Husband Free

The court date is set for tomorrow morning. I kind of feel like it is already over especially since Steve has pretty much been missing since we signed the papers on Thursday. He comes in late at night and disappears by mid-morning. He doesn't call or answer his phone all day. Then, he apoligizes for it every morning before he goes off & does it again. It is not like I am even getting mad at him for it, but I hate it.

I am so sad that the kids are missing out on their last few days with him. Plus, there is a LOT of things we still need to do like moving and wrapping things up on the house. I have had to turn to friends for help. As the time for the big move keeps clicking down, I am getting very nervous about how all this can happen without him & his truck. So many questions and what ifs. I guess I'll know by Friday.

Death of Crocs

Someone mentioned to me the other day that Crocs are going out of business. My first thought was that my mom is going to be heartbroken. She started her love affair with crocs long before most people even knew they existed (certainly before I did). She had been suffering from foot pain (I can't remember the reason), but had to find a solution because she is on her feet all day as a nurse. She bought her first pair of crocs and never looked back. She told me all about this wonderful miracle and I thought they sounded pretty interesting until I saw a pair. ...UGLY!

Time marched on and she continued to buy crocs in different colors. Then when she came to visit me in Miami at the beginning of my pregnancy with Jordan, she talked me into purchasing a pair for myself. Let me defend myself! I was extremely worn down. Pregnancy zaps ALL the energy out of me. The thought of comfort far exceeded the non-fashion statement. Besides, I was living on South Beach and loved to do lots of walking. They seemed to be the answer. I even bought a pair for Lexi, because even ugly things are cute on little kids. Besides, I thought it might distract others from looking at mine.

I wore them quite a few times during the pregnancy and now only occasionally when I just don't care what I have on. My mom, however, is probably more in love than ever. She graduated to the Mary Jane’s style and then to the pump style. I don't know what she is going to do, but I imagine that stocking up is the best solution. Once her last pair wears out (yes she wears them that much), she will cry a little tear.

Parenting Class/Exception to the Rule

The divorce is moving along. We had to attend a Children Cope class on Saturday. Neither of us really wanted to go. I felt like it was one more thing we had to deal with in the little amount of time I have left. However, we both decided to make the most of it. This is a semi-mandatory class that is aimed at getting divorced/separated parents to understand the importance of co-parenting. Mainly, it is about putting aside your differences and communicating for the benefit of the children.

There were about 40 – 50 people in the class and only two couples. Most of the (outspoken) people had horror stories about fighting with their ex. They had also been separated for a while (1 – 2 years). Sitting in the class, I started to REALLY appreciate that we are pretty much the exception to the rule when it comes to divorce.

1. We don’t hate each other.
2. Even in this situation, we probably fight less than average married couples.
3. We are still living together.
4. We actually enjoy spending time together.
5. It is easy for us to discuss our kids.
6. People are still saying we look so HAPPY together.

I don’t want to make our divorce sound like a piece of cake. It is very difficult emotionally. Right now, we are just at a stage when I am in the acceptance phase of grieving and Steve is in the denial phase. I am horrible at being angry and quite good at forgiving and moving on. I am worried that Steve will probably move into the angry and depression phase once we are gone. The thought makes me sad for him. Then again, it is all part of dealing with it.

Today, we met with the lawyer to sign the final decree papers. They are going to call me with the court date soon. Next week will be a BIG week. Sometime between Monday & Wednesday, I have to go to court for the hearing. My sister is flying in on Tuesday. Steve’s birthday is on Thursday. Friday, I hand the keys to our place over to the tenant & head out to California. It is enough to drive anyone CRAZY! You'll have to excuse my scattered thoughts, those are the only kind I have lately.

Brighter Side of Life

Life is still going quickly in the same direction. Since there are no updates and nothing new to complain about, I decided to post a picture of the kids. They sure make life seem a lot brighter.

Lightning Speed

Our place was listed on the MLS on Thursday night, so things were completely crazy this weekend. It turns out that keeping it spotless isn't nearly as bad as having to evacuate every time someone wants to see it, especially around nap time. We had a showing on Saturday, two on Sunday, and three on Monday. Apparently 5 out of the 6 wanted it, which means that we should have asked for a little more. Perhaps another $50 a month. Oh well. We took the first good applicant. The realtor is running a credit & criminal background check. We should have a report by tonight. The future tenant wants to move in on August 1st, so we have approximately 3 weeks.

While this is very good news, it has also added a whole new level of stress. This makes it all very real. We have to start packing. Plus, Steve still doesn't have a job and doesn't know what he is going to do at the end of this month. That makes us both very nervous, but him more so of course. I am just glad we'll have someone giving us enough money to make our mortgage payments.

The job hunt is going fairly well considering the poor economy. Steve is great at networking and talking to anyone and everyone. He also has an amazing gift of being able to talk to strangers. I am hitting the e-mail and internet side hard. He has two companies that are interested in hiring him. Unfortunately, one of them THINKS they'll have a project for him the middle of August. The other one wants him if they get a project. Basically, the search continues...