why walk when you can dance?

To those that know me, it should come as no surprise that I think there should be more dancing in our day-to-day lives. I firmly believe that we would all be nicer, less stressed, and overall happier people if we broke out in daily dance parties. (okay, so God's presence in our lives is obviously pretty key, too, but you get my point.)

Who hasn't experienced the bliss and joy of lettin' loose and cutting a rug out on the dance floor? (To those who have not, I say, life's too short to give any regard with one's actual dance ability, or lack thereof.). I find no greater joy in life here on this earth (apart from family and friends) than rockin' out on the dance floor. No event is safe from the wild moves I am prone to bust out. From company parties, to wedding receptions, and even city streets (hello A-TX and the outdoor spazmatics concerts), if there's music playing, my body has to move. As a wise man once said, "I'm here to have a good time, and I'm not gonna apologize for it." I also can't even begin to recount the various casualties I have had as a result of marathon dancing sessions. There have been late night charlie horses, severely strained muscles, bloody feet (from stepping on broken glass out on the dance floor), massive knots in my hair (because I had been whipping it back and forth much too violently)...

Some recent instagrammed photos (a la my dearest fousins) inspired this post as they had the distinct pleasure of dancing side-by-side the one and only, Spazmatics (on stage, no less). These two cats are by far some of my all-time fave dance partners as we grew up dancing together...that's roughly 26-29 years of training and I can honestly say, dancing is in our blood. No family reunion was complete without bustin' out the jambox and bustin' out some serious moves. Most of these were impromptu dance parties, but I was also known to force my cousins into performing some amazing choreographed routines, highlighting my prowess as a budding choreographer that I was determined to be when I grew up.

Anyway, I just felt so compelled to share these thoughts and to share some of my favorite dancing pics. Unfortunately, this is just a small collection as my favorite Kodak moments are not loaded onto my computer. Enjoy...

One of my all-time fave dancing pics. I'm almost positive these moves were set to "Crazy in Love".

How's that for some serious dancer faces? Like father, like daughter.

Sometimes you have a dance floor, sometimes you have a living room. All you really need are some jams and a willingness to boogy down. There is no shame in my game.

Skirts were made to twirl. Am I right or am I right?

Another day, another kitchen dance party...this was Christmas Eve and the tunes were provided by none other than the vocal stylings of *NSYNC

Like her aunt, this girl was born to boogie...make no mistake, Hay-girl has some moves you've never seen.

(**yes, I couldn't help including the pic of myself twirling like a crazy person right smack in the middle of the streets of Florence)

My advice to those hesitant to get funky and bust a move is always to just forget everyone else and dance like no one's watching. So to all you wall flowers out there, what are you waiting for? YOLO. Close your eyes and let the music take you to funkytown. It's a trip you will never regret.