I’ll try and keep this short but I’m in a quandary. My partner and I are in crisis & I think about to split for good. We have a two year old together, he also has children from a previous relationship, one of whom lives with him full time.
We were living in his place. I own a property in a much cheaper area about 2.5 hours away which I was renting out.
Now me & our toddler have moved out, currently sofa surfing with family & trying to decide where to live.
Option A, rent somewhere near my ex. It’s super expensive (renting out my 2-bed property would cover about half the rent of a 1-bed flat), but it’s where my closest friends are, where my part-time job is (which I love) & close to my siblings. Most importantly it’s near my ex so there’d be some chance of regular breaks from parenting for me & meaningful relationship with their dad for my toddler. He’s unable to move because his older child is in secondary school locally & a school move would be a disaster for them.
Option B, move 2.5 hours away and back into my place. It’s currently let short term so I wouldn’t be kicking anyone out. I’d be near my parents- we have a complicated relationship but they would provide some/occasional help with childcare. Life would be cheaper & simpler in some ways. But I wouldn’t have my job (which is v fulfilling for me although not well paid) & there are limited opportunities for me at option B. I have some friends here who might develop into closer friendships if I was around. But there’d be no chance of shared custody and realistically our toddler’s relationship with their dad (& half sibling) would probably become insignificant in time.
what do we do? My heart is with option A but financially option B makes more sense. I feel completely stuck & can’t seem to make a decision.
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Recent split- where do we live?!
paintedsnipe · 06/04/2024 09:21
paintedsnipe · 06/04/2024 10:33
He’s sees them for about 50% of the holidays. They adore him & in some ways he’s a very important part of their lives but they were old enough to remember living with him, it wouldn’t be like that for our toddler.
paintedsnipe · 06/04/2024 11:03
He lives about 4.5 hours away from them so no he doesn’t see them during term time.
paintedsnipe · 06/04/2024 12:24
Yes I think this is probably right and moving back makes sense. I’m just not looking forward to the prospect of solo parenting. Is it awful?
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