And just to make certain, when I got married this last time there was a pre-nup to make certain she never felt she had the opportunity to take anything that I already own... as well as not thinking she had any right to my income.

I may choose to give stuff to teh stepkids, but after the first few little gifts, I've realized it all gets into the ex's hands anyways. The camera I gave to my stepson is my husband's ex's new camera... that kind of crap. Poor kids have no sense of boundries or privacy because their mother has taught them this... heck, stepson didn't even have a door on his own room for years because his mama didn't think it necessary. Sad, huh?

OK... so that first few test gifts showed me how to handle it... I now know that everythign the kids get will be taken advantage of by the ex... so they'll get more gifts from me ... in a few years when they're adults and maybe something given from my heart to them will be something that they actually are able to appreciate... somethign their motehr won't steal from them.

My advice.... a pre-nup.