Hi! My name is Danielle Blackwell. I am an Army wife, a mama to 3 little ladies, a Registered Nurse, and now, a SLAM BOSS! This past year has changed my life tremendously because of SLAM and taken me down a path I never knew was in MY plans.
My fitness journey began very early at the age of 10, watching my dad lift weights and wanting to share that bond with him. Many years and many sports later, I started my college career at West Point and joined the cheerleading team, my ultimate love. Coincidently, that is where I met my husband 12 years ago, and I committed to following my Soldier wherever the Army sent us. As most military spouses’ stories go, many moves and many colleges later, I FINALLY graduated from nursing school, and we were blessed with our sweet baby girl #1. I became a MOM, a Stay At Home Mom! We moved again, and this time was different, because I had to “mom date”, and in a different country no less. I needed mom friends, and I needed to work out for my health and my sanity. I joined other stroller fitness classes over the years while we welcomed our spunky baby girl #2 and our “the baby” baby girl #3. They were wonderful classes, and I am very grateful for them and the ladies I met. I also continued to run and do at home exercise videos. I never knew something was missing until I met Meghan and SLAM Leavenworth.
In June of 2016, we moved to Ft. Leavenworth, KS for a very quick 10 months! What!? So, unpack, get settled, and find the new routine. My husband and I had planned from the beginning of parenthood that I would stay home with our little ladies until they all headed off to school. Since I was home and had to mom date again, I was on the lookout for a stroller fitness class. I recall seeing multiple Facebook posts from this very excited lady named Meghan who was with Stroller Strong Moms. Stroller Strong Moms? It sounded cool, so I gave it a try. Wow. A new found love emerged. I had never felt so MYSELF, so strong, and so able to shine my light. I had found my team. Exercise became a joy, a celebration of the body God gave me, and an example to my 3 beautiful daughters of a healthy lifestyle and women supporting women. It was FUN, it was a mom playdate, and I looked forward to it every single morning. Very quickly, I had a ton of new mom friends (including that amazing Meghan
), and they were all the definitions of love, support, and fun. And my kiddos had friends, playdates, and new experiences.
We left Kansas this past summer as the Army reassigned us to Redstone Arsenal, and I realized how right Winnie the Pooh was when he said “How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” It was very hard to say goodbye to my SLAMfam. Those amazing women changed my life.
After moving for the 5th time in 5 years, this is my new path. This is where God wants to use me. I want to help set some souls on fire! I want mamas to find their tribe, get strong and healthy, celebrate their bodies, and feel loved. I want kiddos to have a blast and see how strong their mamas are! I could not be more excited to bring this life giving group to Huntsville, AL!
It is time to SLAM, y’all (though, I’m originally a Midwesterner so I say “you all”. Ha!).
Visit SLAM Huntsville’s webpage here and give them a like on Facebook here!
Recent Comments