I will work backwards, start with your second post - she mostly "burst in" because she knows I won't do anything in front of the kids, and I refuse to involve them in any way - even if it means me losing out or getting hurt. Will I give up 10 minutes with S6 so she can have her tantrum? Sure. This is not a weakness - in court, I would fight her down to my last ounce of breath.
I fought back SO many things in this - I chewed my tongue off to not say anything. I made my one little slip, but it was 5 seconds out of 10 minutes, and I even ended by offering to have a calm discussion with W to figure things out.
She refused and stomped off. You know, the good thing is that the kids just wanted out of there. They will see me with a calm expression, and politely asking W not to talk in front of them, and they will hear her being nasty and angry, and I can live with that.
I would rather keep my relationship with my kids than get a few cheap shots in.
I think that is weighing on W too - kids are getting REALLY close to me.
S6 told me last night that he wished he could stay and sleep with me.
Anyway, best thing is that I did a 180 - one of my dubious talents is getting in really good parting shots that just sting and burn. And I just stayed calm and polite the entire time.
