Troubled "Teen Mom" star Amber Portwood is currently serving a 5-year jail sentence after deciding that court-ordered rehab wasn't going to be effective. As such, Portwood's daughter Leah is under the care of her dad and Portwood's ex, Gary Shirley. Shirley recently discussed how he's explaining Portwood's absence to their daughter. "I haven’t been able to say to her, 'Mommy’s in jail,'" Gary recently told In Touch magazine. "When I tried to tell her Mommy’s in trouble, she got upset, so I’ve said, 'Mommy’s at work,' or 'Mommy’s on vacation.'"
Shirley, in an attempt to "clear up confusion" about the statement, took to his Facebook page to further explain why he's not been more forthcoming with Leah.
"I had to find out for my daughter amber and myself if it was best for Leah to go where her mommy is and visit. I learned that it is the best thing for Leah and Amber. All the paperwork is finally in order so yes soon we will be visiting her," he wrote early Monday morning.
As for how things are between Portwood and Shirley, the situation seems to have improved somewhat.
"She's doing a lot better," he said in the post. "A lot of stuff has be cleared between us things have settled down. (Like muddy water) things are heading in the right direction. Thanks for support and in NOWAY was me not taking her to see her mom a control thing. JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S BEST FOR LEAH."
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