Simply Shelby

Oh how I loveeeee my Utah summer trips. They are filled with adventure, laughter, family, tears, hurt, comfort, and most of all it's full of LIFE. It's my home away from home. I love the quiet days with sunny afternoons. I love the ability to read a good book outside without getting sticky from the humidity. I love my cousins sense of hope. We are three girls who are struggling in our own ways and when we're together it's like a puzzle who has reached it's potential. I love my Rachel's STRENGTH, I love my Carly's HOPE. I love my grandparents and their simple life. I love this place, but I do miss home. Florida has half of my heart, and it most likely always will. My mother needs me, and quite frankly I need her. This is my time to take time for ME, and to understand myself in ways I can't back home. (:

Ahhhhhh and do I have the PREFECT story for you. This post is not about me, my hilarious mishaps, my thoughts about life, but yet it still is a story. Most people know I love them but if you don't I most likely do. That's just how I am. There are a few people I would like to know that they have impacted my life. Somehow all my words aren't coming out like I wished they would. These are not all the people that have impacted my life, just the few I wanted to talk about today (: 1. Rachel Mower- my cousin. Rachel Mower, my beautiful cousin of the age 18. She's sweet, loving, kindhearted, but mostly STRONG. My Rachel has Crohns Disease. This is a disease she has to fight with every single day. Life gets hard for her a lot. When you're sick a lot it's hard to stay positive. Rachel lives each day with her whole heart, and fights this disease with all she has. I love her. 2. Carly Parr- my cousin Carly Parr is my other beautiful cousin of 17. She is hi...

It's 11:40 at night, and I can't seem to fall asleep. I hate the nights where you just lay in bed and your mind just won't quit. Sleep is a natural occurrence for me and without it I can tend to be a tad bit emotional. I was laying down thinking of what it'll be like to be a mother. I know this sounds insane to you, but to me it's normal. I have been blessed with amazing women in my life. From my strong-willed mother, my two fantastic grandmothers, numerous church leaders, and my beautiful cousins, I consider myself lucky. Some don't appreciate the blessing it is to be a woman. I know the cramps are icky and the cleaning is awful, but we are blessed. Each woman in my life has taught me that being a woman is more than just the typical. It's EVERYTHING else! It's the way a grandmothers eyes light up when they see a grandchild who has strayed away walk through the doors of church on a Sunday morning. It's the way a mother knows when something is wron...

I am not your typical teenager. On the weekends, I do not party, I do not drink, and I do not do things that I would regret in the morning. Okay, I know I'm being stereotypical, and I'm sorry if I've offended anyone who does those kinds of things and enjoys it. Nights like the night I've had tonight, make me feel so glad to be ALIVE . My friends and I, spent the evening eating dinner thanks to the Mathis Parents, sticky-noting a dear friends car while he was at work, getting ice cream, listening to music with the windows down, and being well, teenagers. The humidity of Florida, and the spontaneous rain made this evening full of wet flip-flops, and messy hair. I could have been doing things my parents would have not approved of, and so could my friends, but we enjoy the fact that we can be young, while still making our parents proud. I love my friends, and I love the weekend nights I get to spend with them. They make me feel ALIVE and for that, I am SO grateful.

It has been forever since my mind has stopped moving 10 million miles a hour. I have not even had the time to think about blogging! The end of the school year always seems to be like this, and boy do I hate it. Prom was absolutely amazing. I had the greatest time, and with all the planning, it looked amazing too. I have never been more excited to get something over with! Now that it is over, I have had my Student Government Cabinet interview for next year. You are now looking at the new Secretary of Operations. I love starting a new project, and I think this will be my favorite yet. I love all my SGA family, they are the greatest people I know. 10 school days yet and Shelby will be a SENIOR!! Can you imagine my excitement?! I am almost done with High School, and it has FLOWN by. I will not miss it one bit. I can say that now, but I probably won't mean it next year. (: I am off to church! Love you all.

What keeps us all ticking? Okay, not like ticking as in a clock, ticking as in what keeps us going. So everyone has those days where we wake up to the sound of that dreadful alarm clock and we think to ourselves, "Today is going to be a bad day." Yet, despite the fact that we know the day is going to be bad we buck up, get dressed, and get on with life. I have to wonder why we always continue to keep going, even though the going looks rough. Some I believe, look to love as a reason to be strong. I am one of those people. Even though I'm only 17 and SO not looking for a husband yet, I look for the idea of love to keep me strong in those times of weakness. We all have met those mean and hurtful boys/girls who seem to break our hearts, but we still love the idea of love. Next, I believe people look to the future as a sign to be strong. If you give up now, how are you going to have a prosperous future? Hmm..let's think about this for a second.. YOU'RE NOT! Everyone ...

Some days are easier than others. This is how it has always been since the day I was born, and this is how it will be until the day I take my last breath. I will spend countless hours lost in a world where people love to hate more than they love to love. I don't understand how things change so quickly, nor will I ever. There is a hope burning deep inside my heart, a hope that keeps me hanging on to the things that I have faith in. My love for our Savior seems to consume me like a burning building. All it takes is one flame, and my heart loves him more and more. What a honorable man Jesus Christ was. He was a man of selfless charity, a faith in all people, and had a love for those who even turned their heads away from him. He is a person we all should strive to be like. A person who is meek, humble, giving, hopeful, selfless, and kind. I could go on all day talking about this great man who is the key to so many different faiths. Striving to live our lives in a way that Christ would ...