The days your child leaves you to go and spend a night or so with their other parent are very important dates on the calendar for them. How often it will occur depends on how you set up your custody and parenting plan.
These can also be difficult days for your child, especially if you and your co-parent do not do all you can to make them smooth. The following can ease these handovers for your child.
1. Get things prepared well in advance
Your child does not need to be stressed about things such as where their sports kit is or if it has been washed. The older they are, the more they can take care of packing themselves, but for many children, their parents must get things sorted well in advance so the child can relax and concentrate on saying their goodbyes and hellos.
2. Check their schedules
Yes. You may always exchange the children on Thursdays at 6 pm, but that won’t work if your child has to go to their friends’ to do a school project that night, or attend basketball selection. While having regular handover routines is certainly helpful so your child knows what is coming up, be sure to check whether anything in their life may need you to change it once or for the foreseeable future.
3. Be civil
You and your coparent should stay civil toward each other. If you find that hard, then restrict conversation to an absolute minimum. Do not raise issues at these times, as it could lead to an argument in front of the kids, and they don’t need to see that.
Legal guidance can help you learn more when making your custody and parenting plans.