the owner of Tradition's Archery let me borrow a bow while I was there to shoot with Mike and his Dad. The next day we went shooting again and then at night we went to our friends' grand opening of their restaurant Blu Wolf Bistro! There was a burger eating contest that consisted of eating four 8 ounce burgers and a lot more! 

Jon decided to go for it and he did very well but there were too many dry french fries that he could not finish before the time was up. Still we were proud of him and it was very entertaining to watch him! 

The next day I went shopping with Mike's Mom and Aunt just for fun and to get some Christmas presents. Then I filled out paperwork at Five Guys in order to have a fundraiser there for Miss New York USA. Later at night my Mom and I got our nails done together which was nice! On Sunday I drove down towards the city for the Miss New York USA orientation. They went over information and started teaching the opening number dance. While I was in line to sign up for my title in the pageant I met Amy who I became friends with and we decided to be roommates at the pageant! 

It was nice meeting the other contestants and I saw Rhaven who I knew from Miss New York Teen USA yeas ago! That night I stayed at Mike's Uncle Jack's house and our friend Jorge was there too. The next morning I drove back to Rochester and when I got home I helped bake sweet treats with my Mom! 

The next day I had a meeting at Scott Miller to talk about the model placement company we are starting. We went over the business plan and it was exciting to talk about something that I am passionate about doing. I feel that I owe a lot of my modeling career to Chantale Nadeau Model Placement and I want to be able to help other aspiring models achieve their dreams too! 

After the meeting I went home and we went searching for a Christmas tree! It was absolutely freezing out but we spent some time until we found "the tree!" At night I got things ready for my fundraiser the next day!

Nov 24th-Dec 6th - Thanksgiving & Good-bye LA!

On Sunday Mike's parents went back home and during the day I went to Spoon by H to eat lunch with my friend Autumn. The next day I did a photo shoot and Mike had meetings. Later I went to my friend Erica's house and we baked cookies together! After Mike and I realized we had not eaten dinner yet so we went to Cafe Med on Sunset Boulevard before they closed and overindulged!

Tuesday I had a go-see for Forever 21 and Lucca Couture. For dinner Mike and I went to Spoon with Autumn because we all love it there. Then Mike and I went to The Grove and it was absolutely beautiful! I love looking at Christmas lights and we had fun standing in the snow that they made!

The next day Mike and I went shopping at Beverly Center and we ran into my old friend Anthony Dominic who works at TMZ. At night we ate at Katana on Sunset Boulevard where the food is always delicious!

Thursday was Thanksgiving Day and I Skyped with my parents and my Grandma since I was not home to spend the day with them. Mike and I went to Newport to celebrate with Mike's cousin Sylvie which was nice. We went to her apartment with a couple of her friends and we all cooked together. I was in charge of the cranberry sauce and everything turned out great! It was nice that we could be together to celebrate away from home.

That weekend I got a call at 1:30am from my cousin Amanda who lives on the same street as me in New York, where it was 4:30am. She said that a man was breaking into cars and houses in the neighborhood and when the police officers arrived their dog was reacting to my garage. They tried to call my parents but they were not home so they had Amanda call me. Then an officer got on the phone and asked for my permission to break the door to get in and of course I permitted him! They looked around and did not find the suspect. I was so scared but I found out the next morning they caught the man less than a mile from my house!

The next day was my friend Ritz's birthday who lives in New York and I made plans to see her the coming week! I had a photo shoot and then the next day Mike and I met up with my friends Alics and David. We went to a place where there are large flat screen televisions that you can choose to play any video game on! We had a lot of fun dancing to DDR and doing other games together.

Then we went to dinner at Sushiya on Sunset Boulevard with Sylvie and her friends which was fun! On Monday I had a go-see for MLV and later I went with my friends Lindsay and Dana to go hiking at sunset. It was a gorgeous view but we stayed a little too long and had to walk back down the mountain in the dark using our phones to light the path.

That day I had a go-see for Barton Perreira and then Mike and I moved our belongings to the W Hotel to stay there for the last few days of our trip, which was beautiful!

On Thursday I worked for Modnique.com one last time before leaving. It was bittersweet because the whole team has become my good friends and I was going to miss them. They understood that I had to go after my dream job of being Miss USA or Miss Universe. We had fun on set like always and I was thankful to have another shoot with them, which made for about the nineteenth time working together!

Afterwards I had a going away dinner with Mike, Alics, Jarrett, David, Autumn, Lindsay, Julie, Cindy, Jay at my favorite place, Spoon by H! It was nice to have everyone together and I am so thankful to have these people in my life. <3

On my last day there I went into the Ford office to say goodbye because I was going to be leaving that weekend to go back to New York. They knew that in January I would be competing for Miss New York USA and if I won I would not be back. Everyone was so supportive of my dream even though they were sad to see me go. They knew this time was coming because when I first signed with them they wanted to do a three-year contract and I changed it to one year because I knew that I wanted to enter in the pageant and they completely understood. I had an amazing year working in California and I greatly appreciate that Ford Models and Chantale Nadeau gave me this opportunity.

At night Mike took me to The Redbury which was a cool environment and delicious tapas. We went to Spoon by H for dessert and we said our goodbyes. The family that owns Spoon is so sweet and Yoon has become a good friend of mine. She gave me a special cake and tea to bring back to the hotel and then I packed to go to New York City!

Nov 19th-Nov 23rd - Mike's Parents Visit LA!

Tuesday I had a go-see for Clover Canyon and then Mike's parents got into town. We met them at the Sunset Marquis where they were staying and we saw Joe Jonas there. That night we had a nice dinner at Cecconi's where I had soup and gnocchi!

The next day I had a go-see for Cinderella Divine. After that we went shopping and ate at Red O restaurant which everyone really liked! I loved the interior design and the live music. Thursday I was on hold for Cinderella Divine but I was booked by Modnique.com! I had fun modeling Paprazzi jackets, Diesel jeans. Betsey Johnson jackets and jewelry.

Afterwards, I met up with Mike and his parents and we all went to Pizzeria Mozza for dinner. It was a lively environment and the appetizers and pizza were really good! The bread that they brought out was especially scrumptious!

On Friday I went to a go-see for Bailey 44 and they had me try on several outfits. They were really nice and my agency said that they wanted to book me but they needed a model who was permanently in Los Angeles. Right after I had a go-see for Rachel Pally and then ran to photographer Tracy Kahn's studio for a test shoot!

I got an e-mail last minute for a Body Language sports wear go-see right after the shoot. Luckily I got there just in time before the casting ended! Then I went to Sunset Marquis to meet up with everyone and we saw actor Gabriel Byrne. The next morning Mike's lawyer Renee Karalian, who works with the top people in the music industry, met us at the hotel for brunch which was nice!

Then I went with Mike and his parents to go shopping in Beverly Hills. While we were there we ate at South Beverly Grill and it was so amazing that it has become one of our favorite restaurants! There is an artichoke special that is one of the best things I have ever had and Mike said that their burger is his favorite in the U.S. 

We had such a great time together there. After, we walked around, looked at the Christmas lights and did some more shopping. 

Getting a workout at Barneys haha 

Later we ate dinner at Rivabella which has a great atmosphere and of course delicious food. It was our first time sitting inside a separate room that they have but it was quieter so it was easier to talk. 

Scott and Helen had to leave the next day but we were so happy that they got to visit! It was special to all be in Los Angeles together. <3

Nov 13th-Nov 18th - Samsung Commercial & The Hunger Games Movie Premiere!

Wednesday morning I went to Quixote Studios for a fitting for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie premiere that I was booked for! I tried on an elaborate dress that was made out of a material that looked like wood on top and chiffon on the bottom.

Then I had a go-see for Just Fab and Shoe Dazzle but my call time for the Samsung job was made earlier so I headed to set! When I got there I did not see any other cars but I saw a huge production down the road. From the looks of it I thought a major motion picture was being filmed but it turned out to be for the commercial! I got my hair and makeup done in the trailer and the team was all really nice. They had catering there and I ate with an actress names Katie who was sweet! I watched them finish filming a scene and then we headed to the next location.

The house we were filming in had a beautiful view. While they were setting up I saw a young woman coming to the trailer, we both recognized each other at the same time and our jaws dropped! My old friend Julianna who was Miss New Jersey Teen USA my year at Miss Teen USA and later became Miss NJ USA was going to be in the commercial too! It was so nice to see each other and catch up! 

(Me and Julianna at Miss Teen USA 2006!)

The first scene we filmed was a group of people hanging out at a cocktail party. The singer Robin Thicke came through and said hello to some of the guests because the idea was that he was hosting the party for a friend. Then myself and two other models did a scene against a white wall where Robin was holding a phone and we had the Samsung watches on. Then I went back to the cocktail scene and we filmed the friend walking through the door and everyone surprising her! 

(Setting up the scene)

Honestly, when I booked the job and found out that Robin Thicke would be in it I was worried because of his recent controversies. I reached out to my agency, friends and family to get their opinions before doing the job and they reminded me that I was not endorsing Robin but rather professionally working for a very reputable company. I was glad that the filming went well and I had one more day to shoot later that weekend. 

The next day I went hiking with my friend Alics and her puppy Teddy. He did not like walking uphill in the hot sun so we carried him some of the way and then called it day. Afterwards we went to Spoon to get tea and give Teddy water. 

Later I went to a go-see for Prive hair salon where they looked at my hair to see if it would be good for their instructional videos and promotional photos. Friday morning I had a request go-see for Roxy.com where I tried on different clothes and they took pictures. Afterwards I went shopping and found a skirt that I fell in love with and I bought it to wear during my interview for  Miss NY USA! Then I brought my friend Autumn to a go-see and we got our nails done together. Later at night Mike flew to LA and I picked him up! 

On Saturday I finished filming for the Samsung commercial. I got ready in the hair and makeup trailer and then hung out with the other talent until it was time to film my scene. Myself and another model were driven to a park where we filmed a scene of us stretching and running in the park. While we were running we got a text on our watches inviting us to a surprise party that night. They asked me to film another scene after but then they didn't want the same person in two different scenes so I was done! 

I was thankful to have this opportunity to work with Duroo Productions and Samsung! Later at night Mike and I went shopping and he found a shirt for me that turned out to be perfect for my interview outfit! After we had a delicious dinner at Cafe Med on Sunset Boulevard. The next day I worked the job for Prive where they did two instructional videos and two little photo shoots of the final looks. 

Monday night I was going to be modeling at The Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie premiere so Mike thought it would be fitting to take me to an archery lesson! He had tried shooting before and really liked it and after I tried it, I loved archery too! 

That was a fun date and then we headed to a go-see for Paule Ka. There was a long line and I did not want to be late for my call time for the premiere so unfortunately I had to leave without meeting the client. Mike dropped me off at Nokia Theatre where I went in a back entrance and went straight to the hair stylist (who was a stylist for the Samsung commercial too)! Then the makeup artist warned me it was going to be very interesting since I was supposed to be from the Capitol. While he was doing my makeup I could hear everyone cheering outside as the movie stars walked on the red carpet into the premiere. After, I put on the Capitol couture gown and went to the amazing after party where I took pictures with guests!