G'day fellow STalkers!

Things are going quite nicely here in the Skid-Free Zone. SD17 has been gone for almost 2 months, and things are getting back to what should be considered "normal." It is a real joy not to see a 200 pound teenage girl lougning on the couch for hours on end, eating everything in sight, not helping with any of the chores, etc. Also, I recently found out that I received a promotion, which will alter our family dynamic even further when DW starts travelling on the road with me. Although we are looking forward to having more time together, DW realized that there was an 800-pound pink elephant in the room: child support.

Technically speaking, DW's child support should be reduced when she quits her job, since CS is largely based on what her income is. However, the courts also have discretion to look at DW's "lifestyle" in setting support. I am sure that seeing her give up her regular job to travel with me would be viewed in a negative light, and she might still have to pay the same in support. Heck, they might even raise it. In the end, we decided not to even tell DW's exHusband (SD17's bio-daddy) that she won't be working, and I will just pay the support for her. It will come out to about 3K per year, which is probably less than what one round of court would cost if bio-daddy tried to contest the amout owed. DW actually made a good point: "It is so worth 3K to not have to deal with her full time." It was nice to hear her say that, since she has a "split personality" of sorts, alternating between child worship and acknowledgement of reality. She's not there quite yet, but she is making good headway in breaking her "addiction" to SD17.