Sharing Your Kids During the Summer: Hardships for Divorced Parents

Summertime is usually a celebrative time for families. The kids are off school and it's usually a time where summer plans are made and exciting family fun happens. Generally, most families make plans to spend a lot of their time outdoors with their kids. What if you are going through a divorce or already divorced? What do divorced parents do when the summer months roll around? How can they make it easier on themselves and the kids?

Here are some tips on how you can make it easier on the both of you and easier for the kids, so that everyone gets to enjoy the fun festivities of the summer.

Agree Months in Advance

Whether one parent hardly see's their kids during the year and wants the children for the entire summer, or if both parents want to split the summer months, there has to be some sort of agreement before July arrives.

Both parents should decide how the summer months will look about three to five months in advance. (If you haven't made arrangements for this summer yet, it's time!) This will help if one parent wants to plan a camping trip or if the other one wants to take the kids on a vacation somewhere.

Two Homes, One Summer

If there has been shared custody all along, the kids will have an easier time spending more time with the parent they spend time with on the weekends. If the kids have not been visiting their other parent on their weekends, there may be a period of adjustment if this parent wants to have them stay with them for half of the summer or all of it.

It isn't easy on kids when they have to travel between two homes. If they don't have a proper personal space in the other parents home, they might feel a little out of place when they arrive. Make sure that they have a room that they can make their own and bring some personal items to. It will definitely help with the adjustment over the summer.

Money Issues

When it comes to 'who is going to pay for this and that?' over the summer, write it all out beforehand and even sign it so it's a legitimate agreement. This should be sorted around the time you are discussing how the kids' summer vacation will look.

Money is always an issue where kids and divorce are concerned. Make sure the kids are not exposed to any of these issues and make sure it is all written out, discussed, and agreed upon months before. Kids should not hear about these issues or be involved in any which way.

If you are divorced and have kids, how do you overcome challenges when planning the kid's summer vacation? We'd love to hear!