My mom gave me a great gifts, a work ethic that is steadfast, a big heart for anyone who needs it and a wicked sense of humor. Guess what these gifts are not good for, raising a beautiful family of perfectly imperfect humans. Fortunately that is where Doreen comes in … I have finally learned to accept that my kids are going to take longer to figure out how to be adults and be able to care for themselves, and that may never happen 100% for all of them. Its hard to think about, but its going to be okay. It truly is one day at a time. No empty nest for this old bird anytime soon!

The 2023 re-cap …
Doreen has spent the year embracing her career as a therapist, working with a lot of children in the LGBTQ+ community, really embracing the Trans & non-binary little ones. When she is not working with clients she continues her practice of raising our three children and trying to help me understand why some good old fashion tough love isn’t going to work (insert heavy midwestern sigh). She has also made some bold choices to take care of her physical well being getting a rotator cuff surgery in September followed by a December spinal fusion surgery on the disks between L3, L4, L5 & L6. Yep, you guessed it, one sexy neck brace to ring in the new year. This has put a damper on competitive tennis or pole dancing classes for a bit, but the good news … she’s almost an inch taller.

Olivia spent 19 figuring out what 20 might look like by attending a work training program in Newark & loads of conversations with Doreen. She spent a lot of time with her boyfriend, Brandon, in the glowing rectangle attached to her palm & in person when he is not in school. He is a nice young man and they are two pees in a pod. 20 is going to see Olivia dipping her toe into college classes at Essex Community College in Newark. The plan, for now, is an associates degree in Criminal Justice and then venturing into one of the areas involving Forensic Science. I now know that does not just mean dead bodies …

Cooper made it out of High School, and his pursuits of doing nothing but “working trains” aka riding trains and taking really great pictures of trains have remained steadfast. Oh and money, he spends lots of money. All kidding aside, Cooper is starting to grasp next steps. He has lost a lot of weight in an attempt to be “more healthy” and he starts a “post high school program” in January that will help give him job skills and a resume. He is just starting to understand that pressing play on a career is not really a thing. It’s been hard watching this process as many of his neurotypical friends are in college and his crew that have special needs are older, have jobs and drive.

Ruby continues her quest to change the educational system, at least for her. She struggles with the in person high school system and would like nothing better than to magically finish high school from her bedroom and only go out for social reasons. That and she would like a bigger house with her own bathroom … I am comfortable saying neither will happen in 2024, 25, 26 … Thank god for her sense of humor or we may never speak. Can you say teenager vs mother strife. She is wanting to get an after school job, which would be perfect, but so far no takers on her applications. She’ll find it, I’m sure.

Me, well I keep putting that “work ethic” to the test. I am happily employed at Back To The Future on Broadway. Its a really fun show, with a nice & talented cast, a wonderful crew, a great group of fellow managers and a bunch of talented musicians. Really a home run in my career. Not only that but I still get to travel with Mandy Patinkin & his gang on his Being Alive tour, which has been a super experience. Outside of my work I have really taken a liking to pottery and continue to love writing … can you say solo pursuits. I guess the Ruby apple didn’t fall far from the tree.

You can always find Doreen through Social Media but I remain inactive on any platforms, but can always be reached via text, letter, e-mail or a good old phone call.