Witney Carson is just like Us moms — trying to find a balance between work and parenting.
“Being real with you for a min — this week’s been a lot,” Carson, 32, captioned a selfie shared via her Instagram Story on Friday, October 31.
“I’m exhausted, the mom guilt is in full swing, and I’m just trying to keep life balanced best I can,” she continued. “I am beyond grateful and so blessed but some days it’s tough behind the scenes. Just a reminder we’re all doing our best, and that’s enough.”
Carson and her dancing partner, Robert Irwin, are one of eight pairs of contestants left vying for the Mirrorball Trophy in this season of Dancing With the Stars. In addition to Carson and Irwin, the remaining pairs include Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa, Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy, Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach, Danielle Fishel and Pasha Pashkov, Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten, Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas and Andy Richter and Emma Slater.
The couples are currently preparing for the upcoming Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Night episode on Tuesday, November 4.
In September, Carson spoke exclusively to Us about her DWTS partner and famed conservationist, who is trying to follow in his big sister Bindi Irwin’s footsteps. Bindi previously won the 21st season of the popular reality series alongside her dance partner Derek Hough in 2015.
“I had flashbacks of when he was little, so I just felt, like, immediately connected to him, and I just wanted to pinch his cheeks,” she told Us at the time. “I just couldn’t stop hugging him. I was like, ‘This is so perfect.’ I couldn’t have wished for a better partner.”
When his big sister was competing, Robert — who lost his dad, famed environmentalist and animal lover Steve Irwin when he was just 2 years old — often showed up on set alongside Bindi. He told Us that returning as a participant is a special, full-circle moment.
“I was just so stoked,” Robert said about finding out Witney would be his partner. “I feel like this is such a dream come true, such a full-circle moment, 10 years after being in the ballroom with Bindi to now be here with you. I first met [Witney] when I was this big with a little bowl cut.”
Robert also said that preparing for the show was “awesome.”
“Honestly, Witney’s just been incredible,” he told Us. “And it’s such a huge learning curve because I’ve never done anything like this. I’ve never done anything close to dancing. I guess dangerous animals, you got to have footwork, so maybe there’s a little bit of that, but you’ve got your work cut out for you, mate.”
While speaking exclusively to Us in October, Carson also admitted she’s “protective” of her dance partner. As she put it, “He is an absolute dream partner and very humble. I gotta knock him down a little bit sometimes, keep you grounded, critique you a little bit more. But no, he is just as great as you guys see on TV.”
Irwin praised the pair’s dynamic in the same interview. “We are just having the best time. I feel like we’ve become like this brother and sister duo,” Irwin exclusively told Us Weekly after the October 7, episode.
Carson joined Dancing With the Stars as a member of the troupe in March 2013 for the show’s 16th season. She was promoted to the role of dance pro during the 18th season, when she was eliminated alongside Cody Simpson during the fifth week of competition in April 2014.
Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
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