When going through a divorce in Texas, it can be hard to determine how to divide certain items of community property equally, such as a marital home. For parents, it may be even more of a challenge to determine how to create a child custody schedule that allows each parent to have custody for 50% of the time.
The benefits of sharing custody
In prior generations, it was not uncommon for divorced mothers to get full custody of their children and for fathers to only see their kids on weekends. Nowadays, more men want to be active participants in their kids’ lives, which means that a lot of couples are agreeing to equal child custody. Not only is shared custody more fair to each parent, but it is better for a child’s psychological well-being.
Trading off custody frequently
The one issue with joint custody is that it often requires parents to switch custody during the middle of the week, which can be a little difficult if the parents do not live particularly close to each other. Nevertheless, changing custody mid-week is a better alternative to trading off custody every other week, which can lead to separation anxiety . For younger children in particular, it is better for them not to go as long as one week without seeing one of their parents.
Alternatives to an every-other-week shared custody schedule
One schedule that could work for parents who live close together is a 2-2-3 schedule, where the parents switch off between having custody for two or three days. If this causes too much disruption during the middle of the school week, there is also the 3-4-4-3 schedule, where one parent will have custody for three days, the other for four days, the first parent for four days, and so on.
There is no one correct schedule
These are just a few possibilities for child custody schedules. Parents may ultimately decide that they would prefer to do a schedule that is not exactly equal, like a 4-3 or a 5-2 schedule. A family law attorney can help you decide on a schedule that works best for both parents and your children.