Guest Post: A Live Toddlers & Tiaras Experience

This is a very special post for Less Than Reality. It's written by guest blogger Oceane, who writes the Toddlers and Tiaras blog, and runs the online photo contest Child Beauty Queenz. Check out her sites and give this a read.

For anyone familiar with child beauty pageants, the Universal Royalty Beauty Pageant may ring a bell. It has been featured multiple times on Toddlers & Tiaras, and has had the 2 biggest child beauty queen competitors; Eden Wood and Makenzie Myers. Being an avid watcher of Toddlers & Tiaras and owner of the Tiara Toddlers blog, I couldn’t resist watching the pageant myself. It was the National pageant and not far from my house, so I went with a couple of friends and observed.

 

Annette Hill, the director of Universal Royalty Pageant was very strict on the rules. It was being filmed for Toddlers & Tiaras and she wanted a good reputation, so she made sure everyone attending (including parents and siblings) were dressed formally, and there were no over-the-top (think Mia as Madonna , Maddy as Dolly Parton or Paisley as a prostitute) inappropriate outfits. There were a few families being filmed, one of them being Mia Spargo. I recognized a lot of girls from Toddlers & Tiaras such as Meaghan Jones, Kailia Deliz, Kayla Hatton, Brooke McClung, Chloe Stacy and Zanna Brewer. The three categories were beauty, celebrity wear and talent.

Kayla was fabulous. Age appropriate? Not quite. Zanna’s outfit was a bit iffy as well but you could tell she loved pageants. In fact, just by looking at the girl’s performances you can tell you likes the pageants and who don’t. The question is; are pageants really like the ones we see on Toddlers & Tiaras? Decide for yourself, but here are a few things I saw.

Aishlynn‘s (another girl who was featured on T&T) mom was bad mouthing a lot of other contestants. I couldn’t quite make out everything she was saying but there was a lot of gossiping going on between her and some other moms. In the adult division, one woman seemed to be more of a beginner. All around me I could hear people making fun of her. One girl who looked about the age of 8 had just finished her routine and went to find her mom. Her mom scolded her and told her she’d messed up, leaving the little girl in tears. Her father picked her up and told her she did a good job.

I saw almost all of the performances, but I was very surprised with the outcome. My pick for the ultimate would have been Zanna though she did not even receive a supreme title. The winner, once again was Meaghan. Funny how this is the third time she won the ultimate at Universal Royalty isn’t it? Meaghan was good, but she wasn’t the best. In my opinion (and many others) the pageant was rigged. Chloe only got cover model though she deserved another title. Kayla, who was fabulous for her age didn’t supreme either. 

Mia Spargo’s parents were also unhappy with the outcome. Mia had once again won novice supreme but she only received a sash and money; no trophy, no crown and no teddy bear, which was guaranteed to come with her title. It seems a little sketchy that Meaghan always wins the ultimate at this pageant. What do I think? I think Annette Hill is brainwashing these moms. Annette has two daughters of her own who have never competed in pageants. Weird, isn’t it? Annette makes tons of money off these moms with her pageant, and is well aware that pageants are a waste of money.

On top of this sketchy incident, last season showed Eden vs Makenzie. Both were nearly as good as each other. One judge preferred Eden, the other preferred Makenzie and the third liked both. Yet Eden won Grand Supreme and Makenzie got the lowest title. A bit strange, isn’t it.

I can’t speak for all pageants, but as far as Universal Royalty goes, I think it’s rigged. The same girl can’t win every time, especially when she isn’t the best. This pageant will air on Toddlers & Tiaras in January or February, so be sure to watch it!