Parents who are going through a divorce might not realize just how much life will stay the same when they are split up. It is true that they will live in separate homes, but this doesn’t mean that they aren’t going to have to communicate and work together. They will still need to remain a parenting team as they raise the children.
This can be a difficult situation to work through, especially in the beginning when everything is still so new. One thing that you must insist upon is that all interactions with each other are respectful. You will have some events that will require you to come face-to-face with your ex, so be prepared for this so that you can keep the focus on the kids.
As you embark on this parenting situation, remember that just because your ex wasn’t a great spouse doesn’t mean that they won’t be an excellent parent. Instead of assuming you know what is going to happen with their parenting, just watch. As long as the kids are healthy, happy and safe, there isn’t any reason to doubt your ex’s parenting abilities.
You can’t let your feelings about the way that the marriage ended impact your ability to work with your ex about matters related to the children. Things aren’t going to magically change with the divorce, so be sure you think about ways that you can make things easier to handle now.
One of the most important things that you can do in child custody cases is to have a solid parenting plan. This includes making a schedule and having decisions made about all aspects of the child’s life. You can turn to this plan if there is ever a question about what should happen.