A Weekend Recap

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Somehow, I made it through my first dance season with Charlee. I never thought in a million years that I’d be a dance mom. Yet, here I am. I drop her off at dance practices and navigate the complexities of toddler tutu’s and tap shoe sizes. Sidebar, tap shoe sizing for toddlers is crazy. Either Charlee’s feet have grown overnight, or it’s just inconsistent sizing across the board.

We had a busy lineup last week. Charlee graduated pre-k and had her big dance recital. An unsleepover celebration followed, which really just ended up being a bunch of exhausted kids. The parents hoped the next toddler meltdown would end quickly. In any case, me and my dance mom friends survived the weekend and now summer can officially start.

By the way, in between all this craziness, I shot my first dance video for a friend of mine. I don’t do much videography. I really lean into my comfort zone, which is photography and photography editing. However, this was a much needed confidence booster. I’ve never truly seen myself as a videographer. I went to school for communications. I specifically remember my video production professor saying I was a much better actor. He said that videography wasn’t it for me. That stuck with me. I lost the motivation to learn more about it. I lost the motivation to practice and fine tune my problems areas. All that said, I always end up making videos. These are either for clients or brands I’ve worked with in the past. This has forced me to fine tune those weak areas. I did exactly what my professor advised against. I’ve significantly improved since then. It’s a skill set I’m proud to say I have. Lesson for the day…your purpose will follow you no matter what people say. So you might as well do the thing that you aren’t good at. Especially if it’s your calling. Just because others don’t see it, doesn’t mean you can’t work on it. Another lesson, you’re not always going to be good at it the first time you try. You have to keep working at it. Discipline and consistency breeds results

Anyway, didn’t mean to go off on a rant. At my big age, I’m learning so much more. I actually have time to sit with my thoughts. I have children that hold me accountable and are counting on me. This is my favorite and least favorite thing about parenthood. I love that they look to me as the example, but it’s a lot of pressure.

Keep scrolling for even more pics from last week’s shenanigans.

Enjoy!

Until next time, friends!

Sincerely,

Deidra Marie

Finding Beauty in Life’s Challenges: A Personal Reflection

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Another year around the sun my friends! If you’ve read my latest IG post, you know this shoot was inspired by the character Isabela Madrigal. She is from the Disney movie, Encanto. Her character development really resonated with me, especially in this particular season in my life. For those who haven’t seen the movie, Isabella has one of the coolest gifts. She makes the world more beautiful with her flowers. Throughout the movie, she is praised for her beauty. Her gift to make things beautiful is also noted. However, one thing that really stuck with me about her character development was her learning two things. Two things can be true at once. There is a point in the movie when her world begins to crumble and challenges arise. Because of these challenges, she is unable to make flowers bloom and starts making weeds and less desirable plants. One lesson I interpret from this character’s story is that life isn’t always beautiful. Family isn’t always beautiful. Trauma happens and life happens. But the weeds and the flowers that life brings us can exist in the same space. They still have meaning and both promote growth and development! I’ve learned that of my grief and joy. They exist in the same space and I’ve grown because of both. May this year be beautiful and may the challenges you face bring growth and meaningful change.

Here’s a few more snaps from this flower filled photoshoot. I hope you enjoy.

Till next time.

Sincerely,

Deidra Marie

Memorable Moments at Our Favorite Hotel

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In 2020, we started a random tradition. We would travel a few hours away to our favorite hotel to just get away. It gave us a chance to see some new scenery. We were in COVID lockdown so we did a lot of day trips and it has stuck. Our first trip to this hotel was when it was under some serious construction. We brought a 7 week old Charlee along for our Ballantyne adventure. We stayed in the room, vegged out on the couch and watched way too much TV. Did some thrift shopping, saw a few sights then went home. This year we took both kiddos. We let them enjoy the facilities’ new amenities. We vegged out on the couch and watched way too much TV. We met up with a dear friend and then went home, LOL. I love this family I’ve built. I love the traditions we are setting in place. I hope they continue for years to come. Life is evolving, but we always seem to come back to the familiar. It may look different, but different is good. Different just means change. Change means growth. Growth means you’re still moving ahead.

I hope you all had a good long MLK weekend. Enjoy a few snaps I captured of the tiny humans enjoying all the plushy things.

Till next time.

Sincerely,

Deidra Marie