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Claudia Velasco

@cla4377

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My best friend @theluckiestlab Passion project @lovesoapbyclaudia 🎁 @dylanvalter & @julian_alter 💍@ stra8nm

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WONDERFUL BY @harrybakerpoet. “Just as you cannot be in traffic without being traffic,
life is not something that you are stuck in while it happens.
There is more in you than you could possibly imagine.
The very fact that you exist makes everything a bit more magic… 💙Life is too short to eat celery
🩵Life is too long to feed jealousy
🤎Life is likely just the right length to need therapy
💛May you be seriously silly 💛May you be wickedly kind
🤍May you be brillianty dumb sometimes
And yet stupidly bright
🧡May you certainly have doubts
🧡May your weirdness be the norm
💚May the coolest thing about you be your warmth 💚May you be powerfully vulnerable Or at least mightily soft
🩶May you be a contradiction And yet at the same time not And whether you need none Or all of the above
❤️Above all, may you know that you are loved.
Happy 18th birthday my boy. My love for you is infinite❣️ https://www.harrybaker.co/ted-baker seriously obsessed with his poetry! by @cla4377

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7 days ago

Same bright smile, just a whole lot taller. Officially a high schooler! Took me a week to process… mami is a slow computer lately. Proud of you always Dylan! 💙🧡💙🧡 #westlakevillage #westlakehighschool #freshmanyear✔️ by @cla4377

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a month ago

Days like today remind you what strength actually looks like. At the @liferollsonfoundation They Will Skate Again event, our friend Junior faced his fears on the ramps after his life-changing accident. Guided by pro adaptive skater Robert, Junior took a leap of faith. He fell on his first try, but true to his spirit, he got right back up and did it three more times!We came with a goal to learn something new, and we left with so much more. Huge thanks to Dylan, Brandon, and Suede for hype-man energy, helping skaters up the ramps, and making everyone smile. A truly unique and beautiful day! ❤️#veniceskatepark #adaptivesports #inspiration taken in Venice Beach Skatepark by @cla4377

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2 months ago

🌿 Japan Part 2: The Art of “Borrowed Scenery”
Okay, so for part two of our Japan trip, I have to talk about the gardens because they are honestly on a whole different level of art. But there was this one design concept I learned about that completely blew my mind called Shakkei, which basically translates to “borrowed scenery.”
The idea is exactly how it sounds. Imagine you’re designing a little garden. Instead of just focusing on what’s inside your yard, you frame it perfectly so that whatever is outside—like a massive distant mountain or a forest—acts as your backdrop. It tricks your eyes into thinking those faraway views are a deliberate part of your garden, when they’re totally not. You’re just “borrowing” that outside beauty to make your own space look even better.
I just fell in love with that concept, and honestly, I couldn’t stop translating it to real life.
Think about it like friendship. When you have a friend with a pretty face, they just enhance the whole vibe of the picture. Or even better—think of those friends with the fancy purses. You can literally just hide behind one of their luxury bags in a photo and make it look like it’s yours! They are providing the premium backdrop, and you are just gracefully borrowing the scenery. 👛
This first picture is from the famous Arashiyama Bamboo Grove in Kyoto. While I was standing there, I learned that the exact creaking and rustling sound the bamboo makes when the wind blows hard is so iconic that it was officially named one of the protected “Soundscapes of Japan!” How cool is that?
It just reminded me that we don’t exist in a vacuum. Who and what we choose to surround ourselves with matters so much. You don’t have to own the expensive bag (or the mountain!) to benefit from its beauty—you just have to be intentional about what you let into your frame. Surrounding yourself with people and places that elevate your backdrop changes everything. Thank you stra8nm best video photographer !! Too many good ones to choose 📸📹 taken in JAPAN by @cla4377

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4 months ago

⛩️ Japan Part 1: “You just are.”
Before going to Japan, I didn’t fully realize how uniquely they approach spirituality. In Japan, nobody really asks what religion you are. You just are. There’s a famous saying that you are “born Shinto and die Buddhist,” and these two philosophies coexist beautifully without any friction.
Shintoism is deeply rooted in nature and the belief that everything—even inanimate objects—has a soul. Because of this, there’s a deep respect for your surroundings. You don’t slam a door or stomp on the ground; you move with mindfulness.
The Shinto shrines we visited were absolutely breathtaking. You enter through these massive Torii gates, which physically separate the sacred spirit world from the everyday human world. While we were visiting, a huge storm rolled in. Instead of ruining the moment, it felt like a powerful reminder of the raw strength of nature.
I was even brave enough to draw an Omikuji (a random paper fortune). I pulled “Small Luck”—which is a step bellow average. It basically means things won’t necessarily come easy, and life will require patience and consistency. I actually love that so much more than “grand luck”—it’s a beautiful reminder that real growth comes from steady, daily effort rather than just having success handed to you. It felt so real.
(Fun fact: If you pull bad luck, you don’t take it home. You tie it to a pine or cherry blossom tree at the shrine and leave it behind!)
This whole mindset just completely resonated with us. Rick and I come from different backgrounds—being Jewish and non-Jewish—but we don’t let labels define us. We just are. We celebrate Christmas because I love it, and we celebrate Passover because it’s deeply embedded in Rick’s culture and traditions.
Seeing how seamlessly Shinto and Buddhism intertwine in Japan made so much sense to me. It’s a fascinating, simple, and beautiful way to live. ✨ by @cla4377

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4 months ago

Happy 15th birthday, my Didi… am I even still allowed to call you that? Maybe it’s “D-man” from now on.

15… wow. My beautiful baby is now a beautiful young man. You are truly one of a kind—well… maybe there are two of you in the world… you are your dad 😂

I see so much of him in you. Your big heart, the way you pay attention, how you listen, how you understand people without a word being said. You’re focused, quiet… but so intense about the things you love. Talented like your dad, with those beautiful green eyes too.

These past 2½ years, spending so much time together through skating and homeschooling, have been such a gift. Watching you grow up this close—I wouldn’t change a thing… well, maybe learning your tricks’ names… they all look hard 😄 Not even the thousands of miles we’ve driven.

Cheers to many more years of watching you grow strong, healthy… and so tall!! Dylan, I don’t take a single day for granted. My love for you is immense—immeasurable. I would catch a grenade for you.

Te adoro 🤍
Stay gritty, keep sending it—540 no squat and all—make your own line, find your own path, stay unique, and carve your way through this wonderful life. 🛹 by @cla4377

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5 months ago

Nosara Nationals… but make it a family trip 💛 🛹
How beautiful it is to say yes when opportunities show up.
To mom so hard, watch @dylanvalter live his best life 🥈, and share it all with my CR family.
Costa Rica, you are magic. So proud.”#costarica🇨🇷 #nosara #skateboarding taken in Nosara. Costa Rica by @cla4377

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6 months ago

And then suddenly… here we are.
19 years. Healthy. Slightly less cool.

We’re lucky enough to still have our parents, a good life, and the full adulting deluxe package:
mortgage, mystery expenses, rats in the attic, fire alarms screaming at 3am for no reason, joint noises when we stand up, my breathing that apparently whistles now 😅, you listening to videos on your phone next to me at full volume 😠 and way too many conversations that start with “How much is THAT going to cost?”

Easy? Nop.
Happy? Always.

Still choosing each other. Still laughing. Still doing this.
I love you ❤️ taken in Guanacaste, Costa Rica by @cla4377

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8 months ago

Feliz Navidad/ Merry Christmas. May you not be bothered by the expectations of the holiday spirit!
✨ ❤️ 🎅 #christmas2025✨️❣️🎄 by @cla4377

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9 months ago

Gracias a la vida ❤️ thanksgiving con papi y mami and my in laws. Life is wonderful indeed. Boys and Rick doing fabulous too!! #diadegracia2025 love multiplies!! ❤️🍁❤️ Thanksgiving is the best adopted holiday! by @cla4377

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10 months ago

Thankful for the best of friends who bring the love, the laughs, and the extra dessert, extra special with my parents in town. @triciad, @shannonwilkinson1, @thefreshestmom, @krishniarra @rafaelvelasco454 @mariarosavdecastro 🤭🫶 Happy Friendsgiving ❤️ by @cla4377

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10 months ago

What I feel for you is EVERYTHING. @julian_alter Happy seventeenth birthday. 🩵❤️💗💚🩷❤️🧡💛🖤🩶🤍🤎❤️‍🩹💔💞💝💟 I love you more than everything ✨ May you live as big as the love I have for you!#cumpleañosfeliz by @cla4377

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a year ago