Deadbeat Dad Free to any Home

Rachel’s dad drives me batty!!  Rachel is such an amazing child and I don’t see why he can’t see that.  On top of that she has special needs that he needs to be aware of but he doesn’t.  He has to give her consistency and stability but he doesn’t.  He constantly bails on his visitation weekends.  How hard is it to be a parent every other weekend?  When he does get her he comes up with an excuse to bring her home early.  She was with her dad less than 24 hours this time. 

When he does this to her she is a wreck.  She clings to Kevin and kind of drives him nutty because she needs to know that at least one dad wants her around.  Kevin is so good and patient with her too.  He can see what she is going through.  On visitation/respite weekends the big kids are usually gone to a friends house.  So when Rachel gets home early Lauren and Austin are usually gone too.  Rachel hates being the only child in the house.  She has to be in the same room as Kevin or I or she feels “lonely.”  She even took a shower in our bathroom because hers was too far away.  In a house with 1100 sq feet there isn’t anything that is too far away

Kevin and I are so frustrated at her being treated this way that we just want to cut her dad off.  He refuses to pay child support as well.  Though I know that child support and visitation are two separate issues.  I finally had to have his wages garnished for him to pay.  So he quit working and is now living off what his wife makes at a convenience store.  He’s a real man…let me tell ya!  In the 4 years since we split he has lived in twice as many houses and probably had three times as many jobs.   

Ahhhh. Kevin just told Rachel that since she is the only kiddo here she can sleep with us.  I know deep inside she was hoping that she could but she was too afraid to ask.  Her face totally lit up when she learned that she didn’t have to be alone in her room.  My heart aches to see her like this.    

Guess what I can do…

I can now climb stairs at work!  I’ve been slowly testing it since Tuesday.  I work on the third floor and frequently need to go to another floor to get something.  I have a guaranteed daily 4-flight climb, because the mail room is in the basement.   I’m not bounding up or down them like I was before the hysterectomy but I can take it easy and not kill myself.  It feels so good to feel the burn in my lower body again as well as feel my heart getting a good workout.  It’s amazing!

AND…

I can deep clean again too.  The wee ones are off this weekend for their respite weekend.  Well, their room needed a good airing out and scrubbing.  So after work last night I stripped their beds, cleaned out from under their beds and did some major vaccuuming.  I never once hurt.  And their floor looks so good.  I’m still working on washing their bedding. Rachel was sleeping with 3 winter blankets!! Silly kid.

Cyst, or no cyst, the hysterectomy did help a bunch and I’m very slowly getting my life back    .  Next up…shedding these 12 lbs of blubber.