School schedules and child activities change as time goes on. A custody schedule that you had when the kids were toddlers may not work anymore. As your kids become more involved in school sports and extracurricular activities, you may want to change the agreement to make more sense for your family.
The Impact of School Sports and Extracurriculars
Making your children available to be involved in school sports and extracurriculars will only benefit their lives. They can increase their physical fitness, build a community of friends, and feel a sense of belonging.
But these activities are challenging to manage when the custody agreement does not allow for flexibility. Meet with your partner to arrange rides, keep the children a convenient distance from their activities, and make up for lost time with parents during downtime.
Communication and Collaboration
Seek your child's input while you open up communication with your partner. How can you make the new agreement work for everyone involved? When you breach the topic with the child’s best interest in mind rather than trying to win or prove your partner wrong, you will come up with better results.
Consider the following:
1. Balancing School, Sports, and Family Time: When you calculate the time spent at home during these busy periods of a child’s life, it may not amount to much. The best thing you can do is plan out time with your child that is meaningful. Create a schedule where they will have time with both parents.
2. Travel and Scheduling: Weekend travel and summer tournaments could come into play when custody agreements used to be pretty cut and dry on the weekends and during the summer. Divide time around the sports travel or trade-off attending the tournaments with the child.
3. Expenses and Financial Responsibilities: Along with increased activities for your child comes increased expenses. Speak about the financial obligations along with custody timelines.
4. Educational Performance: Both parents should be a united front on allowing sports and activities only if the child maintains good grades. Set boundaries for the child to help them prioritize studying while managing their busy schedule.
Seek Legal Guidance
It isn’t easy to revisit custody and financial agreements when communication is sensitive with your partner. By approaching the subject with openness, flexibility, and understanding, you can co-parent with the child’s well-being as a priority.
If you are considering revising your custody agreement or need legal advice on family law matters, contact Miles & Hatcher, LLP, at (909) 481-4080 to schedule a free consultation. We are here to help you navigate your child’s busy schedule and come up with a fair custody agreement.
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