To celebrate my 50th birthday, my sisters treated me with a trip to Mexico City. The sun shined, the weather was warm, the food was delicious, the sites were amazing and the quality time, a lifelong gift.
Tagged: birthday trip, girls trip, Mexico City, sisters, travel
From Daytona Beach to Kansas City to Nashville to Seattle, with bag packed he navigates the airport, boards the plane, looks out the window at the city he’s leaving, anticipating the city to which he is traveling. He works a grueling weekend, squeezes in meals when he can, survives on minimal sleep, bandaids sore feet, spends as much time as he can with the other Collective members, builds relationships with the faculty and gives high fives, words of encouragement, and genuine smiles to every dancer he encounters. Every interaction fuels him, every dance step validates and reaffirms, every moment is a moment he wants to live in for as long as possible.
Tagged: Collective, convention, dance, Dancemakers, Lucas, Seattle
Artists Simply Human (ASH) Dance convention is our team’s first convention of the season. It is also the only convention where both Oliver’s team and Lucas’ and Penny’s team compete together allowing me to see two solos, 15 group routines and cheer on all three of my kids. This is Oliver’s second ASH, Penny’s third and Lucas’ last. 
Nashville is Lucas’ 3rd city on his Season XI tour and my first. As a Collective member he is an extension of the DanceMaker’s staff and brand which means as soon as he sets foot on the venue he is on, ready to give a warm greeting to anyone that might recognize him. As I walked with Lucas around the property, he easily gave out high fives and smiles to the younger dancers as their faces lit up.
Tagged: Collective, Dancemakers, Lucas Season XI, Nashville
Tagged: 50th birthday trip, Barbados, birthday, girls trip, travel, vacation
From Thanksgiving to Christmas people are kinder, more generous and more forgiving. You have good reasons to gather, to celebrate, to demand time of your kids, and to be grateful. While some celebrations shift year to year, traditions remain.
Dear Oliver,
My third, my youngest, you are always being told what you can and cannot do, what you are and aren’t, by your big siblings and by me. But despite what we say, you do as you see fit. You dive deep into things that interest you and don’t give up until you’ve mastered it like solving the Rubik’s Cube in under 40 seconds and listing every single country in the world in under 6 minutes. You kinda love dance and you kinda like flag football, absolutes mean something to you so you are rare to use them. But your friends, your entire crew of fourteen boys, your girlfriend, your cousins and aunts, and us, absolutely think your funny and clever, smart and sweet, thoughtful and sincere. In some ways I am easy on you and in some ways the hardest and since you are fourteen sometimes you want nothing to do with me and sometimes want me to be everything for you. When I look at you and see how much you’ve grown and how much you are changing, I sometimes get sad because you are my baby but not a baby anymore. And I’ll ask you to cuddle with me and you’ll say “No Mom, that’s weird” but then you’ll relent and give me a hug for as long as I hold on.
By my third you’d think I’d have figured some things out but I still make mistakes, I say the wrong things and I try to define who you are and what you can and cannot do. But luckily you hear what you choose to hear and you know exactly what you can do.
Started in 1992 due to a surplus of wreaths and a man’s desire to honor our country’s veterans, as of 2022 Wreaths Across America has grown to over 2.7 million wreaths in 3,702 locations. Their mission extends beyond the profound action of one day; it is to remember the fallen, honor those who serve and teach the next generation the value of freedom, all year long.
Tagged: Arlington Cemetery, Washington D.C.
DanceMakers’ mission is to offer the very best in dance education, provide an atmosphere that fosters creativity and use dance as a medium for self exploration and love. The Collective is an elite group of dancers chosen by the DanceMakers faculty as outstanding representatives of “who we are”. As a Collective member Lucas will attend eight regional conventions where he will assist, demonstrate, perform, work competition and study/mentor with the faculty that has inspired so much of his dance journey. He will be challenged, he will learn, he will be inspired, he will make mistakes and he will grow. Daytona Beach is his first city and he has already learned he needs to properly fuel his body to survive the demanding weekend schedule and that assisting ballet in the junior room can be challenging but also a lot of fun. 
Creative Dance Center’s annual Nutcracker In a Shell The Remix is our community fundraising performance of the year. This year marks Creative Dance Center’s 26th annual performance, Oliver’s first, Penny’s fourth and Lucas’ last.
Tagged: Creative Dance Center, dance, Lucas, Nutcracker, Oliver, Penny
Our Everyday 