JOSH, MARY & ANTHONY

Josh (25) Mary’s Husband

Mary (25)

Anthony (28) Mary’s Ex-Boyfriend

Monsey, Indiana

Getting To Know Your Ex

Mary and Josh are the poster children for a beautiful marriage and a beautiful family. However, it’s not a normal or conventional situation by any means. Josh had never been in a serious relationship before he met Mary and Mary already had two children with two different men before they tied the knot. Despite the challenges, Mary and Josh are happily raising three children (their biological son and two other children from two other men) together. Just as Mary and Josh we’re starting to get settled into their new life with their new family the past came knocking on the door. Now, this couple is having to navigate what it means to incorporate Mary’s ex into their lives and what that means for their budding family unit.

Mary and Josh matched on Tindr. Mary’s family pretended to be her and flirted with him via the app, convincing him to come over. Once they met in person, they were smitten and it’s been a love story ever since! They have now been married for a year and are the parents of Story who is three months old. They also share custody of Mary’s three year old son Sylas from a past relationship. Sylas’ father is still in the picture and the group are all co-parenting happily.

However, things are not as rosy with the third man in the equation: Anthony. Anthony and Mary only went out on eight dates a little over 2 years ago before they fizzled out. Just as Mary thought her ties to Anthony had come to an end, she learned that she was pregnant with his child. She was absolutely surprised but she wanted to be a mom and to keep the baby. Anthony was scared, confused, and his maturity toward the situation at the time left much to be desired. Anthony ditched Mary and was not part of pregnancy. Nine months later baby Jovie was born, and with Anthony completely out of the picture, Josh stepped up and legally adopted Jovie and has been raising her as his own.

Flashforward to now. Jovie is 17 months old and Anthony has suddenly resurfaced. Anthony has had a change of heart and now genuinely wants to be involved in his son’s life. He realizes that he should have been more mature and supported Mary throughout her pregnancy… but he can’t change the past so he’s trying to step up now. He wants to be part of Jovie’s life and experience what it means to be a father and everything that comes with it.

However, that means that Mary and Josh are going to learn what it means to allow Anthony into the folds of their idyllic life. The truth is, Mary and Anthony were just getting to know one another when Mary realized that she was with child. For all intents and purposes, Anthony is a stranger. A seemingly well intended stranger, but a stranger none-the-less. Josh and Mary don’t want to be the type of people to cut off an adopted child from a parent who wants to be a positive role-model in the child’s life, but the re-entrance into their dynamic comes with a lot of questions and concerns.

What is Anthony truly like and what exactly are his intentions? How will his parenting style compare to the couples? What is Anthony’s family like? Will Josh and Anthony be able to bond and hang-out or will the two men be oil and water? Is Anthony going to try to take the place of father from the man who has been raising the baby for the last 17 months? And what of Mary and Anthony? It’s absolutely awkward to get to retroactively get to know the person that you have a child with. What are their vices and virtues? It’s all a literal unknown. Mary and Josh agree to continue down the path with Anthony, they have high-hopes for their collective future, but one thing is for sure: Josh refuses to risk the happiness of his family or the respect and honor of his wife over Anthony’s involvement in his adopted child’s life.