Did you know that 30% of children have parents who do not live together? Fortunately, regardless of the reasons for not living together, most parents have a visitation schedule.
When coming up with this schedule, it is vital to pay close attention to the holiday schedule and carve out exceptions for the holidays. After all, some of the most treasured childhood memories are made during the holidays.
Sure, altering your usual holiday traditions is easier said than done. However, it is worth the effort to ensure that your child(ren) are happy and the have time with both parents on the holidays.
Here is how you come up with a workable holiday visitation schedule.
Define The Essential Holidays
To get a good visitation schedule, you must first define the holidays essential to you, your kids, and your co-parent. Ideally, holidays in a year are divided into major and religious holidays. You can have other special holidays such as the child’s birthday, parent’s birthday, spring break, summer vacation, and school holidays.
After you have identified all the important days in a year, developing an ideal parenting plan becomes easier.
4 Ways For Creating a Holiday Schedule
Some of the methods you can use to create a holiday schedule are:
1.Assign the Holidays
Assign a holiday for each parent, especially if they have an attachment to the holiday. For example, if parent A has a special attachment to Labor day but the holiday is just an extended weekend to parent B, the child goes to parent A. Otherwise, you can assign specific holidays, such as parent A having the child during Christmas while parent B has the child in New year.
2.Alternate Odd-Numbered and Even-Numbered Years
This plan works when both parents want to spend time on that holiday. Therefore, you can decide parent A will have the child for Christmas every even year, and parent B will take the child for Christmas every odd year. This plan is also effective for events like the child’s birthday when each parent wants to spend time with the child.
3.Schedule Holidays Twice
Create time for every parent to spend with the child, even if it means the child celebrates the day twice. For instance, parent A celebrates Christmas with the child on the 20th of December, while parent B celebrates on the 25th of December. This will mean more fun time for the child.
4.Split the Day
You can divide the day so the child spends part of the day with parent A and the rest of the day with parent B. This plan requires the parents to live close to each other so the child does not spend the entire day traveling. Parents have to be mindful of the stress of the child when trying to split the day.
Get an Ideal Holiday Visitation Schedule
A functional holiday visitation schedule provides security and joy for your kid(s) and co-parent. When setting up a holiday visitation schedule, both parents must be ready to compromise for the child’s sake. It is also wise to consult legal help for specific instructions that will help create a comfortable visitation schedule.
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