This Weekend

Saturday, I was able to sleep in a little. I had lunch at Panera with my parents and went over to Target for awhile. Awhile after that, I went to my friend Febe's house and we headed out to Relay For Life. It was my first time ever participating or even going to the event, so I was excited. Two of my grandma's have passed away from the disease and so many others have been affected by it as well. I'm so glad I was able to be a part of it. Our Relay For Life is the biggest in the country and they weren't kidding. There were booths everywhere, live music, food and lots of people. I had a blast hanging out with my friend Jasmine and her best friend, Martha for awhile. I even got my eyes done with sparkly eyeshadow from the ladies at Sephora. I figured it's a fun event and the proceeds go to Relay, so why not??  Then, when Febe got done working at the Starbucks booth, we walked around to explore and check things out; she even got a henna tattoo. They has so many crafts and items for sale. It was neat seeing who had what and seeing the team theme ideas and shirts.
I was also able to check out a few bands that are also friends and members of our church! We have so many talented musicians that it's always cool to get to hear them play their own music when given the chance. My friend/music pastor, Jim's band performed their new single, "Love's A Funny Thing." It's super catchy! If you buy their single on iTunes, all the proceeds between now and April will go towards Relay For Life. I got some videos of them that I'll try to post later on as well. Until then, check out their new CD on iTunes.

It was so good being able to catch up with people I haven't been able to spend much time with lately, a few people that I don't always see, and new faces as well. Febe and I watched Jim's band, Soulajar perform for awhile, then decided to leave. The dust was absolutely crazy and we were both getting pretty sleepy, so we decided to call it a night. I slept so good!

The next morning was church; such a great kick off to the new series on how God turns bad things around for good.

After, my parents and I had lunch at P.F Changs, which was entertaining. The rest of the afternoon, I spent mainly out on the front porch working on hw and a story that I've been writing for awhile. It was too gorgeous of a day to be stuck inside, so I thought why not bring it outside? There's something about being out on the front porch that brings me to a whole other level of inspiration. I really feel God's presence and just reminders to take it slow and to not always be in a rush to get nowhere.

That night we went out to dinner with some family friends at Chuy's. We hadn't seen them in awhile, so we were filling each other in on our lives and vacations coming up. We also talked about hanging out this weekend, since we'll all be in LA at the same time. When dinner was finished, we decided to go to the new Dewar's ice cream shop that had opened. It's definitely a specialty around here; if you're ever in the area...GO! Once again on both accounts, we sat outside because it felt better outside than inside.

That's all for now,
Shelby <3

American Idol

I haven't been posting as much about American Idol as I would like, but I'm gonna try to with the next few weeks. We're really getting down to the wire in the competition, and to be honest this is not the top 5 I had seen in my head or would've imagined. I'm SO into this season now. I realized that it just takes time getting warmed up to the contestants, some just take longer than others. But, now that I'm into it, I see just how much talent there is and how much I really like at least 8 of the 11 that are on.

Anyway, it was British pop/60s theme this week. They've had such off the wall choices and the ones where they've mixed and matched just don't seem to go, but at least they're a little bit different than the usual choices. I think Hollie did an incredible job with Bleeding Love and River Deep (Mountain High). That song has been done so many times in the industry, but she really owned it and the stage. I think she's starting to show her personality more and she's already such a likable girl, that this is going to gain her even more success. She is the most underrated, and people got sick of hearing the judges bash her every week, so they're doing something about it. I have a feeling that not only is she going to make it to the finale, but is going to take the the title as the next American Idol. Joshua also had a strong week, even though I'm not always necessarily crazy about his style. The fact that he did such an amazing job on the second song he sang, never having heard it, shows how musically gifted he is. He sang it with such emotion and feeling! Skylar is one heck of a performer, and even though I don't think she's the best vocally, but she works that stage and just brings such a joy to it. I absolutely love her as a person and thinks she's just so endearing and charming. To me, Jessica hasn't gotten any better...if anything, she's lost her zest since the "saved" card event took place. She has a great voice, there's no denying that. But, I don't think she's as good as the judges go on and on and on about. I think people are noticing that. And Phillip is good, but he's not really stepping anything up either. I think he seems cool as a person, but there just doesn't seem to be much to his performing or anything.
Obviously, I voted hardcore for Hollie and I encouraged everyone to do the same.

I was extremely surprised to see that Skylar was voted off. I was actually in the drive-thru at Starbucks with my friend, getting ready to see The Avengers, when I decided to look at Twitter to see who went home. I was so sad, I actually almost teared up. I can't wait to see what Skylar does, I know she'll be welcomed in the country world with no problem.
I'm really shocked at who's left. I didn't think it would come down to these four. I thought it would be Colton, Hollie, Skylar and Joshua. I'm actually surprised that Jessica is still there. Something tells me that if it gets down to Joshua and Jessica in the finale, that this entire competition is seriously rigged, because that's who the judges have been pulling for this entire time. But, we still have two weeks...so enough about that.

Idol Extras:
This week, I got a re-tweet from Skylar and a tweet from Hollie. Skylar was posting several lyrics that were a little sad, so people were tweeting encouraging messages. I joined and she re-tweeted it and I was SO excited! :D

Hollie is usually up late, either answering random questions here and there or actually doing a Twitter party. I saw that she had answered one of my friends, so I decided to throw a few questions out there, and she answered me back again!!!!! I love her <3

My mom and I also went to Kohl's to check out the American Idol line. I found a few things that I thought were cute, but it is way too overpriced, even on sale!

Can I just say...I LOVE AMERICAN IDOL?! I don't like the judges, and I don't always like the way the producers run things or have changed it over the years. But, I love that it's about the American dream and making people believe in themselves and each other again. I love the contestants. Most of the major people that I look up to today in the industry and in general have come from this show and I am so thankful for that and for all the friendships I've made because of that. :)

If you're a big idol fan, you should check out the website. There are a ton of great behind the scenes video of the show itself and of the contestants. I love that you can see more of their personalities!
http://www.americanidol.com/videos/season_11/behind_the_scenes/coke_backstage_tour/

That's all for now,
Shelby <3

And remember....VOTE,VOTE, VOTE this week!

The Avengers

Last night, I went to the midnight showing of The Avengers with my friends Viviyan and Febe. Usually I'm not into these kinds of movies, but I thought it would be fun to hang out with them and everyone has been buzzing about this movie for the past several years. Viviyan picked me up around 8:15, so we could go to Wal-Mart and pick up snacks. We didn't realize we had bought so much until we had to separate it all into three different purses. HA!

We met Febe at 9, and decided to get in line as soon as possible. There were already a ton of people wrapped around the building; dressed all out for the occasion, and most of the people that weren't you could just tell that they were superhero nerds. In fact, the people in front of us were debating about certain superheroes and all that jazz, definitely entertaining. Waiting in line also gave the three of us a chance to chat and catch up on life, share some exciting news, and fill Viv in on some things that went down at the Young Adults service. The time went by quickly, and a little after 10 they started letting us into the theater. That gave us two hours to kill...so we pulled out our phones, started eating all the junk food we had brought, and listening to the intense conversation of the people in front of us once again over superheroes. I believe it was over Batman or Spiderman....? They finally realized we were listening, and realized how nerdy they sounded. I was really trying to stifle a laugh. It started getting harder too LOL.
 
I actually really loved the movie! It was so much better than I thought it would be, to which Viviyan was offended ;). The movie is 2 1/2 hours, and I wondered how that would be, but they kept those two hours jam packed with action and going right along. It kept my interest, except for the fact that I started getting SO tired. I closed my eyes several times, but never actually fell asleep. I highly recommend the movie, especially if you are a fan of this genre. Now, I want to see Iron Man, Captain America, and possibly The Hulk. Robert Downey Jr was hilariously witty and Scarlett Johannson was one tough chick. I have to say they were my favorites of the entire thing.

After the movie ended, Febe dropped me off at home. We had a nice little chat on how to ask God for things and how life is a little complicated at times. I always love the little chats I have with whatever friend drops me off. They are so inspiring and encouraging, and know how to life my spirits. They are true women of God that I admire and I am so glad they are in my life. As soon as I got home, I got ready for bed and crashed. It felt wonderful :)

That's all for now,
Shelby <3

Die Empty

Wednesday night was our monthly Young Adults gathering at church. I got there a little earlier to practice with the band since I hadn't been able to make it the night before. We went over the songs, then just hung out for a bit waiting for the service to start. We had a really good turn out as far as people goes, I just wish we would get the word out more to bring more in. It's the same people week after week, and we're the ones that are already saved. Our goal should be to reach out to the ones that are hurting and lost, and I hope that as our group continues to grow things like that will start to change.

Worship was so much fun! I ended up starting "Our God Is Greater" again this time, and I didn't mess up, which I was excited about. It seemed to receive really well too! It's a little intimidating because we do it in the coffee house at our church, which is a really small area. That meaning there are a bunch of people that are just staring at you and it can feel a little awkward at times, no matter how well you know them. It's always a blast singing with friends though :) It makes it more comforting to know that they've got my back and I've got theirs; we're in this thing together.

My friend Bart and the keyboard player for the worship team spoke, and did a fantastic job. He spoke about what the Catalyst convention had been about for us. I took so much away from it, and I want to share a few points with you guys:

• The graveyard is the richest place on earth---->Full of potential; people that could've been poets, writers, etc. really doing something to change the world
• Potential is what you could do, but haven't done yet
• We all have gifts God has given us and we have so much to offer the world. Don't waste it!
• Life is but a vapor (verse in James). It's here today and gone tomorrow!
• Analogy: It's like when you're walking down the street and a tree just shows up while you're walking. The tree has been there, you just weren't paying attention. It's just like the plans God for us and the potential that is inside of us.
• In every failure there is success
• God pulls stuff out of you that is already there, just takes some time to develop
• Bart told us that he felt that someone in the room needed to hear that they could be an Esther or David that God's looking for. I felt that it was directed to me, because that's something I've truly been praying and thinking about this year. I want to be an Esther or a Ruth; a strong leader
• The enemy will do anything to destroy your dream, but if you let God take care of it and become who He wants you to be, the devil will no longer have control over that.
• Be all you can be
• Stop thinking you have to have a degree or credentials to do what you want. God can use anything and anyone! 
• Basically, in a nutshell, don't die empty! Don't die with any idea or dream left inside of you...die EMPTY.

I was truly inspired after that, and it stirred things up in me that I need to start doing, rather than just sitting around and waiting. After, we mingled with everyone that was there. It's always cool getting to meet a few new people each time and just visit with those, because the bonds become stronger. We had nachos and birthday cake to celebrate my friend Martin's birthday! He had asked a few of us if we wanted to go out to dinner, but I wasn't able to. It was a fun night and I'm so excited to see that God will be and is doing in all of our lives. It was getting later, so I headed home and watched American Idol..couldn't miss that for the world.

That's all for now,
Shelby <3

Lightweight

"Love God, love people, nothing else matters."

Sometimes that second one is extremely hard to follow through with. A problem I have is that I care too much, and usually about people who don't care the same amount as me. I have a fragile heart, and I guess that's how I relate to Brooke Davis. We care so much about people; friends and family, but they don't always return the favor. So, time and time again we get hurt. We build up walls to try to protect ourselves from getting hurt again, but somehow it doesn't work. We care too much.
It's hard to love people when it feels like they just keep pushing you to the ground. It really hurts and frustrates the heck out of me when you've done nothing but try to help people, and they don't appreciate it. They just seem to keep griping about all that you've done wrong or when you didn't say something right. I know that I've screwed up a lot, but I've been open about that. It's annoying when they only point out your flaws and say that I've done the same. So many times I've thought that I was in the wrong. I've tried so many times over the past couple years to be patient, but I'm done. I can forgive and move on, but that doesn't mean I have to keep putting up with it. Sometimes the best thing you can do is wish that person well and pray for them. I've learned that I can't FIX people, and maybe that has been my problem all along. I can be there for them, but I can't make them change or always make them see things from my perspective.

"I'm a lightweight, easy to fall easy to break, better be careful what you say, with every word my whole world shakes. You're in control of my heart..." ~Demi Lovato~

The Queen Is Back

If you don't like Carrie Underwood, that's completely fine, but keep the rude comments to yourself. The last time someone griped about Carrie, they found themselves deleted from my friend list. I know that sounds harsh or dramatic... And it probably is. However, my problem with it is that they know I love Carrie and whatever crap they come up with isn't gonna change that. So, why argue for the sake of arguing right? Right. Moving right along....

Like I was saying, THE QUEEN OF COUNTRY MUSIC IS BACK! It has been two (almost three) LONG years since Carrie released her last album. Us fans have been patiently waiting for her return and it's finally here. Her CD, Blown Away, came out today! She did an exclusive fan club listening party last week, and then released it to iTunes shortly after. Needless to say, I've been listening to it pretty much nonstop and have all the words basically memorized now. My mom was invited to the listening party with Carrie back in Nashville, but since it was such short notice, it didn't work out, but it sounds like it was an absolute blast.
This CD definitely has a different sound than her others, and at first I wasn't quite sure how I felt about a few of the songs. But, each time I listened to it, it really grew on me! I love that she was more involved in the writing process than she has been before, and it shows how much she has grown as an artist. I have to say it's further away from Country, and more on the rock/easy listening side...but yet, people will still pick on Taylor Swift. Sorry, that I don't understand. But, I love it just the same. Country music isn't what it used to be. Embrace it and enjoy it. I picked up my copy today after classes, and if you haven't, well, what are you waiting for?! My favorite song is Good In Goodbye, and has been from the very first time I listened to the entire CD. It just tugged at my heart and was the one I related to most. It reminded me that God can turn bad situations into something beautiful.

Carrie also announced her tour dates for this fall season and is coming back to my hometown! SO cool. We don't always get too many artists, but Carrie is one that has been coming ever since she became a headliner. I knew I loved her for a reason ;)

I am so excited about all the promotion she's doing for it with TV appearances and everything that she has been/will be doing. Here's the list; be sure to check her out:

• April 29-Nightline
• April 30-GMA interview, David Letterman, live concert stream from Ed Sullivan Theater
• May 1-GMA concert, live stream of iheart radio concert
• May 3-American Idol
• May 9-The Ellen DeGeneres Show
• May 10-Jimmy Kimmel Live!
• May 15- Dancing With The Stars
• May 20- Billboard Music Awards

I'll be attending the taping of Jimmy Kimmel Live! next Thursday and I am SO excited! It will almost have been a year since I've seen her, which feels like forever. Just because when she's touring, it feels like we see her quite a bit for something or another :D Eeeeeeepppppp!!!!!!! (*insert Brooke Davis dance here*). 

That's all for now,

Shelby <3

If you've listened to her CD, what are you favorite/least favorite songs? What do you hope is her next single?

Livin' Large At Dodger Stadium

We have season tickets for the Dodgers, and usually sit up in the reserve level, but (long story short) we got tickets for the field level for last Saturday's game. We headed to LA with my uncle around 1:30, stopped at Stein Mart in Valencia to return a purse I bought a couple weeks ago (and ended up getting another one in the process) and off we went.

We had a late lunch/dinner at the Prime Ticket Club, which you can only do if you have that ticket. It was buffet style with pastas, salad, meat and hot dogs to choose from. They had bags of peanuts, ice cream, and a few different types of coffee drinks and soda. We hung out in there awhile, until it started getting busier, then we decided to check out our seats. It was really nice inside! I think it looked fancier than the Stadium Club, plus the food was a little better. The Dodgers were doing warm ups on the field; stretching and doing sprints across the field. Andre Ethier came over to sign as well as another player, whose name I'm currently blanking on at the moment. Matt Kemp got extremely close and everyone was chanting "MVP", but he was focused and didn't come over.

The game was about ready to start, so we headed back to the seats. I couldn't believe how different the atmosphere feels being on the bottom level. For one thing, you have to keep your eyes open at all times, seeing as you could blink and the ball could hit you in the face at any second. I was terrified of that the entire night. There were several scares, but luckily none ever came too close to us. It's also harder to see down there since you're level with the players and all the action, it's hard to see through fans waving their arms or standing up. No one had scored until about the seventh inning, when both of them actually scored, but the game was moving along pretty quickly. My mom and I made another trip to the Prime Ticket club for more snacks; I ate SO much that day, but it was worth every calorie let me tell ya! We were just enjoying the game, when the dance cam game up which they usually do...but this time five familiar faces popped up on the screen, and my mom's like "It's the American Idols!" I started freaking out. If you don't know by now, I've been a HUGE American Idol fan since day one. Anyway, we got our camera's ready in case they showed them again, and sure enough they did. After that, I was on a mission to figure out where they were sitting. My dad always brings his binoculars, so I scanned the crowd when I found them in one of the boxes in between first and second base.

 The game was almost over, so my mom and I decided to head up to that level, since we have a pass that allows us to get basically anywhere in the stadium. My heart was pounding, crossing my fingers that I'd be able to meet them. We got to the Stadium Club level and headed down towards the suites. There were two possible entrances that they could come out at, so I stayed at one while my mom walked to the other to scope things out. She came back and let me know the details, so we decided to head back to where she was. It couldn't have been planned out any better. Almost as soon as we got back to that door, we see Joshua, Skylar, Phillip, and Hollie walking out. I think Jessica was probably visiting with her dad who just got back from serving overseas. I waved to all of them; they returned the gesture and said hi. I asked if I could get a picture with them (meaning as a group to make it extremely quick), but the security guard said they didn't have time for that, they had to get going. I understand that they're on a strict time schedule, but there was no one else around and him telling me I couldn't get a picture took longer than actually TAKING the picture. It wasn't the idols' fault at all, they all seemed kind of in the dark on what to do; they were all pretty quiet. After they said we couldn't get a picture, we just watched them walk out. Skylar, I noticed, kept looking back at me like she felt bad, but had no choice to keep going. I know they have to do as they're told. Phillip was with a girl, I'm pretty sure it was girlfriend. I just checked into it, and apparently her name is Hannah.

It was kind of a disappointment that I couldn't get a picture with them, just because we were SO close and it would've been with the top 5. However, I was just so excited to see them and say hi! It was pretty exciting.

 Plus, the Dodgers ended up winning after tying it up with Washington in the last inning.   We took a bunch of pictures after the game in front of the stadium and all that, then (after stopping at Krispy Kreme) headed home, while listening to Colton, Elise and Hollie and playing trivia. I don't think I ever laugh harder or have more than when I'm just on a car ride home with family. It's seriously one of the simple things in life that brings me so much joy and happiness.

That's all for now,
Shelby <3