It's OFFICIAL - We Have 50/50 Custody

Been a long time coming. Much heartache, chaos, loads of money spent, endless hours on the road... and it comes down to this. Some say when one door closes, another opens. A convergence of circumstances, too unbelievable to imagine, happened at all the right times to put me back in a position to obtain more custody of my boys.

Bringing you up to speed in double-time:

- Court last October, didn't get full custody, but managed to get more custody than I had at that point. Order had a special provision that if I had managed to obtain employment and establish a residence in the state where Psychex resides, I automatically get 50/50 custody after a short hearing.

- A few weeks later, my company announces they are closing and moving across the country. I'm not going.

- I lean on many many contacts in the aftermath of the official closing date and start stumping for work while beginning to arrange to work for myself in a consulting capacity. One of my contacts is a higher-up in an insurance company in which the company I left to come here is a member. He sends my resume' out to 400 HR Directors across the nation under his umbrella, one of them is my former company.

- On the day my resume' crosses the desk of former company's CEO, my replacement at that company turned in his resignation - total bizarre coincidence - and my phone rings a few hours later.

- I work for them in a consulting capacity for 3-months while the hunt is on for the replacement of the guy who replaced me. I float them a proposal that would be a stretch for them, but not out of the realm of "doability." I get turned down due to certain specific business circumstances. This was April.

- Fast-forward to July, they call me again. Those circumstances now resolved and, they haven't found a replacement they like, they ask me to resubmit my proposal for "serious consideration."

- 2 months of negotiations, we come to an agreement on everything... the biggest of which is a telecommuting arrangement which allows me to re-establish a residence in PA (we'll have residence in both states) - meeting the requirements of the court order... I file my petition.

- Psychex, knowing she has no chance to contest the main issue, agrees to nearly all of the petition with 2 small exceptions which will have to be decided in court. All other provisions she agreed-to in writing automatically take effect immediately (details from the prior order).

This is great news, something we've worked long and hard to achieve. It helps that her ever-increasing antics have helped sway the court to rule in my favor lots over the course of the last year and I believe is a big reason why I was given that clause to begin with.

Now, this doesn't mean our ongoing problems with her are over, far from it. The circumstances likely means a whole new set of hassles both known and not yet known, but the bottom line is this... my boys' exposure to her and her scaryassed family has just been reduced even further.

All I can say is WOW... thought you might like to know (those of you who have been following the saga).

~Mister-M