Personal Childhood Web

  My mom, Audrey has always been super involved and still is. She took me/us everywhere, to dance, school, riding lessons, and was our biggest fan. She always did everything for everybody and rarely did for herself; she was truly selfless. To this day, I am really close with my mom and heed her advice on parenting, career, money, the list really goes on. When I talk to her, she makes everything  better and I feel safe again.  I do feel that our roles have reversed since my dad’s passing. I feel like I need to take care of her and check on her all the time. 

The hardest person to talk about is my dad, David because he passed away in February of 2010 from cancer. He was everything to me.  He gave the best advice and best level of discipline. In my eyes, he knew everything. He was a professional actor on stage,TV and film, as well as, a college fine arts professor. We shared the same passion for the arts and culture. I feel like I followed in his artistic footsteps.  He really was my idol. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t miss him terribly. I wear his water bird ring to keep him close.  

 My sister, Carolyn is my half-sister, we have the same mom but she is quite a bit older than me – almost 20 years. She was in some ways a mother figure to me too. She watched me a lot when I was little and I thought she was the coolest  person alive. As I got a little older, she became that person who I would “run” to and tell my secrets. She never acted like she was too busy for me or didn’t want me around. I played in all her make-up and ruined a few of her dates when I wouldn’t go to sleep. For our age difference, we are very, very close and share everything. 

Ah my little brother, Davey. He’s about 5 years younger than me but still had a big influence on my life. He has  a different spirit than I do and teaches me to relax a bit, to be more care free. He has a huge heart and has always had my back. He is also probably the only other person (aside from my husband) who can make me laugh when I'm really, really stressed.  We are like partners in crime and trouble always finds him; which he then gets me into! He was also my first dance student. I would make him learn dances, we would dress up and perform them for everyone else. He's not so little anymore, this October he will get married! 

Each of these individuals was a great influence on my childhood and still are to this day. We all live in different places and don't see each other very often but that doesn't stop us from being close. I feel that each taught me trust, unconditional love, and strength. They taught me to live, love, and follow my dreams. They all definitely had a hand in molding me into the person I am today and I feel lucky to have such a supportive web in my childhood and now as an adult.