As the year winds down, many families start to plan for their upcoming holiday festivities and extended family gatherings. For a lot of divorced parents, planning the holidays is a yearly struggle that they do not look forward to. This is because holidays can sometimes cause a dispute about an existing child custody agreement.
Often, one parent will want custody of their children for a family event that the other spouse doesn’t want their children to attend. Other times, travel distance becomes an obstacle that creates undesired conflict between former spouses. Because the last thing you need is more stress for your family during the holidays, you should create a holiday/winter break custody agreement to clearly define each parent’s responsibilities and expectations for the season.
Creating Your Holiday Schedule
It’s important that you discuss your plans with your ex-spouse in detail when making a holiday custody agreement. Be sure to compile a schedule of events that you each plan to attend. This will help ensure that everyone is aware of who will be where during the holidays or winter break. Once you and your ex have come to a decision about your custody schedule, sign off on it.
Try to Communicate with Your Ex-Spouse
You should always try your best to stick with the schedule you’ve arranged. However, should any changes to the custody schedule arise, make sure to let your ex know. Give adequate notice of any scheduling changes you think might occur whenever possible. Doing this his can help to keep your ex-spouse from feeling overwhelmed when they are suddenly left with more responsibilities than they had initially intended to have. Also, always notify your ex in a timely manner of any vacation plans, winter activities, or other general changes that need to be made to your custody agreement.
Do you have more questions about making a holiday custody agreement? Contact our Jackson divorce lawyer to learn how we can assist you today.