Meet the Contributor: Carrie Anne

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  Aloha!

I’m Carrie Anne, I’m over 30 and I grew up in Atlanta GA, where I learned to love all things southern, like sweet tea, biscuits n gravy, manners, and even lightning bugs. Keeping things southern, I went to college in beautiful, historic, Savannah GA, where I earned an Associate’s degree in Criminal Justice that I never used. After graduation I had my oldest daughter, Olivia Scarlett. Her dad lives in Daytona and we co parent famously.

carrie anne and daughter on the beach

I moved to Fort Walton Beach in 2009 to be closer to my mom and fell in love with the area. It was such a pleasure to raise Olivia by the beach, to teach her all things nautical and marine. While here I was introduced to Heritage Band, and fell in love at first sight with the ukulele player. Three years later and we were dating! We moved to Boulder, Colorado for me to attend Naropa University, we loved everything except the snow, but we decided to settle down and have a baby.

Evelynne Renee’ Pua’leihiwa Kealoha was born Nov 2015, 8 years after my first child! I love the age difference though; Olivia is the best big sister. Due to Evelynne’s native Hawaiian heritage I have become obsessed with all things hawaiian. I love hula, the language, the ono (delicious) food, all of it. We are huge Moana fans in this household–the movie and soundtrack have been on repeat since they came out! I am truly grateful to Disney for making this film so that my bi-racial daughter has a princess that looks like her to identify with as she grows up.

beach life family selfie

 

While living in Colorado I learned a lot about…wait for it…medical marijuana. Being back in Florida, I recognize the we are in a pivotal time for marijuana legislation.  Expect a couple of articles about this topic from me, as it’s a perspective I am passionate about.  I believe discussion leads to understanding, so if you have a question or are on the fence about medical marijuana, I’d love to start up a conversation!

That’s the past in a nutshell, and as for the present, I just did the scariest thing ever: I quit my day job and started my own business! I was so sick and tired of clocking in and out for someone else and spending so much time away from my family that I knew something had to change. I found the magical mommy and me movement and music program Zumbini, and got certified and licensed as an instructor. To know that my job now consists of singing and dancing with babies while facilitating their cognitive development is the greatest blessing, plus I no longer have to leave my kids!

I am so glad to be back near the pearly white sand, watching my girls frolick in the frothy emerald waves.  

The beach life truly is the best life.

I’m excited to get to share it with all of you!

 

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Carrie Anne
Carrie Anne's mom life could be summed up in one great Bob Dylan quote, "Chaos is a friend of mine." She's a liberal momma of 2 girls, who loves to read, loves to beach walk, and loves to shop. She spends her mornings singing and dancing with babies while teaching the mommy and me Zumbini class, and she gets much satisfaction from educating others on the many benefits of medical marijuana. She recently moved back to the Emerald Coast after calling the Rocky Mountains of Boulder, CO home while attending Naropa University where she studied Buddhist Psychology. Unfortunately those studies did not unlock the parenting zen secret and she still catches herself yelling at her girls to put their shoes on daily.