High School Flashbacks

Alright, so I've only been out of school for a little over a couple years, but watching One Tree Hill has actually had me (somewhat) missing those high school days. I hated it while I was in there, and I've made that very well known...but watching them has made me wish I could go back. I think I'd do things a little differently, but then again I guess doing it the way I did made me who I am now, and I couldn't be happier now. I thought I'd post some of my favorite memories like:

• Going to Hume Lake with the entire school all four years 
• Prom
• Powderpuff
• Homecoming/building the floats
• Plays
• Singing the National Anthem at Basketball games
• Football games
• Rallies
• Talent shows
• Birthday parties
• Lunch adventures with the gang

"The truth is, I really don't like to think about college. Cause that means high school's over. After graduation, everyone will probably go play basketball. Or sing or start record labels. And I'll have to start all over. Alone. I'm sure I'll be fine. But like I said, I don't like to think about it." ~Brooke Davis~

"Yeah, the future is scary, you know the world can be threatening. But, you should know sometimes when things seem the most desperate, people find you. Help is out there, and you are not alone." ~Haley James Scott!~

I don't think I realized how crazy things would get, or how much they would change after high school. In some ways, it feels like everything has. And in others, it feels like absolutely nothing has. I guess that's both good and bad. My emotions are sort of wishy washy when it comes to deciding how to feel about that. So, maybe those weren't my best days, but they were pretty good now that I see it from the outside looking in.
To all you high schoolers out there, just take it all in...and realize it doesn't last forever. That can be one of the saddest thoughts, or greatest reliefs depending on how you look at it. Get involved, make new friends, forget about the people that don't matter, try your best when it comes to work, and don't let negativity run your life. Be your own person and realize that you're gonna do greater things in your life than you could ever imagine. Who you are in high school doesn't mean you have to be labeled as that forever.

That's all,
Shelby
xoxox

Week in Pictures

Finished Brad Paisley's book 

My little buddy, Mittens

Some of the best chocolate ever!

If You Really Knew Me...

We've all heard the expression, "There's more to_____ than meets the eye!" And I think that saying is true to all of us. I think there are many sides to everyone; some people bring out the worst in us, while others bring out the best. Some people bring out the artsy/fun side of us, while others bring out the more serious/toned down version of us. I think sometimes we catch people at an off moment and judge them based on that for the rest of their lives. But, the thing is ...we're all human. You can be the nicest person, but still lose your temper every now and then. There's more to a person than just what you see of them in the first five minutes of meeting. Give them a chance before you start labeling them as this or that.

I used to be extremely shy. I didn't really speak unless spoken to, and even then, I was extremely nervous and fumbled for just the right words to say. I used to get incredibly nervous when just talking to people at church, or presentations. I've come a long way since then, because God has helped me find the courage that was always inside of me, it just took me a little while to recognize it in myself. I'm a lot more open than I used to be, so there aren't many things that people don't know about me anymore really.

• If you really knew me...You'd know I have been hurt verbally in the past, by people that were close to me. Those words stuck with me for many years, but finally I let them go. I forgave those people, and I've moved on. I am not bound by the words or things that they said about me anymore. 

• If you really knew me...You'd know that I'm really hard on myself when I make mistakes. I will over analyze something I've done until I'm blue in the face. I used to feel that need to be perfect, even though I knew it was unachievable.

• If you really knew me...You'd know that I love my family and friends more than anything (well, not God, but you know what I mean). I don't always show them how much I care, but words will never be able to express what they've done for me and how they've changed my life.

• If you really knew me...You'd know that one of the hardest times in my life was losing my grandma. I was really close with her, and when she passed away it hit me like a TON of bricks. At the time, Danny Gokey was on American Idol and he had just lost his wife not too long before that. He'll probably never know it, but he helped me SO much during that time; he reminded me to have hope and trust in God, because even through all of that pain he was suffering through, he had so much joy. 

• If you really knew me...You'd know that my heart and soul are a lot more sensitive than I let on. I try to act tough or get an attitude to show that it doesn't bother me, but most of the time it does.

• If you really knew me...You'd know that the people I look up to most in the business are: Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Danny Gokey, Keith Urban, Nick Jonas, and Bethany Galeotti. They're people that really seem to care about people, making a difference, and are in the business because they enjoy what they do; not because it pays well or they get the recognition, but because they have a story to tell and want to make a difference. 

• If you really knew me...You'd know that I wish I lived in a small town, much like Stars Hollow on Gilmore Girls. That would be ideal for me!

• If you really knew me...You'd know that I used to be pretty self conscious, and care a lot more about what others thought about me. Now, those opinions just really don't matter to me.

• If you really knew me...You'd know that I'd never thought of getting married before a couple years ago. I wanted to be single all of my life. However, now, the idea of getting married makes me feel really excited...of course, way in the future, not right now.

Alright, so I know it wasn't the most exciting thing, but I had seen it done on another blog and thought I'd try it. But, again there's not really much about me that others don't know. I share a lot on here; I don't have anything to hide....soooo. I think I'm gonna try to find more fun surveys, just to switch things up a little bit :)

That's all for now, 

Shelby

Team True Beauty Event

Yesterday morning when I woke up, I hurried to find some shoes to wear to the Team True Beauty event, did some last minute packing, and got ready so I'd be set to go when my dad got home. I even had time to watch a little One Tree Hill on Soap Net before leaving ;) It didn't take us too long to get down there, which was nice. We checked into our hotel and started getting ready pretty soon after. My parents had to run to Target, so I stayed in the room and curled my hair. Before I knew it, it was time to go. I was kind of nervous actually; not really sure of what to expect, but also really excited to see/meet everyone! However, since it is LA, we ran into some traffic...and on a street that we have never had trouble with in all the times we've been down there, thanks to road work. We ended up making it in plenty of time to catch the red carpet and see everyone arrive. I felt like I was going to Prom, but realized this was much cooler than that.

The room...I slept on a sofa bed!

Dad was watching random videos on YouTube and we were laughing hysterically

It's a "One Tree Hill" picture...Lame, I know

My parents

Traffic

The location of the evening was really beautiful. It's a nightclub type setting on North Vine in Hollywood, with lavish decorations and romantic lighting. It's pretty intimate, so at the beginning, it was a little crowded trying to see where the celebrities were signing. Sharon Lawrence, who plays Julian's mom on One Tree Hill had come in behind us, so I tried to get a picture with her as soon as possible. She was so sweet; we introduced ourselves, and I told her I loved her on the show; she said thank you, I love the show or something to that affect! We tried a couple takes on the picture, but it didn't come out, and she ended up having to go. We made our way into the room more, and met some of the other ladies that were signing.

Jodie Sweetin (Stephanie, Full House)

Jodie: Hi, what's your name? (signing my book)

Me: Shelby

Jodie: S-h-e-l-b-y?

Me: Yeah. I still watch Full House all the time! 

Jodie: Thank you! God knows it's on all the time...

Me: (laugh) Yeah, that's true!

Me and Shantel VanSanten (Quinn, One Tree Hill)

I told Shantel I loved her on the show, and she was very gracious and humble! She said thank you so much, and you could tell she really meant it. We got our picture, then I told her she had tweeted me the other day. She was like really?  What did you say? Usually I only tweet people back if it's something clever or something I like, etc.  I was like I asked you what your favorite part about Christmas was. She was like oh yeah, I remember answering that! My mom added that I had gone to the Evening with One Tree Hill Thursday, and she was like "really? That is so cool. I tried to meet people that were hanging out by there afterwards, but security would not let me, because they said people were crazy!"  And later on, we ended up eating right by her (even though we didn't really talk to her haha); she even sat next to my mom on the couch. If that doesn't motivate you to work out, I don't know what will ;) LOL.

Me and Sharon Lawrence (Sylvia, One Tree Hill). I said "hi again" after trying a couple times earlier to get a picture with her. She was like Oh hi there or something like that. We got a picture and she made sure it came out (it did). She nodded towards me and my mom, and said ,"Mother and daughter?" We said yeah, and she added, "It's really cool that you can come to an event like this together." We agreed, and she said she was there with her mother in law, but that she was nothing like Sylvia. I was like that's good, although I like Sylvia, I think she's fun! And she was like you're right! And she is a lot of fun to play! She said it was nice meeting you, and that was it. 

Me and Daphne Zuniga (Victoria Davis, One Tree Hill). She said hi and asked for my name, and signed a couple things I handed her. She asked where we were from, stuff like that. She was very sweet.

Sara Paxton and me. When I first got up to her, she sort of gave me a different look and was like you look so familiar. I was like really? I don't think we've ever met before. She was like hmm...maybe you just have a really familiar look or personality...something like that. I was like well thank you (LOL) and told her I loved her on Summerland, and missed the show.

Savannah Outen. I told her I had seen some of her stuff on YouTube and that she was really good. She said thank you so much, I'll be playing around 8, so hopefully you'll be able to check it out. I was like I'll be here all night, so I will. After the show, she came back to get her stuff which was by where we were sitting, and I was able to tell her that she did a great job :)

Me and Amber Sweeney (Everly). I told her I was a huge fan of Everly, and my mom added that we had listened to them on the way down there last night to get ready for the show, she thought that was funny and appreciated it. She signed my poster, and we grabbed a picture.


I kept waiting to see Bethany Joy Galeotti, but she was running late and still hadn't made it there yet. I asked one of the girls, Michelle, who had started the organization if she was going to make it, and she said yeah she was on her way! We waited a little while, until they started serving dinner. We found a free seat, which happened to be by Shantel's signing station, and were just carrying on. A few minutes later Joy walked in, and I was so happy! There was a small group starting to form around her. Not too many people were in the dining area, though, unless you had a wristband. She talked to Shantel for a few minutes, then I squeezed in. 

Me and Bethany "Joy" Galeotti (Haley James Scott, One Tree Hill). She introduced herself, and said "I'm Joy, what's your name?" I told her, and we shook hands. I told her I was a huge fan of hers, and she was like thank you so much. I told her I was a new fan to One Tree Hill, but I had caught up on all 8 seasons and was there the other night for the screening and that it was a lot of fun. She was like oh wow! That's really cool, thank you. I handed her a letter I'd written her, and she was like that's really sweet of you, thank you so much! Then a few seconds later, she was like actually, can you give this to one of the girls that's running the event. They're collecting letters and gifts from people and will make sure I get them. I was like yeah, no problem, I'll do that. We took a picture, and I told her I was really excited about her Diamond Gothic project, (her jaw dropped and she got really excited)  and she was like YAY! I'm glad, and I was like I really like the 1920s too, it's such a cool era. When we were getting ready to say bye, she said it was really nice meeting you. She is so genuinely nice and humble! And has such a kind spirit about her. I love her, and became an even bigger fan last night. :D


After we finished eating, we went into this other lounge area where the concert was taking place. Sharon Lawrence ended up sitting by us with her in-laws, which was fun! I saw Shantel, Daphne, and a few of the other girls around the rest of the night as well, which was cool. It was so relaxed, you felt like you were really getting to know them, and you were just "hanging out" in a sense. They had so many talented musicians perform like Everly and Savannah Outen. There was also a magician, Justin Willman, who was hilarious, and brought up Daphne and her boyfriend for a trick! Shantel also went up to give a speech, and just about brought tears and inspired everyone in the room. I wish I would have gotten a video of it, because it was amazing. I have more pictures and videos of Everly, and some of the other musicians that I'm going to try to post later on tonight. 

It was a beautiful night that I will never forget, and I love what the organization stands for. I'm a big advocate for going against what the media pushes on teenage girls these days, and that beauty really does come from within, no matter how cliche it sounds. You can be gorgeous, but if you treat people like crap, it really doesn't matter. This night celebrated so many genuinely beautiful and talented women in the industry that are making a difference whether it's through speaking, acting, or music. They are passionate, driven, and prove to everyone that you are worthy of your dreams and it's just enough to be YOU! I couldn't have asked for a better Christmas present, and what a way to start off my birthday week ;) LOL.


Today, we woke up, got ready and drove to Valencia. First, we made a little detour at this movie/TV prop warehouse that was having a liquidation sale. They had a lot of cool stuff, even though I didn't recognize most of the items (except for things that were on State of Georgia). We shopped at Stein Mart for a little while and had lunch at Wood Ranch BBQ (SO good!), and came home after that because my dad wanted to watch a football game. I hung out for most of the afternoon and tried to take a nap. Tonight, we ended up going to this local ice creamery/restaurant for dinner and one of my best friends met up with us. We spent a lot of time talking and catching up, and laughing as always! I had a blast. 

That's all for now, 
Shelby