There’s nothing like summertime on the Florida Panhandle. Sun, sand and beaches beckon, but divorced and separated Destin parents may be gearing up for the first summer apart from their children.
Summer custody plans can be challenging to wrangle with your co-parent. This is often harder at first when hurt feelings prevail on one or both sides. But if this is your first time trying to come up with a workable custody plan, the following tips may help.
Determine what works for your family
Parents who work shifts will need a different plan from nine-to-five families. Some parents (think teachers and other school workers) could have more discretionary time where they can keep the kids. These parents might want to insist that they get the right of first refusal when their children’s other parent must engage a sitter.
Do what’s best for the children
You want your kids to have the best summer possible, right? If so, be willing to compromise with swapping weekends if extended family on the other side come to town for reunions and other celebrations. Allow your kids the gift to make memories with their cousins, grandparents, aunts and uncles.
File your agreement with the court
Once a judge signs it into law and it gets recorded in the clerk of court’s office, your custody plan is the blueprint from which your parenting time with your children is derived. That’s why it’s important to commit it to writing and file it with the court. Should your co-parent refuse to abide by the terms of the child custody agreement, they can then be held in contempt of court by the family law judge and made to comply with its terms.
