I should have told this story:

My children's father lives in NOLA.  If I lived in Louisiana too, this dude would have a big ass picture on the most wanted child support offender douchebag list for the state.  He would be #3.  

He pretty much turned his back on them when #2 came into our lives.

In all these years since, I have been in fear of taking my kids to NOLA, a place I have a deep history with and love for; I have been afraid my kids want to find their father.  I don't know where he is.  Maybe I could get some child support if I did.

But we did go this year for the first time, and it was the right thing for us.  They didn't ask about him once.

We did, however, run into him the very first place we went to (Walmart, of course)!  We were walking in directly behind him, us from the left of the parking lot and him from the right.  My best girlfriend of over 20 years was in front with my daughter, and I was behind with my son.  

I could not believe it.  I know he saw her and I know he saw our daughter.  She is quite a bit different than the last time he saw her, but I know he put two and two together.  I saw his face.

And he got his cart and walked off.

I was stunned and processing what was happening as quickly as I could.  He walked off...definitely in character.

Luckily my girlfriend had present of mind and suggested that we go somewhere else because there was someone we didn't want to see.  And my kids didn't realize who they had seen before them.  I mean they wouldn't, I guess.