People let me tell you 'bout my best friend

There's nothing better than a really great day spent with your best friend, whether it's doing absolutely nothing in the comfort of one of your houses or doing something outrageous or maybe it's even both. Either way, I cherish every single moment, because I realize that carefree moments like this don't last forever and we might not always be in the same city. Someday, we'll also probably be married and have kids and bigger responsibilities with very limited time. But, for now, we have the opportunity to just be silly, talk about pointless things, enjoy being YOUNG and daydream about all of the things that we want someday and how we WILL have it all.

Marissa and I have pretty much been best friends since sophomore year. She was the "weird girl" I just happened to sit next to in yearbook, and I hadn't even signed up for yearbook. I just wanted to take the journalism class that I thought was being offered, but apparently not enough people had signed up for it. Marissa was always touching my stuff, looking through my bag and telling me all kinds of stories about her life, when I was usually just trying to work. If you knew me then, you would know it made me rather uncomfortable. Somehow her quirkiness was just what I needed in my life, and soon, I found myself sharing secrets with her, inviting her to my 16th birthday party, and texting her all the time, whether it was over something stupid I had just watched on TV or something I was feeling incredibly insecure about. Since then, she has never left my side.

I love all of my friends, whether we've known each other for 10 years or three months. I take my relationships very seriously and I just want to know that the other person is in, too. I want to know that they're not going to freak out if I tell them something that might be a little emotional or that distance/time apart isn't going to change anything about what we have. I just want to know that they care about me as much as I care about them. My relationship with Marissa has always been something special and strange at the same time. We're SO different in a lot of ways, but in the ways that really count, we're so alike and just get it. We don't talk every day, because we understand the idea of having our own thing going and not constantly needing to be together, and sometimes our schedules just don't match. But, no matter how much time passes, nothing changes. Our friendship always gets stronger with each season in our life, with each secret that is told or each crappy situation that we need to vent to the other one about.

So, now you get the point that she's amazing...And I hope everyone finds a "Marissa."

As long as we've been friends, we've done some pretty cool things together, like the American Idol finale, a taping of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and we've gone to Disneyland. And then we've just been totally boring, eating junk food and watching The Office or John Krasinski movies, gabbing for hours (because we love to chat)...But, we've never really done a "sleepover" type thing. Last night, was a first.. We still couldn't believe that we'd never done it. I mean, after about eight years...WHAT IS WRONG WITH US?! She's housesitting for her grandparents, so she asked me if I wanted to spend the night. I was so in.

She picked me up after she got off work, we stopped by Chipotle (since she hadn't eaten lunch), then off we went to her grandparents. We basically spent most of our late afternoon/early night eating dinner, watching the Iron Man movies in the background, and talking. What is SO nice is that we always seem to be able to do that without ever running out of things to say or with the whole "silence" thing being an issue. With us, it just isn't...Because usually one of us is saying or laughing at something.

We really just went for it all last night. We talked about our fears, our biggest insecurities, our past relationships and friendships, what we want out of those relationships, our families, everything that goes on in our day to day lives (even though we've already text each other the second it happens) - some things are still just better to share again in person, when our grandparents passed away, what we hope for in the future...we were getting DEEP. And it was amazing. I really just don't think there's anything better than pouring your heart, knowing that the other person isn't judging you, but is just there listening, offering words of encouragement and advice when you need it. And being able to do the same in return.

And then, I made her watch the pilot of Boy Meets World, because...DUH. It's pretty much my favorite show of all time, and she had never really gotten into it. We also watched a few other episodes after that. It was pretty great. We then reminisced over the fantastic 90s clothes they were always wearing. I finally got comfy, changing into my pjs and a sweatshirt, and took off my makeup. A little while later, Marissa started falling asleep, so we went to the room that we were staying in and ended up talking more about deep life things, and fell asleep close to 3 a.m. It was so nice not feeling completely paranoid about everything for once…At least in quite awhile.

This morning, I woke up earlier than I would have if I had been at home, and I didn't even feel tired. We took our time getting up, hung out in the living room -- More talking, and then Marissa made us breakfast. YUM! We had hash browns and breakfast burritos with eggs, cheese, bacon and garlic. They were very tasty. Soon after, we both got ready, and then I decided to bring my laptop in, so we could take dumb pictures, because that's just the kind of thing we like to do.

We hadn't really had any plans set for today, but our other friend, Laura asked if we wanted to go to the mall with her and another friend, Marie. I've been saying I need to get out more and hang out with friends, so that's exactly what I did. I'm not much for shopping anymore, but it's still WAY better than hanging out at home alone just watching repeat episodes of 90s TV shows or surfing the web, like I do basically every day. This was going to be an adventure and it certainly was. 

We went to Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, Forever 21, Claire's (where I got a Katy Perry headband that I'm super excited to wear), Icing and Target. We also stopped at Starbucks so I could have a little energy boost for the remainder of the shopping trip, because those girls know how to shop for hours and I like to go in and get what I need, then get out. 

I was helping them look for a wedding present, or really just tagging along and adding my own commentary here and there LOL. And we came to the conclusion that when we all get married, we're going to surprise each other with gifts, because the wedding registry thing can be extremely stressful. Though, it was fun to imagine what we would like or want, especially all of the cooking utensils, etc. I told Marissa I'm going to make her some amazing handmade gift, so I should start brainstorming now. I want it to be epic whatever and whenever I end up giving it to her. But, I think we still have a

little time for that.

When we finished at the mall, we went to Charming Charlie's so Marissa and Laura could pick out accessories for their wedding outfits. That is one store I don't mind just browsing in or spending a couple hours. It's like a giant closet, where everything is color coordinated and you can pick something out for any occasion, and it's usually my "go-to" place when I do need something. It's kind of a problem, but a very good problem to have. A lot more fun at least.

Marissa had invited me to go back to her grandparents' house to watch movies and hang with her and Laura, but I figured I should just go home. She dropped me off, but came in for a few minutes to see how I had rearranged my room and visit with my parents. I love that most of my friends have such a good relationship with my parents and want to come in to say hi. It makes my life a lot easier. I walked Marissa out to her car and we talked about hanging out again sometime this week and mentioned multiple times how I need to just be more spontaneous and get out of the house, whether I feel like it or not. I need someone to basically force me out of the house to do something with them! haha. 

I ate dinner, which is a special soup...Now that my mom and I are on a diet. I need to healthier! I just haven't been feeling all that great and want to do a sort of detox. I do that every once in awhile, and it's nice. Then, I decided to unwind on the couch, just posting pictures to Facebook, talking to my best friend, Laurie, and just enjoying the evening with my parents. I started watching The Proposal a little while later, and I forgot how much I love that movie. Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock are so fantastic together. I hope they make another movie together very soon. 

Now, I'm in bed...Debating on whether I should actually try to sleep, read, catch up on New Girl....Or write. There are a number of possibilities. Hmmm... Now to see if I can actually make a decision. 

On the plus side, I am going to lunch with one of my best friends, Laurie, and we're going to catch up and talk about life....And it's going to be grand. 

That's all for now,

Shelby :)