How to Handle Child Custody During the Holidays

For divorced parents, scheduling time for each of you to spend with your children can be incredibly hard.  Whether you get along or not, there is usually a struggle to ensure that both parents get adequate time with their children. 

This is especially true on birthdays and during the holidays.  Scheduling child visitations during the holidays is different for each family, but finding the child visitation schedule that works best for the children is very important.  Family counseling is one option to help you make plans if tempers are still running hot after the divorce, but the best idea is to just sit down and talk together about what is most important for each child. 

The holidays should be a special time for children, and this means ensuring that they are not part of arguing about who gets them at different times.  Child visitation should be arranged well in advance, and if circumstances come up that require days and times to be changed, they should be discussed when the child is not present. 

Consider alternating Thanksgiving and Christmas each year, or even think about splitting the day between each parent so that everyone can enjoy seeing the child.

If you both get along, another alternative is to share child visitation by having a holiday celebration with all parents and stepparents present.  Remember that this is not all about you, but that the stability and comfort of your children is most important.