stil waiting for real advice from getbiggers who been tru this
Let's face facts, there is no way they would have given you custody anyway. Men don't get custody. Just the way it is.
To use that as an excuse just to cut a check once a month and pat yourself on the back for 'taking care of things' is not the way to go.
You need to bring up that child, even if you don't live with the mother.
I split with my first wife when my son was four, I saw him a couple of evenings a week and every weekend for 5 years. For the past 2 he has lived with me. I didn't miss a game, a recital or a fucking boring Christmas show @ school.
Thing is - you should actually want to do all this. It should be tearing you apart inside not being with the kid right now.
I guess if you just dont give a damn, the kid is better off without you