X and I may have an issue coming up between us in regards to a scheduling conflict. It is the Saturday after next that is my weekend with the kids and I had signed D6 up for a Girl Scout "Thinking Day" event several weeks ago. X just told me that there is a violin seminar for individuals on the Friday before and a 3 hour group seminar on Saturday during the same time as the girl scouts. I told her to ask D6 what she wants to do. X says that is not fair because she knows that D6 will definitely want to go to the girl scout event because she has fun there. I simply said, "is there a problem with her doing something she has fun at"? Am I suggesting the right thing in letting D6 pick what she wants to do?
So X said she will ask D6 later, but I dont trust that she will do it without putting pressure on D6 to pick the extra violin seminar. I have seen her push D6 to the point of tears when practicing violin. And I suspect that if D6 does choose to go to the girl scouts, that X will make me out to look like a bad guy to the violin teacher.
X and the violin teacher have already wanted to increase D6's lesson hours, but I told her to wait because the divorce, new mortgage and economy has hurt my finances.
I think there is a fine line on who pays what for these extra expenses. There is nothing in the divorce judgement saying who pays them. I have been paying them because I had paid all the bills when we were married. I have tried politely suggesting that it would help if she could pitch in on some of the kids extra expenses I pay in addition to child support, but she has no incentive to do squat. I am currently paying for the kids charter school ($1400 a year), Chinese lessons ($600 a year), after school care ($400 a month), piano lessons ($80 a month), ukulele lessons ($80 a month), and violin lessons ($150 a month). Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts are minimal and was something I signed the kids up for after the bomb. When throwing in the increased mortgage for division of assets and $600 a month for child support, my budget is stretched thin.
