Summer Visitation
Divorce is never easy, especially when children are involved. Not only is your life about to change, but also the lives of your children. You and your soon to be ex-spouse will now parent part-time and have to adapt to two separate schedules. Separate schedules can be difficult if one parent moves to a different state or school district, adding a further hurdle to determining custody and parenting time. However, summer offers the potential for variation that can be utilized. It can give children a wonderful opportunity to spend more time with a parent that may live further away or have a restricted schedule for parenting time.
The Options
Because the summer offers increased flexibility for schedules, parents have options when deciding upon how to divide parenting time. If parents are residing in separate states or even at opposite ends of one state, summer may be one of the few times one parent may have the opportunity to spend significant time with the children. Therefore, splitting the summer into larger amounts of time may be in the children’s best interests. This allows for the non-custodial parent to have a solid block of time for the children to enjoy quality time.
However, if distance is not an issue there are several additional options available to provide more time for the non-custodial parent during the summer. Some options include providing overnight visits for an entire week or every other week. Another option may be for both parents to establish a vacation with the children, in which weekend visitation does not factor into the time spent. Any of these options are intended to allow for additional quality time for the children.
The Benefits
The benefits to working together for increased summer visitation are vast. Aside from the simple reason of the non-custodial parent getting to spend extra time with the children, providing additional time during the summer allows for other family members to spend time with the children as well. Since the non-custodial parent may only have limited time to spend with the children during the hectic school year, with sports and school activities, many times extended family members do not get the opportunity to see the children. Extended summer visitation allows flexibility in the visitation schedule wherein the non-custodial parent has the freedom to enjoy spending time with the children.
Another and more important benefit is the children have the opportunity to get to spend quality time with the non-custodial parent. Children who have both parents involved in their lives do better overall and it is in their best interests to have a strong bond with both parents. Extended parenting time in the summer for the non-custodial parent will help strengthen the bond for both the children and the non-custodial parent.
If you find yourself going through the difficulty of divorce, contact the attorneys at Lake Harriet Law Office at (612) 750-4843. Their expert attorneys will be able to help make the process a bit easier and ensure that everyone, including the children, is having their best interests considered.