Hope and heartache

[ClingingToHope]

Picked the girls up this morning so W could go on her Chicago shopping trip with her mom. Girls haven't said anything so I'm not sure they realize they aren't making the American Girl Doll store trip this year.

Yesterday, W and the girls went and got the Christmas tree and put out the Christmas village.

So when I got there everything was all set up and they were excited to show me everything. And .... it just sucked. But I didn't let her see that. When D7 and I looked at the Christmas village, I pointed out the ones I bought for W.

That was the traditional gift. I would buy her a new building to go with the ones she got from her grandmother.

I made sure to get up early and take a shower and put new clothes on. I was out until 2 a.m. so it was a chore to wake up.

I worked last night and was only going to go out for an hour or so. But then the friend I was out with and I started talking about relationships -- she and and her husband both used to work with me and I helped her husband get the part-time jobs he has now to help them get through both being laid off.

They've been married 13 years and -- she's not happy. Bingo, the 10-14 year stage. She's committed though to staying married and wants to go to counseling. He apparently thinks it's just a phase and doesn't want to go.

We went back and forth over a lot of stuff. She's been spending a lot of time at a neighbor's house -- a man -- and says he's just a friend and they aren't attracted to each other.

I told her that's really dangerous and there are really few men interested just in friendship. The neighbor is not married.

We went over my sitch as well. She sees some things differently than I do. She doesn't think my W is going to file. She thinks she may just let it sit in limboland indefinitely, especially considering the amount of money I'm giving her now is likely to be more than what she'd get in D.

When it was over I really started to wonder if anyone is happily married?