I got divorced from my husband, Noah, a long time ago. He is now married to Katie, his new wife. We’re still friendly because we want our daughter, Lexie, to have a drama-free upbringing.
We had a routine: one week with me and one week with Noah. I was glad to see how well Katie had become part of Lexie’s life. Even though it made me a bit uneasy, I appreciated how much she cared for our child.
One day, Noah said, “Katie is going to be a second mother to Lex, but she’s not a replacement mother.”
That was fine with me. I preferred Katie, who genuinely loved Noah and Lexie, over someone who didn’t care about our family.
Anyway, I was ready to pick up Lexie on Friday, which marked the end of her week with Noah.
I walked up to the front door, expecting the usual small talk where Katie would tell me about a new recipe she tried. Katie is an amazing chef, and sometimes she even makes my dishes so Lexie can have “home food” while she’s there.
Don’t get me wrong, I still felt uncomfortable around Katie. It’s been hard to get used to her presence in my daughter’s life, but we’re trying to make things simple for Lexie.
As I walked up to the porch, lost in thought, I saw the door was slightly open. I pushed it open further and called out, “Hello?”
Before I could say anything else, I heard a piercing scream from inside the house. Lexie’s scream. I knew it immediately.
Panic took over, and I rushed inside without thinking.
I ran through the house and ended up in the kitchen, where Katie was standing over my daughter with a broom.
“Lexie?” I asked, unsure of what I was seeing. “What in the world is going on?!”
I wanted to lash out at Katie, thinking she was hurting my child. But then, I noticed a small pair of feet darting into the corner of the room.
“It’s a rat!” Katie cried, her eyes fixed on the bin. “Lexie, jump up!”
Lexie leaped onto a chair and yelled, “Mom! Hit it!”
Katie grabbed a mop and tossed the broom to me. “I tried to shoo it away,” she said. “But then, Lexie tripped and fell because it ran over her shoe.”
“It went crazy!” Lexie said from the chair. “It just jumped onto my foot in the living room and then ran into the kitchen.”
“Alright, let’s just get this over with,” I muttered, trying not to smile too much.
After a few minutes of quiet and careful prodding, I opened the kitchen door to the back porch, and the rat quickly ran outside.
Katie called out to Lexie, “Come on, honey,” and held out her hand.
Katie looked embarrassed and said, “I’ll get an exterminator to come over tomorrow and check out the property. But I’ll leave some mousetraps around later.”
I felt guilty for thinking Katie might have harmed my child. I should have known she wouldn’t do anything to hurt Lexie.
Katie, as if reading my mind, apologized. “That was a bit of a scene to walk into.”
“It’s okay,” I said, my anger fading. “I’m sorry, Katie. I just… I just assumed you were going to hurt her.”
Katie placed her hand on my arm and shook her head. “I would never do that,” she said. “I think I was more afraid of it than she was.”
We stood in the messy living room, looking at the damage from the skirmish.
“Leave it,” Katie said. “Let’s have some tea before you go.”
After Lexie made sure the rat wasn’t hiding under the table, we sat at the dining room table.
I watched Katie move around the kitchen, pulling out a pie from the fridge and making tea.
“I never imagined I’d have to battle a rat in my own house,” Katie said with a sincere smile.
“Yeah, well, we can add that to the list of things we never expected,” I replied, feeling completely relieved.
I saw Katie protect Lexie from the rat, and I knew everything would be alright. Katie would take care of my child’s safety when I wasn’t there.
We spent the afternoon together, drinking tea and sharing stories about our childhood fears. I realized that Katie and I were friendly, and that was important for Lexie to see. Even though her dad and I were no longer together, Lexie could still have a secure and loving family life.
I was glad I stayed calm when I entered Noah and Katie’s home. If I hadn’t realized it was just a funny situation, I might have snapped at Katie.
Have you ever experienced anything similar while co-parenting your children?
