Everwhere is walking distance if you have the time

[MAL]

Ditto to what Ellie said above.

I can also chime in on the idea of meeting the kids. During my four month "soul searching" after the break-up from RC I dated some. One of the guys was an old friend whom my YS had never met. He offered to help me with some things at my house but I didn't feel right bringing him here when YS was here.

I put it off for awhile and finally decided for all of us (including YS, OS, and this guy) to meet for dinner. Then that way it felt "okay" for the guy to come to the house while YS was there. Because of his schedule he had a hard time working around when I had YS. YS was not ready to meet him and I have to admit I forced the issue and did not handle it well.

Although he didn't say it enough during the time I was with RC, YS had really taken to RC and his family. He held some anger about having to get to meet new people and a new family. He expressed it to me and I tried to take it slow. In the end, I still didn't handle it well and I regret pushing it.

RC isn't the first guy since my divorce and each time I have dated, my kids eventually meet the guy and his family. Each time they had to deal with the loss, again. The divorce was hard enough, especially on YS. I have tried to take my time, but even when I do, it's still hard on him if the relationship ends.

The friend guy eventually did come to my house to help with some things, but YS was never comfortable with it. This is one of the many things I would "do over" from this past 6 months if I had the chance.

So lesson learned for me...

Take your time with the kids if you can. Sometimes they do not know how to express what they are feeling. They do have to endure so much loss when our relationships fall apart, so caution is good.

I'd be happy to share more about my experiences if it would help.