ExclusiveJenelle Evans Details Her Mom and Son Jace’s ‘Toxic’ Custody Arrangement
Former Teen Mom 2 star Jenelle Evans is working to change her custody arrangement with her 11-year-old son, Jace, and mom Barbara because she worries the living situation is not healthy for her son, she tells In Touch in an exclusive new interview.
“You know, him and my mom keep butting heads so much that it’s just, they’re toxic to each other,” Evans, 29, explains about their dynamic.
While fans may recall Evans and her mom greatly improved their relationship over the past few years, the disagreement over custody has strained it once again. She and her mother are “not on talking terms [now] and we just talk to drop off Jace every other weekend [and] pick [him] up.” When asked if there are other reasons behind their estranged relationship, the reality star says “things happened behind closed doors” that made them take some time apart.
“Right now, our custody agreement is the same as it’s always been since 2017, which is I get him every other weekend,” the MTV alum tells In Touch. “And I get him for his two-week school breaks and again for the summer. So, it’s the same, but I have filed to go back to court and it’s all private though. So, nobody will know details.”
Evans will be keeping the information under wraps even if their arrangement does change because she wants to respect Jace’s privacy, “especially because he’s old enough to read the news.”
The 16 & Pregnant alum says she doesn’t want her son being bothered with questions from friends inside or outside of class, adding, “he doesn’t need to deal with that.”
Evans shares son Jace with ex Andrew Lewis, son Kaiser, 6, with ex Nathan Griffith and daughter Ensley, 4, with husband David Eason. The North Carolina native tells In Touch that Jace “understands” why he lives with Barbara while his siblings live with her and Eason, but she thinks “there needs to be a change now.”
The mom of three says that while her bond with Barbara isn’t where she would like it to be, she and Eason, 32, are “stronger than ever” following their brief “separation” from October 2019 to March 2020.
“We communicate a lot better, so we tell each other how we’re feeling,” Evans exclusively tells In Touch. “I think we both take that into consideration now, whereas before we were kind of ignoring each other.”
MTV announced their decision to no longer cover Evans’ storyline on Teen Mom 2 in May 2019. Since then, she has been focused on spending time with her family, including Eason’s 12-year-old daughter Maryssa, who lives with the couple.
Evans also has a new podcast called “Girl S#!t” coming out on Thursday, April 1.
Have a tip? Send it to us! Email In Touch at contact@intouchweekly.com.
