HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Kevin Federline says that his relationship with his ex-wife, Britney Spears, is "totally turning around" now that the pop star has bounced back from being involuntarily hospitalized twice in January for psychiatric reasons.
"It works out that [the kids] get to see her," Federline tells People of Spears, who had to regain visitation rights after losing custody of the couple's two young sons, Sean Preston, 3, and Jayden James, 2, during the turmoil. "There's structure over there, there's structure at my house. We're trying to keep the same type of schedule. It doesn't have to be completely perfect, but the foundation is there."
In the interview with People, which hits newsstands on Friday, Federline recalls meeting Spears for the first time at the Hollywood club Joseph's.
"Our eyes met and that was it," he remembers. "We just hit it off right away. I learned real fast how much of a whirlwind the press and everything was."
Federline and Spears eventually married in September 2004, but the "Womanizer" singer later filed for divorce two years later.
"It's hard enough to be in a marriage, and then have a kid, then kids, it changes everything," Federline says of why their marriage failed. "For me, I'd become more concerned with my children. Not that I ignored Britney, but my kids are always most important ... I mean, we were having complications. I didn't give her an ultimatum, but I was trying to work stuff out with her, and she didn't even talk to me or anything and went behind my back and filed [for divorce]. [I was] completely blindsided."
Federline says he was concerned about seeing his kids once Spears filed for divorce.
"My first question to [my lawyer] was, 'Am I ever going to be able to see my children?' I told him that I would spend every last dime that I had to make sure that my children are okay. That's all that mattered. I didn't know how much power Britney had. That really scared me," he explains.
Federline says that the January night Spears locked herself into the bathroom with Jayden James before being taken away to the hospital was one of the worst times of his life.
"That whole night is a blur," he tells the mag. "You want to talk about one of my lowest points of depression, that was probably one of them. I was very, very worried for her 'cause I care about her. That's the mother of my children. Just because I'm not in love with her doesn't mean that I don't love her."
And now that Spears has seemingly bounced back, Federline says he's her No. 1 fan as she embarks on the comeback trail with a new album and concert tour.
"I'm definitely rooting for her," he says. "There's nothing more that I want than for her to be in the best health and doing what she loves to do."
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