Just a few months ago, Tori Spelling and Dean McDermott were spotted fighting in a 7/11 parking lot.
That came after months of obvious social media snubs, missing wedding rings, and meetings with attorneys.
Tuesday was International Women’s Day, and Dean posted a pretty touching tribute.
In addition to praising his daughters, Dean also prominently featured Tori in his post. Are things back on track?
On March 8, Dean McDermott took to Instagram to post a tribute to some women who personally inspire him.
“Happy International Women’s Day to these incredibly smart, creative, strong, fierce and funny Women,” he wrote.
Dean then gushed: “I’m so blessed to have you in my life.”
“I love you So Much!!” Dean expressed.
He concluded his post with the tags: “#happyinternationalwomensday #luckyguy.”
His post included four photos.
Two were of his daughters.
Stella is 13. Hattie is 10. They are young women, even though they are still children.
The other two photos were of the same woman: Tori Spelling herself.
That … is pretty darn surprising, considering how things were going for basically all of last year.
Some things were speculation based upon months without wedding rings being worn and obvious signs on social media.
Other things were more concrete, like the married couple no longer sharing a bed.
Tori herself is the one who told the public that she and Dean were sleeping in different rooms.
Now, many couples — married or otherwise — do this for a host of reasons, from work schedules to snoring to an open marriage, and beyond.
But when a couple previously shared a bed and abruptly moves to different rooms without a clear reason, it can often mean a relationship breakdown.
Dean and Tori seemed to ignore each other in various social media posts.
They were always sure to praise their children and speak to their fans.
But when only one parent shows up in the photos of the family Christmas trip … something’s usually up.
And then of course came the numerous reports about Tori and Dean’s troubled marriage.
One thing that was hammered home again and again was that they weren’t financially in a position to get a divorce.
Divorces cost money. Even separation costs money. With five kids and a slew of pets, it wasn’t in the budget.
So we have to ask what exactly Dean’s post means.
He didn’t just share a photo of Tori standing with their two daughters.
He shared separate pictures, making the inclusion of Tori a voluntary choice — one that he made twice.
The first and most obvious conclusion to draw would be that, one year later, things are much better.
While there is no justification for the ridiculous “separation periods” required to file divorce in many states, sometimes the inconvenience of filing for divorce can “save” a marriage.
That’s not necessarily a healthy thing for those involved, but some wonder if Tori and Dean just found a happy balance despite all odds.
The second conclusion is a bit more cautious, and simply says that they’re getting along a little better.
Co-parents don’t have to be falling back in love with each other to praise one another, and many co-parents remain friends long after a split.
Dean may have given Tori a shoutout simply because they share a lot of happy history and five amazing children.
Finally, Dean could conceivably be putting a happy spin on International Women’s Day for the sake of his kids.
You don’t need to actually love someone to give them an affectionate shout-out on a holiday. Lots of people smile and lie to family.
Sometimes, an Instagram post is just an Instagram post, and doesn’t entirely reflect the thoughts of the person who made it.
Until Tori and Dean see fit to tell us otherwise, we are going to have to continue to make educated guesses about where things stand.
That said, Dean’s tone and photo choices and those affectionate tags strongly suggest that things are better than they were for all of last year.
You know what? Good for them.