After a divorce, holidays can be challenging times for both parents and children in Kentucky. However, there are things parents can do to make the time less difficult for them and their children.
Children may struggle with having to move between two separate homes during the holidays despite reassurance that their parents love them. Parents need to focus on children at this time and not their own hurt feelings. However, parents who are not with their children during the holidays may want to spend the time with family and friends.
Parents should not overspend on their children to try to ease the difficulty of the holiday. Instead, they should focus on spending quality time with them. Parents and children can work together to create new traditions. The parent should also resist the temptation to be inflexible if the other parent needs to make changes in the custody schedule at this busy time of year. A parent should also resist the temptation to badmouth the other parent. It might feel good in the short run, but the children are the ones who will be most hurt.
Holiday plans may be included in the custody agreement, or they may be worked out in the parenting plan. This is a document that parents create during the divorce process that might address any number of co-parenting issues ranging from when the children will meet new partners to when bedtime happens to homework issues and more. Parents may want to try to negotiate a custody agreement with one another and the help of their attorneys because they might be unhappy with the outcome otherwise. A judge makes a decision about custody based on the best interests of the child, but parents might be able to come up with a plan for custody and visitation that best suits their family.