Starting Over...Again

Where do I begin? Certainly not from the beginning of our story, that would read more like a script for a made-for-tv movie. The kind you would watch on a rainy afternoon only because there was nothing better on tv. Whether the ending would be that of a woman who battled the odds and came out ahead or died at the hands of a crazy ex-husband it yet to be determined.

I suppose I'll start with my choice of a title. Notice it doesn't say "A Fresh Start" or "A New Beginning". That's because I already had one of those, or so I thought. When my divorce was final 2 years, 2 months and 10 days ago, I thought the one belssing I would get from the whole mess would be a chance to start over. I was wrong. Getting a fresh start would imply that your slate is wiped clean, that the past is behind you. Divorcing with children is more like a change in the circumstances in which you deal with a whole new set of problems with the same old people. And, just as we began to adjust to our new lives, The Ex changed the ballgame again. I am slowly learning to handle the changes that my ex throws our my way and have accepted that it's not going to stop. Now it's time to help our boys (12 & 10) do the same. Leaving me and breaking apart our family was one thing. Making the choice to move out of state and leave his children was another. Now that we are done in court and have a schedule to visitation, it's time that we all start over--again--and heal the damage caused by the past 9 months.

This blog is one way for me to get us going again. It is about doing something for me. And, hopefully, it turns in to a place where I can get advice from others who know what it's like to help kids cope, raise pre-teens, handle this whole "single mom" thing, and balance serious relationships and family. Because I'm pretty sure there are others out there whose lives would make a great rainy-day movie.