I'm dragging up the rear in offering congrats on a very good job of handling everything. Pretty darn near perfect, especially since she caught you off guard.

I think you will just need to stay prepared for the unexpected from her. You will never know what she may pull out of her bags of tricks, but if you stay as cool & collected as you were Sunday, you can get through it.

Oh, and you did validate her:

"W: I have noticed that during 10 days of the month I am a different person to the rest of the month.
Me: Its good that you have noticed that. It must be hard to have to go through that and learn to live it."

It was a good balance where you didn't get all slobbery, and kept the conversation serious and on the subject.

You can do it! You did do it! You are becoming that man that pushed down for so long. He was there Sunday. That is who your W will respect,

But she's not completely through with the games. So remember, no exceptions for her to be on the same track when you see her again.

It is not about what you feel should work in your M. It is about doing the work that gets the right results. Do what works!