The Truths, the Tears, and the Tiny Wins: Day One
Good evening from the Midwest! I wanted to start this blog/journal with a bit of backstory about my family and me. I was a single mom for 13 years until my amazing best friend of 25 years and I finally took the leap—we’re now engaged to be married. Life has been life‑ing, especially lately, and there was a lot of turbulence along the way. But today, I have a happy family. I have a man who treats me like a queen every single day—finally, ha! My kids are seeing their mom respected, loved, and treated the way every human deserves. It truly is worth the wait. Happiness comes and goes, karma does its thing, and you can grow into who you’ve always aspired to be.
First, a little about me: I have ADHD, severe anxiety, depression, and CPTSD from a very rough and emotionally, mentally, and physically traumatic childhood. I don’t speak with most of my family because of these circumstances. I was basically a parent at a very young age—my mom worked two jobs, and my stepdad was a truck driver who was home mostly on weekends—so I made meals for my sister and me and made sure homework and chores were done before Mom got home. And yes, it was the ’90s, so I definitely got in trouble for spending hours on the landline with my besties instead of finishing my to‑do list, lol.
My dad struggled with addiction and often wasn’t present. So, the moral of this part is: life can be really hard sometimes. But I truly believe, deep down, that everything happens for a reason. With therapy and a lot of self‑work, I’ve grown into someone kind, empathetic, funny, sarcastic, honest, blunt, and loyal. I’ve learned so much from my children and from being a single parent. I was the only one there for them for a long time. Learning to let people help—after years of doing it all myself—has been its own kind of courage.
My beautiful daughter, Emma, is 14 and has the kindest heart. She has ADHD and is autistic. When she was 2, she experienced seven strokes and many seizures connected to a rare genetic blood disorder (the MTHFR mutation), which affects about 1 in 200,000 people in the U.S. She has some short‑term memory challenges and residual effects from the brain damage, but she’s thriving in high school and doing wonderfully most days. She amazes me and melts my heart every day.
My son, Brock, is 9, brilliant, and endlessly curious. He has ADHD and a more significant autism profile, and he underwent major cranial surgery at 4 months old. After years of being nonverbal, he now surprises us—and everyone he meets—every single day. He blows my mind, daily.
My fiancé, Zac, and I met at Kids Klub when I was about seven. We’ve been best friends for over 25 years and stayed in touch the whole time. He finally asked me to dinner, and the rest is history. We’re beyond blessed and so grateful for how far life has taken us and for getting through so many hardships with little outside support. We believe there’s a higher spirit—whatever that means to you—and that life will show you how far you can and will go. We just keep swimming.
Love you!