Hello Joe,

I’m wondering…have you shared your concerns with your girlfriend?  Have you expressed to her that you are not happy about being a single daddy for the next month?  Have you said to her that you need some one on one time with her?  Are the arguments you have with her about surface things?  Or are they about the situation at hand?

I don’t think it helps to compare your current relationship to a past relationship.  She is a different person, with different circumstances.

What you’re feeling isn’t much different than any married couple who has kids.  Do you think the kids (yours and hers) are at ages where they can start to learn to fend for themselves?  I don’t mean leaving the four of them alone for a weekend – but can you start teaching them how to be independent so that in a year or two (maybe less) you will be able to spend an evening out with no sitter, and eventually, have an overnight, and then eventually, a weekend away.  You could also try to arrange sleepovers for her kids, giving you a break on the weekends you don’t have your kids.  Just a thought.

I agree with Anita that in order for a relationship to work over time, it needs to be win-win.  The two of you need to talk in order to understand what you each need.

Airene

• This reply was modified 6 years, 2 months ago by Airene.