Video Update

Here's the video! :)

Let me know what you think and if you wouldn't mind seeing more videos!

~Shelby

Grammy Sunday

The Grammy's, otherwise known as, "The Superbowl of Music", took place on Sunday in Los Angeles, CA. I have to agree with Justin Timberlake when he said, "Best Grammy's ever? Best Grammy's ever." Normally, I'm fast forwarding through performances or annoyed with most of the artists that are attending, but this year, I felt completely different about it. I appreciate and love just about all music genres, and I think it is so cool when artists from all over can come together; collaborate, get to know one another, and make plans for music in the future.

First, let's talk about the most important part of any award show...The red carpet. There were so many great dresses, but nothing too crazy or too shocking this year. But, some, still didn't get that memo on "no puffy skin" or revealing clothing, *Cough* J.LO *Cough*. Anyway, here are some of my favorites:

Best:

Carrie Underwood
 I really think she was the epitome of a star in this dress! She always looks like one, but this is just a very classy and elegant dress; so much detail. Her hair looks perfect, her makeup looks perfect! I just wish she would have worn some earrings or a bracelet, but either way...INCREDIBLE!

Taylor Swift
When I first saw this, I wasn't crazy about it. But, I came to the conclusion that it was mainly the hair I didn't like. I thought the dress was beautiful and Taylor always looks so graceful and modest, but...I didn't think the hair looked completely finished. I wish it would've been a curled, sort of "up-do". Other than that, I dig it...and I love that she has been dressing older, and trying new risks. 

Rihanna
Usually, she's not a red carpet favorite of mine..But, I think she looked stunning on Sunday! She was fully clothed, it's a color that really makes her shine and stand out, because she's known for wearing bold, bright colors. This suits her very well, and also sticks with the guidelines that the Grammy's sent out.

Beyonce
A lot of people didn't like this look, and I can see why, but to me...She rocks something like this, and it just goes to show you, that she pretty much wear anything. Because of the fashion choices and her alter ego of "Sasha Fierce", people know her attitude and what she's capable of. She's strong, successful, and this shows that to me.  Only she can pull something like this off. I wish there might have been something more done with the hair, but I still love it. 

Katy Perry
Katy said she was paying homage to Priscilla Presley in the 70s with this dress, and I think she pulled it off.  I think her black hair and skin tone go really well with the mint green color, but I wish she would've been a little more covered on the top, it just sort of looks like it didn't fit. But, she looks gorgeous! And she's one of my favorites, because she's not afraid to take some chances, just staying true to herself. 

Justin Timberlake
To me, this guy can do no wrong. Once again, it's all about personality...Because, let's admit it, the shoes are a little dorky, but he just walks in with his southern charm and has girls everywhere, swooning. Justin would have been big in any era! He just has that timeless, classic look, like George Clooney.

Worst:

I think these are pretty obvious....

Moving right along to the main event. Like I said, I think this has to be one of the best shows! There were so many quality performances, that I really couldn't wait to see what the next one would come up with. 

Justin is BACK! This performance was AMAZING! Really loving his new sound and so excited for this whole "black and white" theme he has going! It's very 20s, which I love. He just really owned the stage on this one. It just really makes you want to get up and dance; it's fun!

Katy Perry presenting was just awesome! Even in the few seconds of her talking, she was able to show her charm and personality! She's just too funny! I want to have a tea party with her sometime. 

How incredible was Carrie Underwood's performance?! Artistically, I think this is seriously one of the coolest things she has ever done. 

WOW! Maroon 5 and Alicia Keys really blew me away with this one. I'm not huge fans of either one, but I like their music...And their voices just blended really well together with Daylight and Girl On Fire.

I just really love Kelly Clarkson! I love that she has never pretended to be anything else but herself in the industry and in her personal life. She says whatever she's thinking, no matter how crazy or weird it is. I would really love to go on a road trip with her; she'd be a blast! And her acceptance speech was just as funny!  

Taylor Swift opening up the award show was pretty awesome! That's a pretty big honor, because it sets the bar for the rest of the show. It was a little strange, but I love that she was always has a theme and almost a mini play of whatever song she's singing. I didn't like the way she did the British accent, pretty obviously slamming Harry, I'm no "one directioner" or anything close, I just didn't think that was cool. But, I really liked the performance as a whole! It was exciting. It's a fun, quirky song, so it fits with the dancing animals in her video.

It was a great show! I can't wait to see what next year will hold.

That's all for now,

Shelby

Sunday (AKA Grammy Day)

Sunday was a pretty laid back one! We went to church, which is starting a new series on marriage. And to be honest, I haven't been too excited about that one, just because I'm nowhere near it. They've mentioned that it will be relevant for singles too and all relationships, so I'm taking that into consideration. It was a great message, and these are tips I will definitely apply to my life, if/when I get married. When the service ended, we talked with some friends and visited for awhile, then went out to lunch at Mexicali, and came home for the rest of the afternoon. Anytime there's an award show on, I have to make sure that I'm home for all of the coverage. So, I parked myself in front of the TV with my mom and we watched the red carpet coverage and all of that exciting stuff.
Then, I received a text I was not very happy about at all, which kind of put a damper on my attitude a bit, then I tried to shake it as much as possible, because it's just not important or worth wasting time over.

When the red carpet ended, I went to dinner with my parents and we ran to Rite Aid for a few minutes to pick up some things, then we booked it home just in time for the opening of The Grammy's, and on the couch is where I was parked the rest of the night, in order to see all the performances. But, that deserves an entire post of its own.

It was a really wonderful weekend, and I hope to someday either be reporting from The Grammy's or performing. I'll take either!

That's all for now,
Shelby

Clive Davis Grammy Party

Saturday:
It was quite the nice little surprise! I woke up, feeling really sick and it just got worse from there. I was down for a few hours of just not feeling well at all. I watched a few episodes of Boy Meets World, I tried to read, but nothing was working. I finally went out to the living room and hung out with my parents for a bit, and we started talking about the Grammy's. My dad was sounding like it'd be cool if we went down to LA, because he knows how much I love that stuff, but the only problem was I was still not good to go down there. After a couple hours, and me getting ready, I was starting to feel much better. My dad asked if I'd be up for it, and I said I was good, so off we went to LA.

I had updated my ipod with more music, so I got to play the DJ once again as we hit the open road. We decided to stop for lunch at Chipotle, but took it on the road with us, so it wouldn't slow us down. We made pretty good timing to LA, and it was a gorgeous day! Although, it looked a little warmer outside than it was. We made our way into Beverly Hills and found The Beverly Hilton, which is where the Clive Davis pre-Grammy party is always held. I wasn't too sure how close we would actually be able to get, so I was hoping it wouldn't be a total waste of time!

The hotel is where Whitney Houston was found dead last year right before the big Grammy party, and it's also just a pretty famous location for holding events like this one and the SAG Awards, which is really exciting. We walked into the lobby, and it was gorgeous; there were flowers, light colored marble looking floors, etc. It was all very nice! And off to the side of us was the International Ballroom, which is where the party would be. We waited around for a few minutes, just checking things out, when we saw Jennifer Hudson walk by. I didn't care enough to stop her for a picture and she seemed to be in a hurry, but it was still cool to see her. While waiting, we also saw Sharon Osbourne and Clive Davis himself!! That was really exciting. I wanted to go up to Clive, since he's a legend and all, but I didn't...Because he's a legend and all. It seems weird to just walk right up to someone like that, but still very cool to see him!

I ended up running into a friend that I've met down there a few times, so we talked for a few minutes, and pretty soon, the security guards started shifting things around to get ready for the arrivals. They roped us off, and it actually wasn't a big crowd, which was cool, because celebs are more likely to come over to small, tame crowds. We waited there for a little while, and as it got closer to the red carpet, security started tightening up, and there were people running around everywhere. I can only imagine what it was like when Whitney passed away last year, because they have everything planned, and when something as BIG as that happens, everything changes, and last minute plans have to be made. It was CRAZY down there, too!
After awhile, people started coming in and a lot of action started happening. It was so hard to keep up with everything, because people were coming in from all sides. I was scanning the crowd, trying to see from every angle, and luckily, if anyone did come in, people would start screaming! Karen from Little Big Town walked in and several people cheered for her, so she asked the security guard she was with to stop and walked over to us. She looked so great! I took a picture with her, then Scott Borchetta, who owns Big Machine Records and also discovered Taylor Swift, walked in. Not many knew who he was, except for the Taylor fans, but he came over and stopped for pics as well. A few minutes later, Jordin Sparks walked out of the ballroom and everyone started calling her over, but she just kept walking. Everyone was just like, uhh...okay...And several minutes later, I saw her walking back down the hall. I called her name, even though it looked like she was heading over to us. She came straight to me, and said, "I'm so sorry! I wasn't ignoring you guys. I had to be somewhere, because I'm a correspondent tonight!" I don't remember responding, but I asked her for a picture and she said of course, or something to that effect, so we took a picture together, and she made her way around the group. She could not have been more gracious! I am so glad I got to meet her, because I've been a fan of hers since Idol.

Celebrities kept showing up left and right, and there were plenty that I didn't find out were there until the day after, but it was so exciting! It had everyone around us talking about what a crazy lifestyle that must be, to have people calling you over and doing these parties night after night. I can only imagine...
We saw a ton of people walk in and they all seemed pretty nice! Here are some highlights:

• JC Chasez from Nsync waved to me!!!!! (and my little 10 year old self was definitely thanking me a lot) I was beyond excited! 
• Tyra Banks waved and kept a lot of eye contact. She definitely has that model thing down! 
• Miley Cyrus waved!!!!!!! I WAS FREAKING OUT!
• And right after her, KATY PERRY walked in. I have never screamed more in my life
• Ryan Seacrest and Randy Jackson waved to us!
• LA Reid came over to our section; he made quite a bit of eye contact with me, and I kept waving, but when he walked over, he went to the people next to me and around, so I didn't get a picture. I thought that was extremely nice of him, especially since he was being honored that night.
• Sting waved!!!
• Kathy Griffin waved!!!
• Neyo waved!
• John Legend waved!
• Saw several reporters from E!
• John Mayer
• Nicole Richie
• Carly Rae Jepsen; she finally waved as she walking out! 
• David Spade
• Nigel Lithgoe kept waving to us; he seemed very nice!
• Ellie Goulding waved!
• Magic Johnson waved! (SO COOL! especially now that he's one of the owners of the Dodger's)
• Joan and Melissa Rivers (they waved, which was really cool)
• Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters; he waved!
• Several reporters from E! News
• Kelsey Grammer

I'm sure there were plenty of others, but these were the main ones that I saw! I was trying to get pictures; I had my mom's camera and my phone, but that wasn't working out very well at all. I was more focused on trying to get a picture with them or at least get their attention rather than getting a picture of them, so the ones I did get are pretty crappy. So, this time I have more memories than photographs, and that's okay too! 

STING!

Ryan Seacrest and Randy Jackson

John Legend

Nigel Lithgoe

Carly Rae Jepsen

JC Chasez!!

Kathy Griffin

Nicole Richie 

Dave Grohl (The Foo Fighters)

Ellie Goulding

Kelsey Grammer

Towards the end of the night, after most people had shown up, and the crowd was starting to thin out, I was losing energy and starting not to feel good again. The crowd was way too loud and annoying for me; the paparazzi had shown up and they are some of the most obnoxious people, so I couldn't take much of that. After hanging around a little while, we decided to leave. We got out of LA, and headed into Valencia, which is normally our stop for dinner! We had dinner at Lucille's BBQ, which is delicious...and I might have eaten a bit too much, because I was excited and starting to feel better. We had fried pickles, rolls, and I ordered a BBQ Chicken salad. My parents and I were rehashing over the night; who we saw, what happened, etc, which a ton of fun, and of course, I was posting pictures to Instagram! 

After dinner, it was pretty late, so we hit the freeway and came home. We played the "Would You Rather?" game, which consisted mainly of which celebs would you rather meet. Always a fun hypothetical game to play in the car. 

I was exhausted when we got home, and went straight to bed, though I couldn't fall asleep right away. It was a great night, and I thank God for my parents and all that they have done for me over the years with going to things like this, even though they may not want to or feel like it. They know it makes me happy, and I hope to be that way with my kids someday. 

That's all for now,

Shelby

The Weekly Review

Last week was pretty relaxed! I was still trying to get over a cold, so I watched a lot of Full House, caught up on other recorded shows, some reading and other projects I'm working on. I went bike riding a few days, because I was tired of being cooped up in the house all day long. Tuesday, I went to a meeting at church that dealt with leadership, and they kept us informed with some things that are getting ready to take place, which is exciting that I get to be part of it. Thursday, I went to my first practice for the new worship team with young adults and youth, that I've started. It went good! It'll definitely be a challenge for me in several ways, which is a little scary right now, but I've been waiting for a different way to grow, so here it is. Friday, I did the typical errands with my mom, then we came home for the rest of the afternoon, and that night, watched A Walk To Remember, which my mom doesn't really like that much, because it's "depressing." I just don't think that's cool! HAHA! I also pointed out all of the places we had been in North Carolina, so my dad thought that was cool.

I also found out that I will possibly be working with one of the magazine's in town, which is really exciting. Just when I was starting to give up on that possibility, an opportunity came up and now it's time to just jump right in. When you least expect it, that's when it usually happens...So, never give up on your dreams!

That's all for now,
Shelby