Merry Christmas everyone! I know I'm a few days early, but merry Christmas anyway:) I love this time of year because it reminds me of how lucky I am to have such a wonderful family when so many others are left alone during the holidays. My thoughts are especially with all of our military personnel who are away from their families this year. I know what it is like to be away from home during the holidays and it is not easy to call home and here your family partaking in Christmas traditions without you! But if anything, it makes you appreciate the love and happiness family can give.

I was thinking back the other day to June when I first won the crown of Miss Maine and I remember thinking that I had plenty of time to prepare for Miss America, but now, it's almost January and I have just under a month before I have to leave for Vegas! Time flies but I do feel like I am ready for the challenge! The dress shop Moda Bella has been extremely helpful in my preparations. The owner, Diane Tucker, was so amazing and gave me two dresses for free to help complete my wardrobe. I am completely indebted to her and her kindness, talk about the Christmas spirit! The two cocktail dresses are fabulous and I highly recommend heading up to Moda Bella in Gardiner for all your fashion needs! Another shop called Simply You Too in Saco donated four outfits to me for Vegas! One in particular is great, I walked out of the dressing room wondering where my motorcycle was! I looked like a biker chick. Ha! But it will be a fun outfit to wear in Vegas. Thanks to Simply You Too!!!

Merry Christmas everyone! I wish all of you the peace and love and a wondeful new year!
God Bless,

Susie

hey everyone! We're so close to raising the minimum amount of money for the Children's Miracle Network! Every dollar helps! Please consider donating to such a good cause especially during the Christmas season. Go to missamerica4kids.org to donate under my name:) Thanks everone!

Christmas in Harrison

Christmas has officially started and what better way to get things going than a parade! On Dec. 5th I was invited to be a part of the annual Christmas in Harrison. I've never been in a parade at this time of year and let me tell you...it's cold! But a very nice lady named "Muffett", the editor of Harrison's local paper The Village Voice, let me borrow her beautiful white fur coat! It kept me very warm, thank you Muffett! After the parade, all of the local businesses opened their doors to the public for fun activities like gingerbread man decorating, swag making, pony rides, horse draw carriage rides, hot chocolate, and visits with Santa! Local B&B's also allowed people in to check out their hospitable rooms and great service. Greenwood Manor Inn is my favorite by far. It could be because my parents are running the house! But it is still a gorgeous place and I'm sure if you stayed there, you would have a blast:) Check it out on the web! Later in the day they had a huge tree lighting and another parade with every float decorated with thousands of lights! It was snowing as well which made everything even more beautiful. I love this time of year and highly recommend going to Christmas in Harrison next year, it's a ton of fun!

Hey everyone! I have a challenge I need help with! I need to raise money for the Children's Miracle Network and was wondering if you all could help me out! The Children's Miracle Network provides care for millions of kids each year. It is a non-profit organization that raises funds for 170 children's hospitals so that every child will be able to get treatment no matter the illness or whether they can afford care. Donations to the Children's Miracle Network create miracles by funding medical care, research and education that saves and improves the lives of 17 million kids each year. This is such a worthy cause, even a dollar will help! Your donation will be considered a tax write-off. Please consider donating and helping to make a differance! Go to www.missamerica4kids.org to donate! Click on "search for a contestant" on the left and type in my name, susanna stauble, to get to my page. We all have the ability to change lives.

Thanks in advance!

Sincerely, Susie