Now that their separation has been publicly announced it's apparently time for Jon and Kate Gosselin's public blame game to begin.

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The couple issued dueling media statements shortly before Monday night's heavily-hyped Jon & Kate Plus 8 broadcast featured the couple announcing they are separating and the TLC reality program stating they are "dissolving" their marriage.

Although their Monday night broadcast comments appeared to suggest Jon was the one who pushed for the separation -- which Jon, Kate and the show all seemed to intentionally avoid terming a divorce -- Jon used his statement to make it clear he was not the one who initiated a Pennsylvania court filing to end the couple's marriage on Monday afternoon.  And he suddenly didn't have a problem using the "D-word" anymore either.

"This afternoon, Kate filed for divorce," Jon said in a copy of the media statement obtained by People magazine.  "It's no secret that the past six months or so have been very difficult for Kate and me. We are no different than other couples and parents who are facing a crossroads in their marriage. I am of course deeply saddened that we are divorcing."

However according to Kate, she only initiated the legal filing -- which she termed "legal procedures" -- because Jon's "activities" forced her to do so.

"Over the course of this weekend, Jon's activities have left me no choice but to file legal procedures in order to protect myself and our children," Kate said in her own media statement.  "While there are reasons why it was appropriate and necessary for me to initiate this proceeding, I do not wish to discuss those reasons at this time, in the hope that all issues will be resolved amicably between Jon and myself."

The one thing both statements seemed to be in agreement on is that the couple's eight children -- 8-year-old twins Cara and Mady, as well as 5-year-old sextuplets Aaden, Alexis, Collin, Hannah, Joel, and Leah -- remain Jon and Kate's top priority.

"As always, my first priority remains our children," Kate said.

"Our kids are still my number one priority. I love them and want to make sure they stay happy, healthy and safe.  My job is being the best, most supportive and loving father that I can be to my kids, and not being married to Kate doesn't change that," Jon said.  "This will be a difficult transition for all of us, but Kate and I will work out a schedule that enables our kids to have plenty of quality time with both of us at home in Pennsylvania."

According to Jon & Kate Plus 8's Monday night broadcast, the children will continue to live in the 7,000-square foot, 24-acre home the couple bought for $1.1 million dollars last year, with Jon and Kate also taking turns living there depending on who has custody of them at the time.

"The kids will remain living in their house -- I've always called this their house.  I will remain here as well during my portion of having them.  Jon will also come here when it is his days and we will flip-flop that way," Kate said during the broadcast.  "It's going to change a lot because I'm going to have time that I have to be away from here."

"They love it here, this is their house, we bought this house for them not for us.  The security, the room, the land -- [it's] all for them," Jon said. "I won't be here every day obviously. I don't have the schedule [yet], I'll miss them a lot."

Although they will film separately, both parents also said they plan to continue being part of the TLC reality show -- at least for now.

It currently remains unclear what "activities" Kate is referencing.  According to recent media reports, Jon spent last weekend at the couple's home watching the children after returning from a trip to New York City on Friday.

Kate reportedly left the Wernersville, PA home before Jon returned on Friday and was still away as of Monday, according to Jon.

"I've been by myself for four days," Jon told a paparazzi reporter as he exited a supermarket and loaded groceries into the family's oversized van around noon on Monday.

On Sunday, he engaged in an unusual impromptu press conference and autograph signing outside the family's home after a group of teenage girls reportedly saw him watching the children play on the property's front lawn and stopped and shouted "Happy Father's Day Jon!"  

After waving and shouting "Thank you" back at them, Jon then reportedly grabbed some publicity photos of the family and went down to the property's front gate, where he autographed pictures for the girls, as well as additional passersby who also began stopping.

Dozens of people reportedly ended up stopping in front of the home before the session ended.

During the session, Jon told paparazzi cameramen that he had "no idea" where Kate was but declined to answer any questions about the couple's then still undisclosed "life-changing" announcement.

In addition, Jon also explained what happened during a Saturday incident in which he was seen taking Aeden to a local hospital's emergency room.

"He's good [now]," he said.  "He just bumped his head and it was deep and they had to glue it back together... he was just running in the house and he ran into a corner."

During his trip to New York, Jon was seen checking out an apartment at Trump Place, a multi-building high-rise apartment complex on Manhattan's Upper West Side, on Thursday.

According to Brian Sep, a 15-year friend of Jon's, he is planning on moving to the city and getting a job there.

"Jon is planning on living and working in New York during the week and staying home with the kids on Friday, Saturday and Sunday while Kate is away," Sep told Life & Style magazine in a report published Monday.

Jon had suggested he was considering getting a job during Monday night's Jon & Kate broadcast. (Although they were both working when the reality series began, Jon and Kate both eventually left their jobs as the show became a cable ratings hit and their TV compensation came to dwarf their day-job paychecks.)

"It's day-by-day for me, I don't know what's going to happen.  I mean I could get offered a job... and that'd change the whole schedule," he said. "I don't know."

On Tuesday, TLC  announced next week's Jon & Kate Plus 8 episode will feature a special retrospective of the couple's ten-year marriage after which the show will go on hiatus for four weeks until August 3.

"During this time the family will take some time off to regroup, and then a modified schedule will be in place to support the family's transition," the network in a media statement.  "TLC continues to support the Gosselin family and will work closely with them to determine the best way to continue to tell their story as they navigate through this difficult time."
About The Author: Steven Rogers

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