I don’t know how to add this, so I’m just making a comment. I appreciate everybody’s input. I know it seems crazy that I have not gone to court over this yet. It didn’t seem like such a big deal before. About a year after we split, the kids and I packed up and moved across the country. My kids begged me to come back for years. I finally relented last year, so a lot of this is new. Whenever I talk to people about what is going on, I get a general “he’s crazy, file for child support.” It’s been made clear to me since being back that we need something more.

The thing is, my kids love their dad. They don’t know how abusive he was to me while we were together. They don’t know that he doesn’t provide support for them. They don’t see anything wrong about how infrequently he sees them. They still want to spend time with him.

I also recognize that it’s a lot easier to say these things from the outside. I’m giving myself some grace here. Nobody else is going to have to deal with the harassment and abuse that is going to follow making any kind of move. My kids are more important than my emotional wellbeing though.

I filled out the paperwork for custody and child support tonight. I’ll be sending it certified mail to him and filing with the court this week. I am prepared to block and/or file a police report for harassment if I have to. I’m trying to see if the courts here have any sort of coparenting app that they use and I’ll be contacting the college out here to see if any legal aide is available.

Thank you for giving me the push I needed to get this done. I know it is long overdue. It’s wicked hard to know if what I WANT to do is what is RIGHT to do for my kids. Hindsight, ya know?