My kids loved my second husband, the one who never recovered. He was mostly a lot of fun and kind to them.
I explained to them why I left, when I did. They were 10 and 12 at the time. Now that they are adults they still speak of him fondly, even though they haven't seen him since I left. That's OK, I'm glad they have nice memories of him. He wasn't a bad man, just another sick alcoholic. I'm afraid if I HAD stayed, their memories of him might not have been so sweet.