But Affleck and Garner are very supportive of each other and remain close after going through a lot to get to this place in their relationship.

“You have to be smart about what you can and can’t handle, and I could not handle what was ‘out there,'” Garner, who’s turning 54 on April 17, told Marie Claire U.K. earlier this year, referring to what was said about their split when it was happening. But it wasn’t the stories that were hard, she continued, “The fact of it is what was hard. The actual breaking up of a family is what was hard. Losing a true partnership and friendship is what was hard.”

But, she noted, “Time is the opportunity to heal. Time is the opportunity to forgive, to move on and to find a new way to be friends.”

Though even now, their situation still has its pluses and minuses when it comes to parenting under respective roofs.