Divorce on the Other Side

In the early parts of my divorce, I made plans to go to Chicago with a man I had met in an online singles group, we'll call him J. He seemed like a great guy and I was drawn to his persistence - he pursued me in a way I had never been pursued before. I wasn't looking for anything, and he just showed up all of a sudden one day out of nowhere. He messaged me through FB messenger and our relationship took off. We had so many similarities in our lives - besides divorce, we both struggled with anxiety and depression, we both enjoyed music (mostly the same kinds), we both "got" each other's joking and sarcasm, we both loved to travel, and we just really got along. Not to mention he was handsome too.  Early on, we decided we would go to Chicago to see a band, American Aquarium. This was probably my first mistake, but I was trying to live a "YOLO" life and not think too much about things. So I said "yes" to going. We both booked our own flights to meet

 Yesterday I went out with two of my friends to dinner and as we were sitting and chatting, one of them asked me how long I have been "officially" divorced, and I had to think about it for a split second, and then I said "two months". And as those words rolled off my tongue and out of my mouth, it felt like I was being simultaneously punched in the gut. The reality of my situation sunk in to my brain a few more inches, which felt painful and sad. I'm not sad about no longer being married to my ex-husband at all - AT ALL. I don't miss HIM. I don't miss anything about HIM. What I miss, is seeing my babies everyday. I miss feeling financially secure (although, that wasn't always consistent). I miss my routine. I miss the expected stuff - the familiarity of everything. I do not like change - in fact, I loathe it. Sounds dramatic, but I'm serious. I do not do well with change - never have, never will. However, I try and put myself in to the throws of

 Today as I was walking into my local grocery store, I was stopped in my tracks by a big whitewashed wooden sign with a thin black border that had the most amazing saying on it in thin black letters... "Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it" - Maya Angelou.  Now, there are a few things about this wooden sign - 1. the price. It is $56.00 + tax. And 2. The saying is my life's purpose right now. Let me break it down... 1. $56.00 + tax is not an insanely expensive amount - especially for something that really spoke to me and my core. As I read it, I took a small step back and imagined it in my office - somewhere I could see it, read it daily, and remember the time in my life where everything changed for the better. I would put it above the small (and only) window in the room. But it was $56.00. Plus tax. After seeing that sign in my office, the next thing I saw in my mind was the pure disgust on my husband's face that I had actually purc

 Today is one of those days where I'm on the brink of tears, can't eat anything, and am scared shitless out of my mind. I put on a happy face because one of my kid's last day of school was yesterday, so she is home now. She has no clue her life is about to be blown to bits and pieces in a matter of a few more days. I'm trying to make these last few days fun and what days as a 10-year-old should be filled with - giggling, ice cream, sunshine, and bubbles.  Today I can't eat. I'm choking down some yogurt right now, at 1:34 pm in the afternoon, because I haven't eaten anything today. And I know I can't go to the gym on an empty stomach because, knowing my luck, I'd pass out, and how embarrassing would that be - UGH. I'm so sad for my kids, and so angry that their dad is as selfish as he is, and pissed at myself that I, at one point in my life, actually CHOSE this person as a life partner. Insert face-palm emoji here. Man, do I know how to choose the

  I'm 44 yrs young and currently live in Utah. But I was born and raised in Reno, Nevada. I have two kids - a daughter who is 10 going on 21 👎 (y'all with tweens know what I'm talking about, am I right?!) and a son who is 8. They are the light of my life!  My career has always been anchored in education. But that just never felt "right". So a few months ago I said goodbye to my on-again, off-again career in education for good to pursue a new career in the computer programming world. Well, my end-goal is to program, but I've realized I have a lot to learn, so I'm excited to have a new job where I get to dip my toe into online programmatic ads. It's a very entry-level position, but the goal is to learn, gain experience, and hopefully work my way up to a higher-level position. I'm also recently single, or as I like to say, independently owned and operated. Although I'm not officially divorced (and to be honest, I'm not sure exactly when that

  Welcome to my blog! I'm so glad you are here - grab a cup of coffee (throw some Bailey's in too!) or tea, or whatever your jam is and cozy on up. I'm about to spill my truth!👍 This blog is something that I have thought about off and on for years...YEARS. Why didn't I just do it years ago you might be asking? Well, because I was so in my head that I was paralyzed with fear of no one ever reading it. And recently, I've realized I don't care who reads this ✌ I'm not blogging to anyone, I'm just blogging to get all of these feelings, thoughts, and my heart's thoughts out into the world and out of my soul - because they need to go somewhere other than my head otherwise I'm gonna go CRA-ZY! And with Covid, we are still stuck at home for the most-part and I want to be able to connect with others. So if you are a blogger too - then let me know! I'd love to read your blog and learn more about you. So that's it. Simple, right? Right! So keep rea