Christina Hall shared glimpses of her Christmas celebration with her son Hudson, whom she shares with ex-husband Ant Anstead, following the exes' long and messy custody battle.
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Christina was able to spend the holidays with Hudson after she and Ant, who wed in December 2018 and finalized their divorce in June 2021, reached a settlement and joint-custody agreement in November after a long legal battle.
Christina's Christmas Eve bash also included Christina's husband Joshua Hall, whom she wed earlier this year following their September 2021 engagement, and the kids' maternal grandparents.
Everyone seemed happy and was smiling big in the photos.
"I can't believe you still eat Santa's cookies," the Christina on the Coast and Christina in the Country star joked with her daughter in a video posted to Instagram Stories.
Taylor's brothers were reportedly jealous of her snack, but the preteen quipped it was her annual "tradition."
Christina and Ant, 43, began dating in October 2017. They got married in December 2018, welcomed Hudson in September 2019, and then announced their split in September 2020. Christina filed for divorce in November 2020.
When Ant and Christina finalized their divorce in June 2021, they initially agreed to a joint custody arrangement with Hudson; however, Ant changed his mind earlier this year.
The Wheeler Dealers host reportedly filed a petition in an Orange County, CA, court seeking full custody of Hudson on April 28, 2022.
Ant -- who also shares daughter Amelie and son Archie with ex-wife Louise Storey -- accused Christina of raising Hudson in an unsafe environment as well as poor parenting in the April filing, according to Us.
Ant alleged that in January 2022, Christina returned Hudson to him without disclosing their son had just tested positive for COVID-19.
"At the time, my partner [Renee Zellweger] was filming her new project and her covid diagnosis placed the whole production on pause," Ant stated in the April court documents obtained by TMZ.
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Ant also cited Christina's Summer 2021 use of the hallucinogenic Bufo Alvarius toad venom as an example of her being an unfit mother to their son.
In July 2021, Christina revealed on Instagram she had "smoked a Bufo toad," which supposedly "reset [her] brain and kicked out years of anxiety in 15 mins."
Ant also claimed Christina was gone working and traveling for most of Hudson's life. He alleged that the reality TV star had spent an average of only "nine full days each month" with the toddler in 20 months.
And Ant's allegations didn't stop there. He also wrote in his court documents obtained by TMZ that Christina's lack of care for Hudson resulted in the toddler receiving a bad sunburn while playing soccer with his siblings at her home.
"He's really badly burnt," Ant wrote in a text exchange to Christina that he included in the file, to which Christina replied, "It didn't feel hot" [outside].
"Give him some Tylenol, I'm sure it will be better tomorrow," she added per the texts.
In addition, Ant asked the judge to force Christina to stop slamming him on social media.
In April 2022, Christina wrote via Instagram, "When a toxic person can no longer control you, they will try to control how others see you, quoting Jill Blakeway.
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Christina went on to post another quote by JmStorm that read: "She will test you. And see what you're made of, just by being herself because the nature of a strong woman will identify who a man really is."
Christina filed a response to Ant's plea for sole custody in April 2022 denying his claims that she's unable to take care of their son.
"I have read the declaration of Mr. Anstead and was shocked to see the false allegations against me," she stated in court documents obtained by Us.
"And his belief that he has been failing to protect our son by sharing custodial time with me. I will not speculate as to his true motivations, but Hudson's best interest is not what is motivating his application to the Court."
Christina claimed that Ant just wanted "to smear my good name and tarnish my image."
In response to Ant's allegation she had spent barely any time with her son, Christina said she had only spent 14 days with Hudson in December 2021 so that Hudson could spend time with Ant's other children, who were in town.
Christina wrote that Ant didn't consider "any day wherein we exchange our son as a custodial day for me," adding, "He also counts days where I made an accommodation or gave a right of first refusal to him as his day. That is why there is a huge discrepancy in his mind from our accurate schedule."
Christina insisted that Ant was attempting to "mislead the court" by not mentioning the "true facts."
The Orange County Superior Court rejected Ant's request for full custody on the same day he filed, with a judge determining there was "insufficient" evidence against the HGTV star.
But the legal battle over physical custody continued through November 2022.
Ant's filing for sole custody came just days after Christina revealed that she and Joshua had relocated from Dana Point to Newport Beach, CA, as a family.
"What Ant is doing deeply saddens me. If this was really about Hudson, as he says, this should have been handled privately with a private judge or mediation, as myself and my attorney have suggested," Christina told Us in a statement in April 2022.
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Ant went on to throw shade at Christina via social media, apparently.
In May 2022, Ant suggested that Christina was using Hudson as a "puppet" on social media for financial, personal and career gains.
But Christina fired back the next day by sharing a picture of Hudson holding hands with Brayden on Instagram.
"Occasionally Instagram is reality," Christina wrote, seemingly in response to Ant's jab that she made Hudson "perform" in Instagram photos.
Christina added, "Brotherly love," to her post, along with a praying-hands emoji.
Ahead of a September 2022 custody hearing, Ant reportedly filed a court declaration accusing his ex-wife of exploiting Hudson in social media posts and on her television shows.
"One of my many fears of Hudson being forced to film reality TV is the possibility that public ridicule over seemingly benign content becomes insurmountably humiliating," Ant wrote. "I urge the courts to review the recent and tragic case of [Toddlers & Tiaras alum] Kailia Posey and a defining embarrassing meme."
Kailia died by suicide in May 2022 at the young age of 16.
Christina, however, denied ever exploiting her children, saying that Ant's allegation was "truly offensive" and "simply untrue."
"It is clear that [Ant]'s motivation is not Hudson's best interest... I have never exploited our son Hudson. He appeared in a few of my own Instagram ads that each took less than 5 minutes to film," Christina said.
"I have all the footage and they were all fun activities that he enjoyed doing, such as a playing with toys or making cookies. These were organic moments in Hudson's eyes. Nothing was forced and they were filmed with a cell phone, not a production team."
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"Hudson's father has made attempts to turn my family, friends and fans against me through manipulation tactics and false information," Christina wrote on Instagram in October 2022.
"This has had great impact on me and my household. Because of this, I have made the decision to no longer feature Hudson on Instagram, my tv shows or any social platforms until he is old enough to make this decision for himself."
Christina and Ant ultimately reached a legal agreement on November 18, 2022 and made the decision to cancel their March 2023 trial.
According to court documents obtained by Us, the pair will "continue to have joint legal and joint physical custody" and will alternate spending major holidays with Hudson -- including Easter, Independence Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
