As many of you know, Tim and I have been on a rough journey for a very long time. For those of you that don't know, stay tuned....
When Tim and I met he had just been through a divorce. He had been married for 13 years and had 3 children. I knew that I was about to start dating a man that had 3 children and an ex-wife, but I had NO idea that my life was headed down the road that I am on now. With that being said, I would never take it back. Even with all the bumps, holes we didn't see, road blocks, and breaks in the road that God wasn't ready to reveal yet, I would still go down the same road.
Tim and I started seeing problems with the way the kids were being cared for in late 2009. This proceeded to get worse as we dated in 2010. However we were in a really tight spot financially and geographically. See we weren't married yet {we had just gotten engaged in March} and Tim was still living in south AR. We felt so powerless. Little did we know that feeling would only get worse. And so would the care for the kids.
Tim and I got married in October 2010. Tim moved to Memphis the week before our wedding. That meant that the already sporadic visitation was about to get worse. The new meeting spot was Little Rock, AR. That drive was tough on everyone, especially the kids. We understood that. However, we also knew that it was very important that they spend as much time with us as possible. We started to notice that things were getting more and more strange at their house. When the kids would come for visitation one of them would start to tell a story about something and the other would say "No, we aren't supposed to talk about that here!" Things were becoming very secretive and being kept from us.
In 2011, Nikole {middle child, 12 yrs old now}, was taken out of school by her mother in order to do Virtual Academy. As a result she did not pass the 5th grade. At this point we still didn't have enough information and enough ammo {for lack of a better word} to move forward and get a lawyer. Surprising, I know! But it's true.
Again, in 2012-2013, Nikole was pulled out of school by her mother and supposed to be in "homeschool". Again, she did not pass the 5th grade. Thankfully at this point we had already filed for sole custody. This could only work in our favor.
In July 2012 the kids mother had an accident. We are still unclear as to the cause, but somehow she fell and hit her head on concrete. She was taken to a hospital outside of the county in which she resides. Tim and I did not find out about this until the day after it happened. We had to call her husband to find out where the kids were staying while she was in the hospital.
Long story short, the next day we picked up the kids to come stay with us until their mother was well. Unfortunately that ended up being a few weeks. Tim and I discovered that there was a lot taking place in regards to the kids' mother that was cause for great concern. We did not feel comfortable sending the kids back home until we knew without a doubt that they were going to be taken care of 100%.
During this time {the month of July}, Tim and I decided it was time to act regarding custody. After seeking very wise counsel, we met with a lawyer in south AR {in the proper county} and filed for sole custody of all 3 children.
August 2012 we had an emergency hearing for change of custody. We honestly thought the judge would award us temporary custody pending the final custody hearing. We had so much "ammo" against her that we thought it would be a no brainer. God had other plans. We were not awarded temporary custody at that time.
Little did we know that the next year of our lives was going to be a complete whirlwind. God's plan for Tim and I was ever so different than our own. But isn't that what usually happens? Praise the Lord that it is His Will be done and not our own!!!!
