Who Will Get the Kids Jennifer Lopez or Marc Anthony

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony announced their shocking split a few days ago, and since then thoughts have turned to their twins, Max and Emme, 3, and who they are with during this difficult time.

"The nannies and her mom will stay with Jennifer and the children in the hotel while she films," a source tells Life & Style magazine. The American Idol host is in Atlanta filming What to Expect When You're Expecting. Meanwhile, Marc will be busy working as well – he's set to reprise his role on the TNT series Hawthorne.

Marc is apparently opening up about the end of his seven-year marriage – at least to his audiences. "Rumor has it I'm single now," Marc said during a concert in Bogota, Colombia, on July 16. "That's why I want to dedicate the next song to you fans."

There's something vaguely antiwoman about this question. J.Lo, after all, employs the same kind of help that millions of people employ of worldwide, and your question makes no mention of Marc Anthony's use of those same nannies.

But let me put that suspicion aside while I answer your actual query: Yes, there will likely be nannies involved, whether Lopez "gets the kids" or not. As for exactly how many nannies, and which Mary Poppins will go where, here's what I've got...

It's not yet clear what kind of custody arrangement the splitting pair will choose, and precisely how many nannies, or sets of nannies, might come into play. But don't expect a dramatic play-by-play in the courts.

"They're probably going to quietly settle that arrangement amongst themselves, which is what 95 percent" of high-profile divorcees do, says celebrity divorce attorney Fred Siegel, who represented the minor children of Stephanie Seymour and Peter Brant during their estrangement.

If the pair does come to an amicable decision about who visits where, that shouldn't come as a shock, either. (After all, Lopez and Anthony are at least friendly enough to release a joint statement about their parting, which is more than many divorcing Hollywood couples have achieved in the past.)

In that case, expect a single set of nannies that travel with the children, Max and Emme, as they shuttle from parent to parent. Currently, according to Life & Style, at least two nannies will stay with Lopez and the twins while she films her next movie.

"My guess," Siegel posits, "is that the kids would each have one nanny during the week, and another one nanny each for the weekend. I've seen as many as three or four nannies" per high-profile household, he tells me.

And given how busy Anthony and Lopez are, it's likely that no matter where any of them go, there will be helpers.

"While parents may employ a nanny or several, it's still the parents making the critical decisions about child care," especially in the event of a divorce, says Marilyn B. Chinitz, a partner in the matrimonial practice at the firm Blank Rome. "If J.Lo is running off to do a concert, she's going to have her nannies taking care of her children, or have her children with her. It doesn't mean she's delegating responsibility. She just just has extra hands helping her. Why should people criticize her for that?"