Sherri Smith, click
here to update your pages on AuthorsDen.
Blogs by Sherri Smith
Official Recommendation from the Guardian Ad Litem 7/22/2014 6:11:08 AM
Busy summer and lots of tension waiting on this report! It's finally here. I don't know where the summer has gone! It's past the 4th of July, the all-star game is history and best forgotten...lol, and school supplies are displayed prominently in the stores. Just over three weeks and grand kids will be going back to school.
We have worked steadily on the basement bedrooms for the girls. We have come so far and still have ceilings to finish up but so far so good. The kids have worked right along side of me and have helped. The girls are excited about their newe rooms and their own TV room! Katlin's is decorated in lime green and purple, Kenzie's is zebra print and hot pink. Found lots of ideas on Pinterest and we have hit garage sales and thrift stores nearly every single week.
Now, back to the one topic that has been consuming us for a year. Yes, it has now been a year since Luke left and took Breezy. It took Heather a couple of days to get an OP against him and for the courts to make him bring her back. He has supervised visitations since then and still believes the judge will rule in his favor and give custody to him. And, he is NOT interested in giving Heather any visitation rights! That is cruel! If she couldn't see her, obviously we couldn't visit with her either. Why do people do this to their own children? Don't they realize it hurts the child the most?
The mediator failed to find a solution, Heather made at least three generous (overly generous) compromises and he continued to push it. Forced to hire the Guardian ad litem who represents Breezy, the case has continued to drag on. We had a minor victory when the judge finally set the OP for review in six months instead of monthly.
Breezy's lawyer visited both homes, (hope she got to see the roaches in Luke's dad's house) and did the visit to Heather's home less than two weeks after she moved. We waited anxiously for her report. She did verbally tell Heather that she was recommending sole custody to Heather and she still was trying to decide what to do about visitation with Luke. A sigh of relief, but still this nagging little doubt that you can't seem to get rid of no matter how positive things look!
Finally, the official 15 page report came to her and was delivered to both lawyers. Her recommendation was full custody to Heather and gradually allowing visitation to slowly work up to several hours every other week and overnight visits. There is still the little nagging thought that he could use the time to take her away, but who would be so cruel to a six year old? Yeah, I believe he could because he has only thought about his selfish needs this past year.
On the 17th of July, Heather and the kids had a celebration party for the beginning of their new lives as a family of 5. Grandpa made homemade chicken and dumplings and we had cake to celebrate. Everyone was happy and cheerful and I couldn't help but marvel at how much happier they were and how far they have come in a year. Heather is taking classes to get her Bachelors Degree in early childhood education and is in the top 20% of her class! We are so proud of her! Just yesterday she received a letter stating she was being inducted into the National Honor Society! This is a tremendous achievement and we are so proud of her.
Will Luke continue to fight? Probably, we fully expect him to take it to a full trial. That's his arrogance coming through. There are many layers to that onion but when you come down to the center of who he is, it's bad.
If you enjoy my blog and want to keep up with what is happening, become a fan and you will be notified of any new posts. Here's to another great week!
