Bills, bills, bills.

  If you've just started reading, or perhaps those of you who read it but forgot, I blogged years ago about how money is always the driving factor with The Ex. You can read all about it here.  Also, keep in mind that blog post was over five years ago so countless things have happened since then which haven't been summarily documented in the same manner.

  Earlier this week, Daughter commented about going in for a dental exam and asked about getting her wisdom teeth removed.  I told her I didn't know what to say about that because Husband had repeatedly asked The Ex when she would have her half of the money to get Son's removed when he was still at home with us; I told Daughter that The Ex would read the messages and ignore Husband.  (Knowing how she tried to weasel out of paying $14.80 for basketball shoes on the basis that she "never agreed to it," I have no doubt she would have fought tooth and nail over having to pay back almost $500 for one bill in addition to what she already owed.)  Daughter said, "Well...just get them pulled and then she'll have to pay you back."  I told Daughter that it didn't work like that and additionally, The Ex still hasn't paid for Daughter's dental bill back in 2014 so when, exactly, could I expect to be paid back for her wisdom tooth removal?

  That's when Daughter switched gears and said Ned complains that The Ex "spends all of his money." Daughter said she thought this was stupid because they're getting married so why should it be his/her money? (Poor Daughter; she thinks how Husband and I think which is if you're married, then one person's money is both people's money.  The Ex doesn't work that way; when she's married,  her husband's money is "their" money but her money is "her" money.  This rule applies after they are divorced, as well.) Daughter also said that everytime they went somewhere, The Ex was the one paying for everything, not Ned.  I said The Ex might be paying,  but whose money was she spending?  (This is a legitimate question, since The Ex "doesn't have any money.")  Daughter said that The Ex was spending her own money.  I told Daughter I doubted that because all I've heard for the last 13 years is that The Ex "doesn't have any money."  I told Daughter that The Ex said this with Husband, she said it with Boyfriend, and now she's saying it with Ned.  I said it doesn't matter what job she's working, what she's earning an hour, what her bills are - she always "doesn't have any money." (Maybe this isn't Daughter's business, maybe it is.  The fact of the matter is that The Ex owes us over $460 for medical bills at this point and hasn't made a payment in over 2 1/2 years.  Her mom is a deadbeat parent and I'm tired of biting my tongue over it.)

  I was surprised that this argument is starting before they've even gotten married, but I just now remembered that this was exactly the same thing that happened with Boyfriend.  He and The Ex were together for 2 years and were engaged when he got arrested for disorderly conduct.  In that report, Boyfriend told the police he was upset because The Ex was out spending money at a candle party and he didn't feel that they had enough money for her to be doing that; Boyfriend also threatened to kick in the TV because The Ex had bought it and he felt it was a waste of money.  In fact, Boyfriend told Husband over the phone, "All [The Ex] cares about is money."  In fact, the kids (primarily Son) used to say that The Ex "had to use [Boyfriend's] money" because she didn't have any of her own.  But now she's allegedly paying for everything while Ned complains that she's spending his money.

  So here we are again, watching The Ex's relationship unfold exactly the same way that it did with both Husband and Boyfriend.  And I'm not even remotely surprised.