Parenting is hard under normal circumstances, but it becomes even more of a challenge after a divorce. Florida parents often struggle to find a workable child custody schedule after a separation, as there is no one right way to do it. However, there are some suggestions for them to keep in mind when deciding how to split custody.
The concept of co-parenting
You are probably familiar with the term “co-parenting,” which is the concept of two parents working together after a divorce to raise their children. This means parents would discuss things like extracurricular activities and schoolwork to try to reach an agreement on what is best for their children.
Avoiding long periods of time away from one parent
Though co-parenting involves ongoing communications, it does not necessarily mean that the parents have to do everything with both of them present. However, if parents are not typically going to be around each other much, then they should avoid custody schedules where the kids go for a full week at one parent’s home, since it can cause them separation anxiety to go that long without seeing the other parent.
Alternative custody schedules
Instead of trading off every other week, parents should consider a 2-2-3 or a 3-4-4-3 schedule, which would make it so that their children would never go three or four days without seeing one of their parents. The 3-4-4-3 schedule could be easier to coordinate with kids’ school schedules, since it would involve fewer transitions during the week. If you want an alternative custody split, such as a 60-40 split, that is ok, too. Some parents may find it easiest on everyone for one parent to keep the kids for most of the school week and for the other to take the kids for 2-3 nights towards the end of the school week.
Custody arrangements should also account for contingencies, such as what to do if one parent gets sick. If you are a parent in Florida going through a divorce, a family law attorney could assist you in developing a schedule.
