Sydney Boucher, 22, lives with her mother Dawn Wright, 62, and her seven-year-old niece Addilyn Spence. Both Sydney and Dawn are listed as Addilyn's primary caregivers after Lindley Wright, Addilyn's mother and Sydney's older sister, lost custody of Addilyn in 2018 due to struggles with addiction. Sydney often juggles with figuring out which role she plays in Addilyn's life. She notes that Dawn, after already raising five children, wants to be a fun-loving grandma, which ends up leaving a lot of the disciplining to her.
Sydney grew up with a lot of Dawn's traditional ideas of femininity being instilled in her such as the idea that as a woman you should grow up, find a husband, and have children. Now, being forced to take on a motherly role at such a young age, she is deconstructing a lot of the traditional notions of what being a woman really means. Sydney struggles with caring for Addilyn while simultaneously being a 22-year-old adult who is still figuring out her own path. She hopes to pass down more progressive ideas of femininity and gender roles to Addilyn that took her so long to come to terms with.
Sydney Boucher, 22, flinches as her niece Addilyn Spence throws snowballs at her outside their home in North Adams, Mass., on Dec. 21, 2020. Sydney lives with her mother Dawn Wright, Addilyn’s grandmother, and both are listed as primary caregivers for Addilyn.
Sydney relaxes on her bed in her home on Oct. 8, 2022. In 2020, Sydney decided to leave college. "During covid I ended up dropping out," says Sydney. "Because it was just too much...and now I'm back here again and I’m reminded more than ever how it feels to feel stuck in this small town."
A photo of Addilyn and her parents, Lindley Wright, who is Sydney’s sister, left, and Harry Spence, right, is shown hung up on the fridge. On Oct. 23, 2021, her father Harry Spence passed away from an overdose.
Addilyn plays in the grass and takes photos with her digital camera in the front yard of her home on Oct. 8, 2022. Addilyn has lived with Dawn and Sydney for the majority of her life as both her parents struggle with substance abuse.
Sydney hugs Addilyn on the night of Dec. 21, 2021. Sydney is glad she gets to be a constant in Addilyn's life but often wonders what it would've been like if she didn't drop out. "This year is like...around the time I would've been graduating. So I definitely have like an...internal guilt."
Sydney takes selfies in her room on Jan. 28, 2023.
Sydney and Addilyn play dress up and take photos of each other on Oct. 8, 2022. "Me and Addilyn, it's kind of a weird relationship," says Sydney. "It’s like I'm a mixture between, like, her cool aunt, her big sister, and her mom and it’s really hard to balance. It’s like a balancing act trying to figure out when each of those roles should come out."
Addilyn holds up a drawing her and Sydney worked on together on Oct. 8, 2022.
Addilyn, Sydney and her boyfriend Gabe hangout in Sydney’s room on the afternoon of Dec. 23, 2022.
Personal items and Sydney's cat Marmalade lay on her bed on Oct. 8, 2022.
A view down the street of Sydney's home on Franklin St., during a snow storm on March 14, 2023.
Addilyn and her mother Lindley play outside during an at-home visit on March 14, 2023. Since the death of Addilyn's father, Harry, in 2021, Lindley's visits have become less frequent.
Addilyn cleans off the hood of her mom's car during an at-home visit on the evening of March 14, 2023.
Lindley, left, helps Addilyn open her Christmas presents on the morning of Dec. 25, 2021.
Sydney smokes inside her garage on the evening of Dec. 22, 2022. "There's a lot of different feelings with it." says Sydney, regarding her sister Lindley losing custody of Addilyn. "Obviously sometimes there's anger, but mostly it's just disappointment and sadness that my sister isn't doing good. And for Addilyn, that she doesn't have her mom you know?"
Addilyn sits in the garage of her home on Dec. 29, 2022. "Sometimes I think of what if- what if I could live with my mom?" says Addilyn. "That would be better for me, and I would be so excited if I just could live with my mother.”
Sydney and Addilyn make snow angels outside their home on March 12, 2023. "I love Addilyn so much obviously but it's hard because...Over the past five, six, seven, years I've been trying to, like, deconstruct different social things that have been put on me," says Sydney. "So one of those things being, like, do I actually want to be a mother? And Addilyn has definitely contributed to they way I think about that."
Sydney and her boyfriend Gabe dance on top of a hill while taking Addilyn sledding on Dec. 29, 2022.
Addilyn, Sydney, Lindley, and Lindley's boyfriend help clear off the driveway during a snowstorm on the evening of March 14, 2023.
An apology note from Addilyn to Sydney sits on Sydney's bureau in her room on Jan. 28, 2023.
Addilyn mocks Sydney as she fixes her hair and takes selfies on her phone before going sledding on Dec. 29, 2022.
Addilyn takes a photo of an arts and crafts project that she and Harry made before he passed. "When other people say 'Daddy,' it makes me sad," says Addilyn. "Because it reminds me of my dad is gone."
Sydney teaches Addilyn how to take care of her hair on Oct. 8, 2022. “I feel like she really enjoys fashion a lot because she knows I enjoy fashion," says Sydney.
Sydney dances in the kitchen of her boyfriend's apartment on Meadow St., on March 17, 2023. "Me and my mom both had the teachings that the perfect life for a woman is to grow up, fall in love, get married," says Sydney. "And I wanna show her that life has many different paths and that's not the only way to be a successful woman. There’s so much more."
Sydney and Gabe embrace on Feb. 24. 2023.
Sydney and Gabe kiss on Dec. 29, 2022.
Addilyn plays with her toys and watches youtube in her room on Oct. 7, 2022.
Sydney smokes outside on her porch before going to work on the morning of Feb. 23, 2023.
Sydney and Addilyn sit on the kitchen floor as they sing songs and practice hand shakes on the evening of Feb. 24, 2023.
Addilyn lays on Sydney's bed on the afternoon of Oct. 8, 2022.
Sydney and Addilyn laugh together in Sydney's room on March 14, 2023. "The things that really assure me that I am on the right path for myself is that I'm happy,” says Sydney. “I’m still watching Addilyn sprout up to be this little young lady. So that's how I know I'm doing the right thing."