Donald Trump Jr. Flies to Father’s Mar-a-Lago Resort with Daughter After Split from Wife Vanessa
March 17, 2018Donald Trump Jr. escaped scrutiny in New York City after he and his wife, Vanessa, announced they were separating by flying to Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. The same place that he married his estranged wife almost 13 years ago.
The 40-year-old son of President Donald Trump shared a selfie of himself with his oldest daughter Kai, 10, on Instagram, writing, “Date night with Kai. Great father-daughter time. #weekend#fatherdaughter #daughter #datenight.”
Trump Jr. and the former model, also 40, share five children together including sons Donald III, 9, Tristan, 6, and Spencer, 5, and their youngest child, daughter Chloe, 3. It is believed the other children also joined their father at the resort.
On Thursday, just after the news of their separation broke, Trump Jr. shared another selfie with his daughter Chloe, writing, “No matter what is going on bedtime cuddling with the smurf puts a Yuge smile on my face. #bedtime#daddysgirl #cuddle.”
It appears the last time Trump Jr. was photographed with Vanessa and all of their children was in mid-February when they visited Mar-a-Lago together for his son, Donnie’s, birthday.
“Happy birthday Donnie. Some birthday cake for my 9 year old little man yesterday. Somehow I hit send then but it didn’t go through. #birthday#boy #family #weekend,” he wrote in the caption.
The couple announced their separation on Thursday after more than 12 years of marriage in a statement obtained by PEOPLE.
“After 12 years of marriage, we have decided to go our separate ways. We will always have tremendous respect for each other and our families,” Trump Jr. and Vanessa said in the statement. “We have five beautiful children together and they remain our top priority. We ask for your privacy during this time.”
PEOPLE confirmed that Vanessa filed the documents late Thursday in Manhattan Supreme Court, according to court records. Page Six, who first reported the news, said she filed for an uncontested proceeding.
Donald Trump Jr. and Vanessa Trump
Larry Busacca/Getty
The filing came after a day of speculation that the couple was headed for divorce, according to an earlier Page Six report from Wednesday.
The pair wed on Nov. 12, 2005, at Mar-a-Lago — the same spot where President Donald Trump married third wife Melania in January of that same year.
A source who sometimes socializes with the couple told PEOPLE just prior to the filling: “I heard for a while they have been living separate lives… Even before all this Trump presidency stuff started they weren’t good and their marriage was strained.”
But another source close to the Trump family tells PEOPLE of the split, “This is surprising news. They always seemed very cute together, and were a really fun couple.”