This was a really fun interview with Buzz TV host Sherrie Clark on her show “Ignite Success”. Thank you for having me on your show, Sherrie!
Select the image to watch and read about our interview!
This was a really fun interview with Buzz TV host Sherrie Clark on her show “Ignite Success”. Thank you for having me on your show, Sherrie!
Select the image to watch and read about our interview!
We call ourselves the “FINAL FOUR” … the last two kids teenaged kids and their parents, and lately the final four have been enjoying the spring weather here in Northeast Florida before the HOT arrives, and we know it will!
We didn’t go out of town for the kids’ spring break from school, but enjoyed hiking our local Jacksonville Arboritum, cycling with Ben’s boy scout troop, and attending Sean’s school’s annual spring carnival.
And before we knew it, the celebration of Easter had arrived!
I hope you and your family have been enjoying the spring of 2023. We’ve rounded the final bend of the school year and take the home stretch to summer break!
1– My children don’t want perfect, they just want me.
2– I will fully embrace today, knowing that not everything will go exactly as planned.
3– It’s okay, in fact, it’s necessary, to take care of me, too.
4– It’s okay to ask for help.
5– I will do what I can do. I can’t do it all, and that’s okay.
6– I am the best parent for my children.
7– Remember: control your thoughts. Don’t let your thoughts control you.
Resource: Our friends at Parent Cue (instagram @parentcue)
There comes a time when we realize how fast our children are growing, and at the same time we realize how quickly our parents are aging. We find ourselves transitioning from our dependency on our parents (and you know how much we lean on them long after we’ve moved out and start our own families) to now worrying about them. We start to notice that they are slowing down, that they aren’t as energetic as in years past. They may be starting to lean on us as the roles now have reversed.
It is at this point that we are concerned for both the daily well-being and needs of our growing children AS WELL as our aging parents. We check in with Mom to find out how the last doctor’s appointment went for her more so than we would to let her know how our appointment went.
We are now sandwiched as care-givers for the generations below AND above us. Welcome to the sandwich generation.
Some of you who know our family’s history will recall that my husband Bruce’s Dad Royce Pitre was diagnosed with lung cancer from asbestos exposure (akin to mesothelioma) back in early 2003. In the summer of 2004, Royce passed on. In the late fall of 2012, my Dad, Cliff Circe was diagnosed with bladder cancer (due to decades as a cigarette smoker) and passed in early December 2012.
Where Bruce’s Mom, Sylvia never married again, my mom Virginia (Gigi) remarried in the summer of 2013. We all love Jim, and I lovingly refer to him as my StepDad. In the last 18 months or so, during all of this pandemic psyop, our 3 living parents (all now in their early 80s) have had a really hard time, and we’re very aware of their ages. Although before the pandemic, we all spent time together often as our family, the pandemic dictated that we become and remain careful not to risk virus exposure to our elderly loved ones. But due to increasing health problems, I’ve taken many trips to visit my Mom and Jim, and we’ve visited Bruce’s family in Louisiana as much as possible, much of which visiting was due to the activities related to the wedding of our daughter Kathryn during the summer and fall of 2021.
It was during this family wedding trip in Tucson when my mother-in-law Sylvia fell, badly injured our left shoulder, and then needed a full shoulder replacement before she could return to Houma, Louisiana. After her surgery, her transportation home with family members, and the start of her recovery, I flew to Louisiana to stay with Sylvia. She’s lived alone since her husband’s passing, but many family members live nearby, I knew I could help her rehabilitate due to my clinical training in physical therapy as a manual therapist. I offered my help to assist her while she rested during the important healing process prior to the start of her physical therapy plan of care several weeks away. The other family members who live there in town with Sylvia all work full-time jobs. Initially they created a rotation of care-givers who would stay overnight with her in the early weeks after her surgery, but it was a hard schedule to sustain. Because I can work my graphic design business, write music and coordinate music events straight from my laptop, I had the ability to move in with Sylvia for several weeks knowing that Bruce could handle our home and family in Jacksonville without me for a while. I was able to care for her, cook, clean, grocery shop and drive her to appointments.
Meanwhile back in central Florida, my step Dad’s diabetes and COPD became increasingly severe following a heart attack he suffered shortly after having his gall bladder removed in November of 2020. Eventually, his failing health has put him under hospice home care as needed. My mom’s physical health is ok, but it’s been very taxing on her to care for her declining husband.
After visiting Houma this past early July 2022, I was at my parent’s home in western Orlando, for a weekend when I received a text message from my sister-in-law in Louisiana that they had taken Sylvia to the ER because she had fallen in her home. She had broken her right wrist and needed surgery to place a stabilizing plate. I asked if she wouldn’t mind having me come back once the surgery was done so I could help her as I had last fall, and she welcomed me back. This time I drove to Louisiana and stayed about 10 days so I could cook, clean, drive her to appointments and keep her company. After leaving, the other family members needed to come and help daily to make sure she was doing okay. She was weak and unsteady from pain medication and residual effects of anesthesia, and while I was there, she had a bad reaction to some medication and back to the ER we went. Her sleep patterns were backwards so I didn’t get much sleep while staying there. I returned home to Jacksonville exhausted but ready to pop back into my role as mom caring for my own family’s needs.
So, I’m back at home, but I keep my suitcase nearby in case I need to drive to stay with my Mom in Orlando or drive back to Louisiana. At the same time, I still have a 9th grader, an 8 grader and one in his last year of college. Six of us still are under our roof … just a lot going on!
We’ve had some family discussions and have decided to have Sylvia visited daily by their local Council on Aging organization. They offer free services from meals-on-wheels to help with appointment transportation. We hope that she’ll regain her strength and go back to being as independent as she always has been, but with each passing year, and with each injury set back, it’s becoming harder to recapture her confidence, her stability and self-reliance.
My mom is so grateful for their hospice system there in Orlando. The nurses and aides are wonderful, and help with medication and with Jim’s growing personal needs such as dressing and bathing. They also offer respite time where he stays in a close-by nursing care facility so Mom can have a few days to rest, focus on herself and their home, and to get some errands done.
There are many resources if you know who and where to ask.
Here are a couple of articles that I found that explain the experiences many of us are living right now.
https://www.apa.org/topics/families/sandwich-generation
I’ll keep everyone posted on our family as always. It’s difficult to face the mortality of our parents, but this is life and these times give us opportunities to return the love and care that our parents gave us throughout our lives. I can never thank our parents enough for all of their support, love and help during challenging times for me, especially their help when our 3 different sets of twins were all newborns.
Are any of my readers going through a similar experience? It actually feels like another season of life, this sandwich phase. I’d love your feedback!
So please forgive me for a post that has nothing specifically to do with parenting multiples, but it does have to do with raising kids who grow to understand that their parents’ lives are continuing just as their lives continue to move along, progress, and present new experiences and the realization of goals and dreams.
In March of this year (2022) I learned of a music organization called the Josie Music Association. Now in it’s 8th year, this association has grown by leaps and bounds both in its recognition in the independent music artists community worldwide due to their annual awards program, but also in their credibility and legitimacy in the global professional music industry.
A music PR and promotions representative here in Jacksonville asked if he could submit some of my published/released music the JMA for award consideration. I was honored to be asked and I was excited at the possibility that recognition could be an affirmation of so many years of very hard work, and of dreams that had started in my childhood.
Well, my 2nd album was submitted having met the time deadline for submission, and one of my recently released singles was submitted as well.
On May 5th a live stream announcement event was held for those artists who’d had material submitted. We were invited to log on and listen for the possibility of hearing our names announced as nominees.
Now, from what the association representatives reported, there were 52,422 music and artist submissions from all over the world. I thought, “the odds are certainly not in my favor, but the honor of having material submitted for consideration was a pretty cool experience. I can try again next year!”
But then as the category for “Pop Album of the Year” was announced and the nominees were read… MY NAME WAS ANNOUNCED! I’ve received a nomination for my original album entitled: “Follow Your Dreams”! Needless to say,I was in shock!
When the category for “Pop Single of the Year” was announced, my heart was still pounding as I listened to the list of names being announced. And then I heard that my single entitled; “My Cool Drink of Water” has been nominated!
The concluding announcement had my heart beating even faster: The official JMA Awards Ceremony will be held in Nashville, TN at the Grand Ole Opry House where countless greats have graced the stage over the years, on Sunday evening, October 23rd, 2022.
Well, we’re going! Just Bruce and I. But our kids are ABSOLUTLELY THRILLED about this news! Part of their excitement is that ALL SIX KIDS sang and recorded on one of the nominated album’s songs entitled: “Just Like That”.
I’m honored, humbled and excited beyond words. Bruce and I are so looking forward to driving up to Nashville in October for the awards show, complete with red carpet media entrance! Being nominated alone is amazing and is the ultimate affirmation of the recognition of the quality of our music. I’m so very blessed to work with a team of such incredibly talented co-writers, co-producers and sound engineer.
So, pretty soon, I need to buy a dress!
Check it out! https://www.josiemusicawards.com
Not long after the start of the brand new year, my band had a great gig at a local venue where we normally play outside on a covered patio with a boat marina back drop, however, on January 14th, with temps in the upper 30s, we opted to set up our band equipment inside. We had a great evening with lots of friends who came out to join and support us.
I started to feel sick about 5 days later. I took a home cov test which came back positive so I stayed in my room to hole up as I had done last summer when I had symptoms, but go out to get tested. This time, I felt like I had the flu. Fever, headache, body aches, nausea, diarrhea, congested upper respiratory cough and nasal congestion and fatigue. The flu (aka cov19) lasted about two weeks and the fatigue lasted another two. By late Feb, I was fine again, and so was Bruce. His symptoms were body aches and fatigue (and a minor dry cough). I was glad he hadn’t felt as bad as I did to begin with.
When my stomach symptoms eased up, I was able to start taking some medication that I was confident would help me recover quickly. It was the same medication I was able to secure for Erin when she was sick last summer, but which were DENIED when my son was very ill the year before. I contacted America’s Frontline Doctorsonline who offered telephone appointments and called in prescriptions for HcQ (the forbidden yet tried-and-true successful therapeutic) plus a course of antibiotics to prevent any infections, all for a reasonable fee, and worth every cent. I am a life-long asthmatic, but I never became very sick. I’m so thankful for AFD!
By March 5th, I was performing on all cylinders with my band again, and we all crushed a four-hour gig!
I realize that Bruce and I were blessed not to have terrible cases of cov19. I do know that it’s real, have always taken it seriously, and I’ve lost more than one friend to the illness and also to the injection. I don’t have the answers, but my number one priority is the care and safety of my family. I will protect my children at all costs.
Most importantly, I continue to pray and look up to our Lord knowing that HE has the answers, and that He “is the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE” … John 14:6.
After we were home from our trip to Tuscon for our daughter’s wedding for a couple of weeks, I realized that I needed to take another trip. We’d checked almost daily on Sylvia and with the rest of the Louisiana family to see how things were going with her. She was home, sleeping in a recliner, but wouldn’t be released for any physical therapy until she was 6 weeks post op.
I began to think. Unlike my in-laws in Louisiana who work full time and having been taking turns staying overnight with Sylvia to assist her as needed, I don’t presently work outside of my home. I work many different jobs, but all are flexible and essentially from my laptop and I have children who don’t need me as much as they used to. I’m also trained in manual therapy and I know how to care for post operative shoulder patients. So, after talking with Bruce, we decided that I would go and live with Sylvia for about a month. I could take care of her, oversee her exercises, cook, grocery shop, do laundry and house work. I could also fill her freezer with meals that could last an additional month or more after I leave.
When I arrived to a very appreciative Sylvia, I noticed that the navel orange tree branches on the side yard were reaching the ground heavy with incredible oranges … I absolutely love oranges.
Sylvia slowly healed and we prepared for her to eventually be under the care of physical therapists. In the meantime, I helped her dress, wash and dry her hair, and encouraged her to slowly regain confidence in her left arm and get quite acquainted with her brand new shoulder joint. I took care of my mother-in-law, and it was about time the tables were turned. She had moved in with us after the births of all of our twins so she could help us with all of the needs of our house and help take care of our older children needs so I could focus on myself and my newborns. I knew I could be of much-needed assistance and more support. Feeling needed is a gift in and of itself.
During my weeks in Houma, Louisiana, Sylvia and I talked about everything, laughed about a lot, watched countless movies, enjoyed Thanksgiving at my niece’s home (so strange not being with my own family, but I was with family just the same), and ate way too much ice cream. Slowly, Sylvia began to regain her strength, her stamina and her desire to get back into life. She accepted an invitation to be picked up by a friend so she could go to a sorority meeting that she’s been a member of for decades, and I went along. I was honored to spend time with ladies that she’s spent time with over the years.
We enjoyed dozens of oranges and when the time came for me to return home, I took a few with me. But before I left, she had her first two appointments with her physical therapist. I asked lots of questions and was assured that she was in excellent hands.
I got home and was happy to reunite with my family, just in time to start planning Christmas. Christmas this year would be a quiet one after all of the traveling and excitement of the past fall.
A song that I’d written and recorded between our return from AZ and my trip to LA was finalized, mixed and mastered in our recording studio in Jacksonville while I was out of town. On December 15th, I released “My Cool Drink of Water” a melodic and lyrical expression of my appreciation of God during these challenging and confusing times. It was the official start of the 3rd album Kenny and I will be working on in 2022.
We did indeed have a very blessed Christmas, and prayed very hard for a new year free of the challenges we’d had during the last two.
With our daughter Kathryn’s wedding coming up on Friday evening, October 22nd, we packed up and left for a 3 and 1/2 day road trip from Jacksonville, FL to Tuscon, AZ. We didn’t, however, all ride out together. Based upon Erin’s and Brandon’s work and school schedules, they both flew out and back at various times. So Bruce, Lauren, Sean, Benjamin and I hit the road early on Saturday Oct. 16th.
We had a great time traveling out westward, stopping to explore San Antonio, Carlsbad Caverns, and a glimpse of Mexico over the Rio Grande.
When we arrived in Tuscon on Tuesday afternoon and finished hugs all around, Kathryn and all of her bridesmaids hit the road to Scottsdale for a two day bachelorette party … to replace the planned girls’ trip to New Orleans back in late August that was cancelled due to hurricane Ida. The groom took all his groomsmen up Mt Lemmon just an hour away for a little guy time. We went to our rental property to settle in …it was absolutely perfect and wonderfully spacious! Bruce’s brother and his wife plus my mother-in-law Sylvia arrived to stay with us, as did my brother Scott, our family Catholic priest who would be celebrating our bride and groom’s nuptial mass. Thursday evening was slated for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner, which all went very smoothly until …
… until we arrived back at our rental home and my 82 yr old mother-in-law, while approaching the back door that entered the house from the garage, fell after failing to see the small step a few feet before the door and practically cartwheeled to the floor. I saw this happen from the passenger seat of our car because I’d not gotten out yet having just pulled in. Sylvia is always the first to get out and bolt quickly to whatever destination at which we’ve arrived! I was the first to arrive to her, and I could immediately see and very superficially feel that her left shoulder was completely dislocated. I not only knew from my medical training, but having had three dislocations myself. She expressed severe pain and I could see it clearly in her face. Well, long-story short: after she was transported via ambulance to a nearby hospital, she was not released, but told she would need surgery … full shoulder replacement surgery because she had not only dislocated the humerus from the socket, but had broken her humerus in 4 places and it was beyond repair. Fortunately, she was in the perfect medical center because it sat adjacent to the best orthopedic hospital in southern AZ.
The very next day was our daughter’s wedding, so Bruce’s brother Bert and his wife Vickie were designated Sylvia companions. One of the visiting cousins live streamed the wedding for Sylvia to view from her hospital bed.
The wedding was beautiful, emotional, and at times, hard to believe that it was happening after so planning, cancellations, then finally here. We are so proud of Kathryn and of Jonathan. Jon and Kathryn met in 2014, and have gone through so much together, and now made the commitment and vowed to love each other by celebrating the sacrament of Holy Matrimony.
I wished my own mom and stepdad could have been with us, but the distance was too much with my stepdad’s failing health. But aside from Sylvia’s accident, everything went smoothly and safely.
The evening after the wedding, we had a barbeque at our rental house for all, then it was time to start heading home for a northern route road trip this time. We rode up to Flagstaff and then on to the Grand Canyon, then into Colorado. We dropped Brandon off at the Flagstaff airport, and Erin off at the Denver airport, then the remaining five of us headed through Kansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia and finally back home to Northeast Florida. All in all a very beautiful, memorable trip.
I will admit that arriving back home was FANTASTIC! Our pup Simon really missed us although he was in good hands with Brandon’s girlfriend Kat and Erin’s boyfriend Josh. Poor Simon turns 15 in November this year, and although we know he has slowly failing kidneys, he’s still loving his walks, eating like a horse and loves his family despite his failing eye site and hearing.
Thank you for reading this blog post … it’s a typical proud momma story. We now have one child of our six officially married! We thank God all went fairly flawless and that everyone made it home safely. Sylvia had her surgery and flew home under the care of Bert and Vickie. She’s doing well and healing slowly but surely, thank the Lord.
We got through the school year and we’re enjoying the last of summer break trying to take it easy. No big summer plans since we’re saving our pennies for our big trip in October to Tuscon for Kathryn and Jonathan’s wedding. As it stands now, we’re probably going to drive and enjoy the road trip there and back, and rent a house for the several days that we’re there.
I’ve been working freelance graphic design work, writing music, having gigs and taking the boys up to our neighborhood pool as often as I can pull their gaming devices out of their hands.
Bruce is still working from home having completely taken over the room that used to be my office. Luckily I still have a corner to keep my music equipment. I work on my laptop in various places in the house and on the patio.
Our daughter Lauren (twin sister of the bride-to-be) lives not far away sharing a rental home with two friends. She currently works for an insurance company from home and schedules patients for radiology procedures. She is still writing and enjoys creating music and drawing. I believe she has her sights on joining the computer story gaming industry on a creative capacity. She sells some of her artwork on Etsy!
Our son Brandon is not only full recovered from his long-haul covid experience, but is very focused on wellness and fitness. He started a job with Audi Corporation as a brand specialist last Feb, and is learning the ropes quite well. He currently has three semesters remaining to earn his bachelors degree in business/economics. He is still dating the girl he took to prom his senior year in high school, named Kat. She’s a doll.
Brandon’s twin sister Erin will also begin her last year of college in the fall in the field of criminal justice. She’s interested in the Parks and Forestry field and is hoping for a local internship next year. She currently works as a shift manager at a local escape room.
Sean and Benjamin aren’t in a hurry to begin the next year of middle school. Sean will start seventh and Benjamin, eighth. Each are practically joined to their Switch consoles, but also enjoy hiking, biking, bowling and eating! Benjamin has stuck with Boy Scouts and his goal is to become Eagle one day. His plans since younger childhood to become a chef still hold true. He helps me in the kitchen and often has ideas for meals that we try! Sean, not sure yet, but he loves all things robotics-related and has joined the robotics club at school which he’s looking forward to returning at school.
As for Kathryn: we had a beautiful bridal shower for her! She flew into town and we showered her at an historic resort at the beach. So many wonderful family members and friends attended, including my mom and sister-in-law from Orlando, and my mother-in-law, sister-in-law and nieces from Louisiana, her mother-in-law-to-be from Ft. Lauderdale, and lots of local friends.
Post-shower note
Hurricane Ida was on its way to Louisiana while our Louisiana family was here in Jacksonville for the bridal shower. They left Jacksonville and drove back home in order to help secure their homes and be with the rest of their families. They did not evacuate. The damage was horrible … no electricity, no water. No injuries, thankfully
The following week, Bruce and I met Bruce’s brother Brian half way between Houma, LA and Jacksonville so we could pick up my mother-in-law. We took Sylvia back home to Jacksonville so she could live a couple of weeks with us until the power and water was restored in Louisiana. At 82 years, no A/C and no running water was just too hard on her.
If you read my lengthy blog articles when my son Brandon became so sick with Cov19 last summer (June 2020), you may recall my thought process when it came to the treatments we sought and were denied. I am not a medical doctor, but I have enough medical training in anatomy, physiology and pathology to hold a medical practitioner license in the state of Florida as a clinical manual/medical massage therapist in the field of physical therapy. On top of that, I believe my 26 years as a mother provides me with even more experience and credentials as far as a caregiver ensuring the well-being of my family.
Just like the rest of the world in early 2020, this pandemic took me by surprise and threw everything off kilter for our family. News coverage and the government spokespeople voices had us shaken, concerned and aware that this was serious. I didn’t believe the rumors it was all a hoax of some sort, because I knew people were getting sick. I saw that when doctors all over the world came forward explaining the success of protocols they were following, my ears perked up, and I sighed with relief because although we couldn’t possibly see a vaccine for years (because it does take YEARS for development, trials and approvals), we would have safe, proven, successful therapeutic medications to help us through this crisis.
But.
But then those tried-and-true medications were suddenly discredited despite dozens of doctors assuring their safety and success. When my son was so ill and I was laser focused on his recovery, the medications that I’d heard were safe, used for decades and inexpensive were suddenly ABSOLUTELY unavailable. I begged our family doctor to please let us try, and the doctors office we’d trusted for over two decades, flatly refused.
Hmmm.
And then I realized … the innoculation is the goal.
I researched. I learned. I researched and cross-referenced. I read and read. My eyes were opened. I put puzzle pieces together. I didn’t go to one resource, I went to hundreds. I asked questions. And then I watched as people that I agreed with become censored and become cancelled. Punished, discredited … all by the familiar mainstream media and by social media.
Oh my God. This was really happening. Division, hate, threats, fear-mongering.
When the time came for my age group to have the “blessed opportunity” of the miracle vac_cine, a FASTER THAN EVER in WORLD HISTORY immune drug I said ….
No.
I could go on and on, but I will not. I choose to respect others for their thoughts, their decisions and their actions. I only ask the same in return. Again, if you read my earlier posts, you would know that I passionately believe that making us wear masks over our noses and mouths not only did NOT protect us from others and vice versa, but actually would cause us harm by reducing our oxygen intake, increasing our carbon dioxide and increasing our likelihood of contracting a bacterial pulmonary infection such as pleurisy and pneumonia.
But back to the syringes … I’ve never been an anti va_ccin_er. All of my children have received their full schedule of shots over the years, but this was different. When those opposing it for various reasons (health, religion, distrust) became shamed, I saw that coming. When they became vilified, I saw that coming, too. When people started to lose their JOBS, I was floored. And at the same time, I was further awakened. This whole thing was always about a shot. Always about weakening, dividing and controlling us.
I could talk about the reported cases of injuries and death from this injection, but you can do your own research. It’s hundreds of thousands worldwide. People that I know and love have gotten the shots and have gotten ill from it. I will not have my children injected. I have left our pediatric office of 23 years due to its persistent insistence on having my children injected. I could talk about the evil forces that are behind all of this, but I won’t. Just believe when I say that this isn’t about keeping anyone healthy. It’s quite the opposite, sadly.
I’ve learned of doctors and nurses having their medical licenses threatened for not promoting and performing these injections. I learned that their jobs were also threatened had they promoted or prescribed the forbidden therapeutic medication. When I learned that the same source from which the virus itself originated was the same source who created the syringe contents, it all made sense. When I learned that the syringe contents were created and patented before the virus was created (and it was not naturally created), it made even more sense.
As time has gone by, I’ve become more and more firm in my beliefs and relieved that we did not receive this injection. Sadly, one adult child has, and her health has suffered for it. My goal with her is to cleanse her body of the toxins and other harmful components of the two injections.
I respect those who have followed their hearts and their need to protect their families by getting the injection. If you want to wear masks, go ahead and do so. But no one should force anyone to do so.
At this point, all of us in my family have gotten the virus over the past year. We’ve all been sick, we’ve all recovered and we’ve all built a robust immunity. We don’t want the shot, and we all should have the right to make the decision as to getting it or not. At this point, now that we’re being coerced and FORCED under threat of job termination, my husband is wondering if he will possibly lose his job as a healthcare facilities architect. Only time and events to come will tell.
So, as with everything that comes along in my life, I turn to God for strength, for wisdom, for discernment of the truth, and for guidance in making decisions. I know we will all get through this somehow. I keep my eyes up, my heart open and my faith rooted firmly in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I will not put my trust in any human leader, only my God.