The holidays are a fun time where you can enjoy being with friends and family making memories that will last forever. When you have to share the time with your children with another parent, however, it can also be a time with added stress and worry. Learning the difference between holiday time sharing and regular time sharing will help you to better plan things out so that the holidays will be a positive experience for everyone.
Holiday Time Takes Precedence
Your regular time sharing agreement will typically have the normal parenting time schedule listed and then a separate section that gives information about how things will work during the holidays. The holiday time will always take precedence over the regular time. Just because you normally have your kids on a specific day of the week, for example, that may not be true if a holiday occurs at that time.
Flexibility is Often Important
While time sharing agreements are written up to be as comprehensive as possible, they are not always able to account for every possible situation. For example, the days that holidays land, people’s work schedules, travel, and family members can all impact holiday plans, it is best if both parents can be as flexible as possible to ensure they put the interests of their children first.
When both parents are able to be reasonable, it is good to look at the time sharing agreement more as a guide than a strict rule of law. For example, if an elderly grandparent is going to be in town for specific days around the holidays, it is best to make sure the kids can spend time with them, even if it falls outside what is listed in the time sharing agreement.
Of course, flexibility does need to go both ways and any changes to what is specified in the time sharing agreement should be done with the best interests of the kids in mind.
Make Sure to Plan Ahead
When there is going to be flexibility with schedules, you want to make sure to plan ahead to the extent possible. It is unfair to expect the other parent to change their plans with little notice. If you want to make a change to the schedule specified in the time sharing agreement, make sure to contact the other parent as soon as possible to discuss your desires. Ideally, the discussion should occur over text or email so that both parties can look back and see what was said and agreed to..
Get Things in Writing
If you do come to an agreement that goes outside of the normal holiday schedules, you should get it in writing. While this is always a good idea, it is especially essential if the other parent has a history of changing their mind or causing problems. Once you come to an agreement with the other party, contact Rotella & Hernandez to have a quick agreement written up that you and the other parent can sign to make it official. This will typically be a quick and affordable agreement that will help to protect the rights of both parties as well as the children.