Tips for Creating a Co-Parenting Plan That Works
Prioritize the creation of a co-parenting plan that works well for your kids and the other parent. This plan ensures you and your co-parent can enjoy quality time with your children. It also minimizes the risk of conflict that can hurt you, your children, and your co-parent.
As you establish a co-parenting plan, get help from San Antonio family law attorneys. Your lawyer can help you and the other parent come to terms on a co-parenting plan that matches the expectations of all parties involved in it. They can provide tips to help you as you and the other parent put this plan together, such as:
Define your parenting schedule
The relationship with the other parent can dictate the parenting schedule you choose. Here are three options to consider:
Equal-shared schedule
This gives you and the other parent equal time with your children. For example, parents can use a 2-2-3 schedule which works out like this:
- The children spend the first two days of the week with parent A.
- The children spend the next three days of the week with parent B.
- The children spend the final two days of the week with parent A.
- The schedule rotates, with the children spending the first two days of the next week with parent B.
An equal-shared schedule gives you and your co-parent a 50/50 split. Meanwhile, your children can maintain regular contact with both parents throughout the week.
Parallel schedule
This schedule may be ideal if you went through a high-conflict divorce. The schedule is designed to give each parent ample space from one another. At the same time, it ensures that their children get sufficient time with each parent.
On a parallel schedule, children may spend a full week with one parent, then switch to a full week with the other. For instance, parent A drops off their kids at school Monday morning. Parent B picks up the kids from school Monday afternoon. The kids stay in their custody until the following Monday morning, when they drop them off for school. On Monday afternoon, the parents go back into the custody of parent B and stay there for the full week, with custody rotating week after week.
A parallel schedule helps you minimize contact with the other parent. Of course, if you have concerns or questions regarding your kids or vice versa, each parent can reach out to the other one.
Bird’s nest schedule
With a bird’s nest schedule, kids don’t have to leave a family home after a divorce is finalized. Rather, they stay in the home, and each parent takes turns staying at this residence without the other present. When it is not a parent’s designated time with a child, they live separately from the home.
A bird’s nest schedule can provide children with stability and comfort since they remain in a family residence. It could be an option if you and the other parent are well-equipped to work together and share parenting responsibilities.
Your lawyer can discuss these and other parenting plans with you. They can help you prepare a plan that allows you to make the most of your time with your children.
Determine who is allowed to make decisions on your child’s behalf
Physical and legal custody are two very different things. Ultimately, your co-parenting plan should account for both.
With physical custody, you and your co-parent decide how much time your kids are in your respective care. This custody can vary based on each parent’s work schedule and other factors. You should also account for birthdays and holidays as you determine the times in which kids are in each parent’s physical care.
Legal custody relates to decision-making about a child’s health, well-being, and education. Ideally, two parents look out for the best interests of their children and can make joint decisions regarding these together. In this situation, the parents could jointly share legal custody.
Share any concerns you have about your co-parent’s ability to act in your children’s best interests with your lawyer. It can be difficult to prove that you deserve sole legal custody of your kids. Your attorney can look for ways to make it clear to a judge that you should be provided full legal custody.
Unfortunately, there are times when a co-parent can make claims of abuse or other allegations that raise doubts about whether you should have the legal right to make decisions on behalf of your kids. At these times, it helps to have an experienced family law attorney on your side. Your lawyer can contest the other parent’s claims and help you show that you deserve the opportunity to be involved in decisions relating to your children.
Create guidelines for communications between parents
How one parent communicates with the other in a co-parenting agreement is key. If there are miscommunications between parents, problems can arise. These can put the safety of the parents’ children at risk.
Your lawyer can help you set up guidelines relative to co-parent communications. Apps like OurFamilyWizard can help you and your co-parent quickly and easily communicate with one another. These apps give you a track record of all communications between you and your co-parent. If you feel a child custody order modification is warranted down the line, you could use these communications to support your case.
Remain flexible and willing to adapt
The co-parenting agreement you establish today can be changed at a later date. Yet, if your co-parent makes a mistake along the way, do your best to show them grace. Your kids are likely to look favorably at you, as you are choosing not to engage in a conflict with your former spouse or domestic partner. Instead, you are deciding to accept this mistake for what it is and move on from it.
To illustrate this point, consider an example. Your co-parent is supposed to drop off your children and arrives an hour later. They blame traffic, and you feel frustrated about their actions.
It is unlikely that a judge or jury will change your co-parenting agreement based on this single instance. Yet, you should keep track of it. If the other parent is consistently late for the times when they are supposed to drop off your kids, this is a recurring problem that affects your relationship with your children. Thus, you could have grounds for requesting a modification of your child custody agreement.
No matter what is going on between you and your co-parent, put your kids’ needs front and center. They deserve two parents who care about them and want the best for them. Take care of your children and enjoy your time with them. If, at any point, you believe a child custody modification is necessary, you can work with a family law attorney.
Ask for legal help with your co-parenting plan
Grable Grimshaw PLLC is a San Antonio multiservice law firm that wants to help you and your co-parent however we can. Tell us about your co-parenting plan goals. From here, we can help you bridge the gap between you and the other parent.
Our legal team is here to assist you as you look for legal help with your co-parenting plan. For more information or to get started, contact us today.