Top 10 Country Hunks

Last week, there was a special on GAC, showcasing the hottest guys of Country music. It was quite an interesting list if you ask me. I really only agreed with (maybe) three. I'll let you be the judge on who you think is the hottest country guy.

10. Jason Aldean
9. Scotty McCreery
8. Josh Turner
7. George Strait
6. Tim McGraw
5. Keith Urban
4. Trace Adkins
3. Luke Bryan
2. Chris Young
1. Blake Shelton

Well, you all know I'm totally for number 5 and 2 making the list ;) As for Scotty making the list, I'm not exactly sure how he fits in the caliber with the rest of them, but alright. There's a first time for everything.

Here are some old videos I have from past concerts of my top 2 Country guys :) I had a couple more, but they didn't want to upload for some reason. I might post them later. Until then... Enjoy!

Chris Young @ The Crystal Palace/ CMA Fest:

Keith Urban @ CMA Fest:

My Favorite Things Right Now

1) The website "She Has Worth" is amazing; it reminds girls of their worth in Christ and just has really inspiring messages and encouraging words of advice daily. I absolutely love what they stand for! You can also find them on Twitter, for when you're on the go and want to keep up with them.

 http://www.shehasworth.com/

2) Chris Young....*swoon*.  Not a word I use with many people, but he is definitely one of them. My favorite performance of his right now is one of his latest that he did at the Opry. It's an old Keith Whitley cover. If you're looking for something to make your heart melt, this is definitely the thing to watch. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_qN1-Unnk0

3 and 4) The last two books I've read: "It's All About Him" and "Restless Heart." These books are both great in their own right. Denise's book deals more with her relationship with God and how it saved her marriage, as well as her inspiring story about faith, love and finding her identity in Christ. Restless Heart is for anyone who has a dream. Sure, the main focus is on a girl trying to make it in Nashville, and it is written by a country singer (Wynonna), but it'll really tug at your heart to go after what you've always wanted, because it IS within your reach.

 5) Smash journals. I discovered these a few months ago and LOVED them. I love anything having to do with scrapbooks, notebooks and anything of that nature, so I was all about these. There are six different themes to choose from, like Modern, girly, international, etc. depending on what you're looking to make one for. You can glue pictures down, doodle, make lists or savor special memories, but with a new twist. They are so much fun! 

6)Urban Outfitters pants! When I was in Nashville, we went into an Urban Outfitters at The Gulch. Obviously, I've been to Urban Outfitters before, but for some reason (in my mind) this one just had so much more to choose from. Anyway, I found the greatest pants. They had all different colors to choose from and they fit great. I'll be buying more in the future.

7) Neon colors! Neon seems to be the popular thing this season. Everywhere you go, there are neon shirts, pants, shoes, jewelry and more. I'm still trying to find the right thing to give my wardrobe just enough of that pop of color I've been looking for. 

"My favorite color is the neon, the lights they always leave on...."

8) Jane By Design. I love this show! It's so quirky and fun, but has a lot of heart. I really got into it last season and couldn't wait for this season to start, but there's just something different about it this time around. I'm looking forward to seeing how things play out the rest of this season. If you haven't seen it yet, check it out on Netflix; it's really good!

9) iheart radio app. This has been around just about as long as the iPhone has; everyone has told me about it and I think I had downloaded it awhile back, but never cared to give it a listen. I finally decided to give it another try about a week after Nashville, because I missed it and their radio station back there as well. So now, every night before I go to sleep, I turn it on and it makes me feel a little more at "home."

10) Viddy app. Another app that I've heard people talk about, but never paid much attention to until the other day. I had been looking for a new app to make quick videos and to be able to edit them, when Taylor Swift posted a video from this app and said she recommended it for everyone. Of course, after that, I had to check into it and immediately loved it. Now, I love making random videos of anything and everything! Fun for documenting events during the summer.

11) Benefit Skincare! This is what I bought Saturday afternoon at the mall and have been using the past several days. I haven't noticed a big difference in my skin so far, but it makes it feel good after I wash my face, so I'm crossing my fingers that as we speak, it's working it's magic underneath the surface. We shall see. 

That's all for now,

~Shelby

Katy Perry 3D Movie!

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Katy Perry 2011 Tour Merch  | Katy Perry TGIF Babydoll | Shop the Katy...
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My Weekend (Part Two)

Yesterday, which was Sunday, I woke up and got ready. Mom also surprised me with the news that Best Buy had called to say that my computer was ready and they weren't going to charge us for anything this time. Is God good or what? I thought it was going to cost several hundred dollars after dropping it off the other night, but so thankful it didn't. We went to church, as we do every Sunday morning. It was such an incredible service about surrendering ourselves to God and His plans. The funny thing is that when we were in Nashville, this was the series that they were dealing with too and this was my first week back at church in three weeks. Obviously, God thought I needed to hear this message again and He was right. I really have some thinking and changing to do. I always think I'm done, but it's an ongoing process and I've really slipped back into some old habits again and I don't like it. I've been really disconnected and I need to get back into spending time with God, because I can really see how it's affecting my attitude and everyday life.
After church, we went to lunch at Chili's, which was cool. It's basically my mom's favorite restaurant, so she was happy. Then, we went to Best Buy to get my computer...which made me happy. I was so happy to see it all in one piece and running again :). It's crazy how dependent on technology we, or at least I, am.
We ran home really quickly, then my parents dropped me off at the church so I could meet up with my friend Viviyan. We were going to make festive shorts in honor of the Fourth of July, thanks to Pinterest. We went to Michael's to pick up some paint and ended up browsing through some of the other bins and aisles, because there is so much there to get your creative juices flowing. I really want to get back into my crafty side. When I was younger, every summer my grandma and I always had some sort of project or something to do along those lines. As I got older, I got busier with summer school or just lost that and haven't done it as much as I used to. So, it was fun being able to do that again.
Viviyan and I went back to her house and got started. We went outside, under her patio and the weather was perfect. For California in late June, it was completely abnormal to walk outside and it's in the 80's with a cool breeze. We listened to music and worked on our jeans, and just talked.

While our shorts were drying, we went inside so Viviyan could make tank top she had seen on Pinterest and we watched the rest of Couples Retreat. It was an interesting movie, but overall I actually liked the message. It's about couples trying to make it work and in this day in age, that's pretty refreshing. Then, we watched Drop Dead Diva on Netflix. My mom watches it, but I've never seen more than a few minutes, so it was cool actually watching a full episode. It was such a nice afternoon just being with Viviyan and her family. I'm an only child, so it was exciting to have quite a few people just wandering around the house and doing their thing. I like a lot of commotion going on, so I'm surprised I don't want to have a big family of my own...LOL.
Last night, we ordered some take out Mexican food and came home to just hang out. We watched TV for a bit and I went bike riding with my dad. Summer nights are some of the greatest memories I have and some of the things I cherish most. There's something so sentimental about it too...Or maybe I'm just a big old sap. HAHA.

Now, it's time to get ready for another homework filled week. Oh joy!

That's all for now,
Shelby

Almost There

 "And I'm almost there, I'm almost there
People down here think I'm crazy, but I don't care
Trials and tribulations, I’ve had my share
There ain't nothing gonna stop me now ‘cause I'm almost there!"

(The Princess And The Frog)

Saturday morning while we were driving to LA, I got a text from my friend, Krista asking if I wanted to move to Nashville around January. She's getting an apartment and rent would be cheaper with two people, so she thought she'd ask me if I wanted to do it with her. Of course, with everything in my heart, I wanted to. All of a sudden, I felt like one of the heroines like in the books I read. The ones about the struggling artist, who about midway through the book, their luck starts to change. The girl becomes a Country star, meets the love of her life and the rest is history. I felt like my luck was finally starting to turn around, with slideshows of possibilities for what's to come dancing around in my mind: playing the Opry, working with the greats, releasing a CD, touring and my life falling into place the way I've always hoped they would. I told my parents, knowing there would be absolutely no chance of it happening and their responses reminded me. It hit me, that I'm not ready. For one, I have no license and I have no job or money. I would have no way to get back there and make it work, other than that I'd have no problem.

So, maybe I couldn't say yes now, but it was a wake up call for me. It made me realize that my dream is within reach and one of these days I will make it happen. After all, I had just told my friends that I needed to come up with a plan to get back to Nashville the night before...and this text comes out of the blue the next day. It opened my eyes that I'm still not ready, but I'm almost there. I'm getting closer to that day. I still need to do a little growing up, I still want to at least finish school at my community college to get some sort of degree, I need to get my license and I just need to learn to be more independent if I want to be on my own in another state. That's all there is to it.

Also, while on the road to LA, my aunt started talking with me about classes and college and transferring and finishing up classes where I am now. I don't know what it is, but every time I start talking to other people about future plans, I freeze up. I know exactly what I want to do, but trying to get that across to other people is hard for me at times, because they won't always necessarily understand. I tense up when I think about the process of transferring to another school or having to make plans or do this and do that. In the back of my mind, however, I think it might have something to do with the fact that I keep holding out for Nashville. Maybe I'm afraid to make plans for going to school here because I don't want to be here when it comes down to it. Everyone I keep talking to outside of my family keeps telling me I need to check into other schools out of state, because they either wish they had done it or that's what they'd ultimately like to do. I keep thinking about it, but I just have no idea how to make it work. If God wants me in Nashville and I'm putting in the effort to make it work...then it will. I don't need to stress or worry that I'm straying off the path, because God already knows where I'm going to end up. He has a plan for me and I believe in the promises He has made, no matter how difficult or winding the road may be. Things won't always be smooth sailing, but in the end they WILL be worth it. I just have to keep believing and telling myself that.

That's all for now,
Shelby

This Weekend (Part One)

Yesterday was quite the adventure! I went with my parents, aunt and uncle to the OC area to meet up with some family friends to catch up. The guys went to an Angels/Dodgers game while the ladies went shopping. We did it last year and decided to start up a new tradition. We left around 9:30 or so to get down there around noon, but of course we hit traffic, so we were a little late. We had lunch at the Olive Garden which was actually in a mall. I had never seen that before, but it was really cool! Well, the service was a little slow and one of the waiters spilled the tea that was meant for me on my mom, accidentally. She got a 15$ gift card out of it though, so...SCORE! But, other than that it was great catching up with the others at the table. One of our friends works at Disneyland, so he always has great stories to tell and a lot of Disney related jokes which are a hoot LOL.

After, we went down to this Disney company store where they have a lot of great discounts. I found way too much, but decided to be somewhat wise with money and put a few things back. They had so many great deals so it was hard to do!

When we were done, the guys and gals split up so we could do our own planned activities. The gals went to South Coast Plaza; a mall that has just about every store imaginable and then some. I'd never been there, but I loved it. There were so many stores to choose from; we were there a few hours and still didn't make it to everything. We went to Macy's first, and I decided to go off on my own to look at another department. I had been looking around for a bit, when this random girl comes up to me acting like she knows me and asks if she can take me over to the Benefit makeup counter. Then, starts talking about my ring I was wearing; asking lots of questions. It was just a little too much at first, apparently I don't do well with surprises. Well, I was totally in my own head there for awhile so I was completely dumbfounded by her ambush. I followed her to the counter, where she starts looking at my skin more closely and is like asking me what kind of makeup I use, what face wash I use and all these other things. At first I was a little offended. Obviously, I don't have good skin and it used to make me feel really insecure. It's not that I love having it now, but I've learned to ignore it and not let it affect me or the kind of mood I'm having. She asked me if she could take off my makeup and give me a tutorial type thing and use some of the Benefit products. I was already there and didn't have anywhere else to be, so I said, "Sure!" After talking to her for a little while and letting her give me a makeover, I was really impressed with the makeup and the facial wash products she used. It turns out, she had a lot of the same problems with her skin that I have, so it was nice that she related to my problems and was able to give me some tips. Plus, it helped that she did have a really bubbly and outgoing personality. I ended up buying the facial wash package and so far, I'm really liking it.

We shopped a little while longer and ended up meeting the guys to decide where to go to dinner. Well, we got stuck in traffic and everyone wasn't sure who was going who, what we wanted to eat, etc. We decided on Cheesecake Factory, which isn't too far from Disneyland...That, paired with a nice restaurant on a Saturday night=BUSY. We decided to find somewhere else to eat and just kept driving. We ended up at Hometown Buffett, which wouldn't have really been our first choice, but hey, it was all part of the day. It wasn't bad either! They had a lot to choose from and it was nicer than ours. I haven't been there in years, so it was a nice change. As soon as we were done, we had to get on the road because it was already 10:00. We said goodbye to everyone and hit the freeway. I listened to some Chris Young (of course) for most of the way and listened to the comedy of my uncle from the front seat the rest. We were all laughing so hard, it was great. Those are some of the best moments for me...close quarters with my family and lots of laughs. There's nothing better than that.

I don't go down to Orange County very often, but when I do, I always notice just how gorgeous it is. It seems like the sunsets are a little more vibrant and everything just stands out a little more. Oh, and I can't forget how perfect the weather always seems to be! It's absolutely breathtaking down there :)
For once in the past several days, I was able to fall asleep within about ten minutes of getting in bed. Awesome day, I'll say.

Quote of the day:
*Chris Young comes on the radio* (Tomorrow....)
Uncle Bob: Is this Scotty?
Me: No, it's Chris Young
Uncle Bob: Really? Doesn't Scotty sing it too?
Me: No.
Uncle Bob: It sounds like him!
Me: Silent
Aunt Cara: It does sound like one of his songs
Me: Silent
(Face palm on the inside...LOL JK! But, it did make me laugh a little. I thought I'd post because Chris Young is the latest topic for me!)

Disney store

Yeah...yeah you do :/

That's all for now,
Shelby

Southern Night

Southern Night by nashchick09 featuring orange sandals

Denim shorts
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A Walk to Remember (Book) By Nicholas Sparks (Author)
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University Co-op - Ladies Longhorn Bevo Burnout T-Shirt
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