DWTS‘ Mark Ballas blogs: A switch-up in week 4

Dancing With the Stars is back, and this season is planning to offer a whole new set of dancers and talent.

Hello, SheKnows. I’m Mark Ballas, pro dancer, singer and songwriter. You might know me from a little show called Dancing With The Stars. This is my 14th season on the show, and it’s been a crazy ride. I love the show, and I’m really excited to be guest-blogging here each week. You can expect stories from rehearsals, show-day antics, challenges and my thoughts about everything from that week’s show. ?

SheKnows welcomes guest blogger DWTS pro Mark Ballas >>

We just passed week 4, and up until this week my partner had been Candace Cameron Bure. The producers decided to try to switch things up a little this year… literally. They switched all of the pros and the stars just as we were all getting comfortable, which made for an interesting week for everyone. Candace and I were really getting into a groove with each other, so I was a little bummed when I heard that we weren’t going to be dancing with each other that week. When I heard Amy was my partner, though, I was pretty excited. I knew it was going to be a challenge, but a fun one. ?

VIDEO: #TBT: Candace Cameron & Danica McKellar dance >>

If you don’t know about Amy, you should. She’s an incredible, inspirational woman. At 19, she contracted bacterial meningitis, and both of her legs had to be amputated below the knee. That didn’t stop her one bit. Outside of dancing, she’s a crazy-talented snowboarder (bronze medalist at the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games) and the cofounder of Adaptive Action Sports. On the dance floor, she’s dedicated and super-talented. ?

This week’s dance was a challenge stylistically. I took on a more supportive stance than I usually do for Amy, but still wanted her to go her own way and show the judges that she can dance on her own. She took it, ran with it and killed it when it came time to perform.

Next week I’m back with Candace, and I’m ready to show the judges and the viewers what we’ve got up our sleeves. It’s going to be a very fun show. Y’all can vote for Candace and me online all day today if you want to see us continue on. Voting is open till 5:00 p.m. PST.

Until next week,?

Mark Ballas