Claudia Finnerty

Grew Up… in Staten Island, New York. Her parents, Tony and Maureen, were wealthy Italian-Americans. She met her husband, Sean, when she was in high school. She became pregnant with her first daughter, Lily, while she was still in high school and subsequently married Sean. Despite her lack of a real young adulthood, Claudia is happy (most of the time) with the way her life turned out. 

Living… in Staten Island with her husband, Sean; her daughter, Lily; and her sons, Jimmy and Henry. One could say she also lives with her insane brother-in-law, Eddie, and her overbearing father-in-law, Walt, since they seem to always be there occupying her space, breathing her air, and eating her food. Despite the fact that she’s Italian and Sean is Irish, the family relocated to an Irish-Catholic neighborhood where the kids attend a Catholic school.

Profession… restaurant hostess, for now. Though she really does love her family and her life, Claudia always dreamed about going back to school to get her degree. A very smart woman, she knows that she’s meant to be more than a restaurant employee.

Interests… disciplining her children, fighting with Sean, fighting with Eddie, fighting with Walt, fighting with her kids, getting what she wants, being appreciated.

Relationship Status… married to Sean. Though their relationship had rocky beginnings and isn’t quite yet steady all the time, the pair love each other. Due to the fact that both of them are temperamental and stubborn, they often butt heads over childcare, household duties, and money. At the end of the day, though, they know that family is the most important thing. 

Challenge… managing being a working mom of three children of very different ages. Due to the fact that Claudia is essentially the sole disciplinarian of a 14-year-old, an 11-year-old, and an 8-year-old, she oftentimes feels overworked and underappreciated. Sean always seems to be either working or too tired to actually take care of the kids, so once Claudia gets home from a shift at the restaurant, she’s got a manic teenage girl and two boys who love to torture her on her hands. In some cases, maybe sanity is more important than family after all. Sometimes she just has to shout, “It’s now time for you to shut up!” 

Personality… stubborn, level-headed, temperamental, and tired. When it comes to her and Sean, she’s very temperamental and stubborn. The pair fight all the time. But if Sean is punishing the kids too severely (which he only does successfully once in a blue moon), she’s much more levelheaded. Overall, she’s usually too tired to care, but she somehow manages to always be as fair as she can to everyone in the family.