Today is Kayla’s birthday, and I wish so badly I could be there in person to say so (actually almost went to be honest ha) but since I can’t- here’s my tribute to miss Kayla because she deserves it and so much more.

I first met Kayla ONLINE. We were both a part of the Disney College Program Spring 2011 hopefuls on Facebook, and ended up in a group Skype chat. We clicked immediately, and before I knew it we had a crazy idea that we should be roommates if we both got accepted- AND WE DID! We were calling each other all the time, Skyping, texting, Facebooking- you name it! We even did this really awesome secret santa gift exchange with our Disney friends and I got Kayla as mine!

We officially met in person at Downtown Disney in Orlando a few days before checking in for our college program- we were on the phone trying to find each other and once we saw each other we actually ran towards each other and hugged and Kayla grabbed my face and was like “YOU’RE REAL!” Hahaha! We were really excited to do this crazy thing together of quitting everything back home to go work for Disney. It was a dream come true.

We went to Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Hollywood Studios before starting our internship and it was the most magical day because of a few reasons. First off, there was barely anyone in the park. Second, we met Mickey and Minnie and it was actually tear-jerking. I never thought I would be transported back into my childhood so easily while getting to share it with my new best friend! Thirdly, our friends Derek and Stephanie spent the day with us almost as an aunt and uncle because we literally felt like kids.

Living together, we were inseparable. We shared a room, and not once got sick of each other. We had each other’s back. We stayed up all night talking almost every night- which is really bad with the schedules we had but we didn’t care!

When I had to wake up early, Kayla would set an alarm for me and make sure I was out of bed. One time, we made a joke that we should push our beds together in our room and I came home to find that Kayla did just that. And we didn’t change it for WEEKS! Haha!

We both loved Coke, so we always split that when it came to groceries. But we also got really lucky and wore the same size in EVERYTHING so we shared shoes, dresses, and shirts probably more than we wore our own clothes. One time at the park, Kayla noticed that I wasn’t in a very good mood and she surprised me that day by buying us matching hats. That’s the kind of person she is so of course I didn’t mind sharing everything with her!

Every day was an adventure during our DCP and Kayla will forever be the best roommate in the entire world.

Anyway. Kayla is amazing. To have her in your life is a true pleasure. She has accomplished so many amazing things. She’s a natural leader, and extremely talented. After Kayla’s Disney College Program she got a Professional Internship at Disney as a Retail Guest Service Manager at a BRAND NEW RESORT (Art of Animation). She did so well there that she left a lasting impression on ever single cast member, and ended up getting a position at Epcot as a manager.

As you can tell, Kayla really is great. She just a new job as a coordinator at the Sheraton in Ohio and guaranteed- she’ll be doing big things one day.

Kayla, happy birthday. You are the best friend I could ever ask for. You have been there for me in times when I wasn’t even there for myself. You push me to want to be a better person, to follow my dreams, and to never stop working hard. I miss every single day and I can’t wait to be reunited again! I love that we get to talk every day because it keeps me sane! I love you best friend!