Michael Bezjian/Getty ImagesNew Zealand-born and Australian Dancing With the Stars professional dancer, Peta Murgatroyd, just reached a new milestone in her life.
The 33-year-old dancer shared on Instagram that "yesterday was an emotional day" for her.
"After countless US Visas starting from 2006 and the last years with a Green Card, I am officially a United States Citizen," she wrote.
"I'm getting misty-eyed writing this because I haven't reflected on my life up until this point. I went deep down memory lane and I cried at the ceremony and then really cried in private," she wrote in her post, accompanied by a series of photos from her naturalization ceremony.
"Memories surfaced that I had forgotten about, wishes that I had made as a child in my backyard with a full moon and promises that I made to myself and my family. Everything came full circle and here I was sitting in an auditorium with 1000 people, with my Ukranian/American husband and my American son...a girl from little Perth with a big dream of being 'someone.' I dreamt of performing on the worlds biggest stage, I dreamt of people knowing my name, I dreamt of being the best at my craft, I dreamt of making a difference and most of all I dreamt of making my family proud and proving that I could do it at the highest level."
Murgatroyd was born in Auckland, New Zealand but moved to Australia when she was less than two-years-old. In Australia, she was raised in Perth and began her dancing career at 4-years-old.
The dancer has also performed in the international tour of dance production Burn the Floor, including its Broadway run.
Murgatroyd added that she loves the life that she's created but that it wouldn't have been possible without the "United States giving me the chance to succeed."
This country, she wrote, helped her make her wildest dreams come true and "its where I found the love of my life, and it's where my first child was born. This will always be home now."
The two-time winner of DWTS is mother to two-year-old Shai Aleksander Chmerkovskiy, who she shares with husband and choreographer Maksim Chmerkovskiy.
Murgatroyd also shared that she'll always be proud of being an immigrant.
"I looked around at the auditorium full of immigrants....their eyes were longingly filled with hope, faith and belief. I am an immigrant too. I will always be one, and I'm proud of it."
"Thank you USA for accepting me, I will continue to work and treat this country with the upmost respect," she wrote. "I will honor the flag and The Pledge of Allegiance. I don't take this lightly. God Bless America."