Modification

After 3 long years we have finally come to a decision regarding the current custody and visitation order that is in affect. We have decided that since their biological Father has chosen to not contact the children that we will go ahead and petition the court for Full Physical and Legal Custody again. We have waited for some kind of change in regard to Stephen's behavior towards his children but sadly there has been nothing positive coming from him or from his new wife and her relatives. As the order calls for our children to have visitation with him and his new family we have decided it would be best to change those orders. Since we have not heard from him in over 3 years I do not think that we will have much trouble convincing the court for Full Custody especially since he has a history of being unstable regarding his relationship with the girls. What I do wonder is, if like in the past if he will come crawling back begging me to let him see the girls again just so that the custody order can be changed and allow his child support order to go down? He has done this twice already since 2004 and yet after only a few months of consistently seeing the children he bails on them.

These back and forth unstable decisions that he continues to make will surely show the courts that we are doing what is in the children's best interest. I had hoped that we could keep the orders as they were so that in the future he could see them again when he was finally ready to step up and be a man and a Dad, but now it is clear that he is still not ready to do what is right for his daughters. We will be praying that the judge will do what the courts feel is right and just for the girls in regards to the child support order. I think now that it would be fair for the girls to have the order retroactive to the date of his leaving the state of CA, but that will be up to God and the court. It is sad to think that after many years of dealing with Stephen and his lack of involvement with the girls that we are right back at square one all over again. Only this time I will never let him manipulate me into allowing him to have visitation and custody back...never again. If he ever wants to have the orders changed he will have to file the court papers for it, and I know that if he ever does take it upon himself to ask for a modification of the custody and visitation that it is only due to his wallet and not his heart. (April 2nd is right around the corner!) ; )