the greatest gift the internet has ever given me...

This is a blog post about the internet - the very best parts of the internet - the beautiful, unexpected, amazing opportunities we are afforded because of the internet - and the way the internet stole my heart.

At some point last year I started following a super cute shop on instagram - carolinegshop. Most of the posts were ridiculously bright and colorful. Carrie, the girl behind carolinegshop, has a slight obsession with bright pink and lime green and anything monogrammed. She loves Taylor Swift, cats, Kate Spade bags, and runs an accessory business. She is right up my alley. When she posted that she desperately wanted to come to California to meet Ellen Degeneres, I just couldn’t help but post a comment telling her I’ve done the Ellen thing and inviting her to come stay with me if she ever made her way out to CA. Yes, I invited a stranger to come into my home. A stranger from the internet. Carrie responded and asked for my email address. I think I was in shock - I was giddy and couldn’t believe she was responding to the crazy girl who is obviously completely oblivious to the concept of stranger danger. I gave Carrie my email address and a true friendship was born. We started writing back and forth and eventually exchanged phone numbers and the texting was out of control. Soon enough we were talking on the phone and trying desperately (and unsuccessfully I might add) to get tickets to Ellen. When she called and said she’d registered for the yellow conference the weekend before labor day and would for sure be coming to California, planning kicked into high gear and the excitement of actually getting to meet my dear, sweet friend was out of this world.

On Monday, August 25 Carrie landed at SNA and I was waiting in baggage claim. That hug was one I will never forget. I pulled her 2 pink suitcases off the carousel and we headed straight for Yogurtland to get a midnight (in North Carolina) pick-me-up and then get settled at my house. We had 10 glorious days together and I was determined to adventure through every last one of them! While Carrie was here we ate obscene quantities of Mexican food, had a stellar day at Disneyland while wearing pink Minnie ears, eating our body weight in cotton candy, and riding the Matterhorn Bobsleds 3 times in a row, we went to Santa Monica where Carrie ate a snow cone and then we rode the ferris wheel and enjoyed the afternoon ocean breeze with our toes in the sand, we took the ferry to Balboa Island rented bikes and spent hours cruising the boardwalk and then rode out to the wedge where waves crashed against the rocks and made for perfect pictures. We shared our hearts, encouraged one another to keep dreaming, keep loving, keep being who God created us to be. It was the perfect 10-day adventure.

Carrie is back in North Carolina now and I miss her hard. Our friendship doesn’t make any sense and yet it is undoubtedly a gift from the Lord. As we opened up to one another, it became increasingly evident that we have a similar heartbeat and outlook on life. She was once just a stranger on the internet running a darling accessory business that I wanted to be all about. Now, she is a dear sweet friend who is already planning a return trip to California for next Labor Day weekend and let me tell you, I will be waiting with eager anticipation in baggage claim and will barely be able to contain my joy when I see a girl carrying far too much luggage wearing something bright pink walking towards me. Carrie will forever own a piece of my heart - and our first adventure in California will always be one for the books!

Until next time my friend…until next time!
Oh, and thanks internet! I kinda like you!