Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks people. I'm just having a freak-out moment about how awful, awful, awful this is for all the obvious reasons.
I told her husband my concerns about having the children all mixed together at the same elementary school - in the neighborhood where most of the other parents know who she is (she has a distinctive last name) and will know who her children are. He totally understands how that could be really harmful for his kids.
I don't know him well enough to know how much he'll fight her on this. He seems to care about how his children will be affected.
I'm just taking deep breaths, trying to be as calm as I can be. I'd honestly move away if I could, but that's also disruptive to the children to tear them away from their neighborhood home.
I want to plaster her door with a giant scarlet A. I want to confront her and gouge her eyes out. I want to find her in the grocery store and follow her around ringing a bell shouting "shame! shame! shame!"
I will do none of these things because I am not unhinged. But this it really, really testing my soul.
Neither she nor your STBXH give a damn about their children, and that is awful.
I am so sorry.