When parents in Texas decide to divorce, the end of their marriage doesn't bring an end to their need to work together to raise their children. It can be challenging to move from being spouses to being co-parents, but doing so successfully can help children emerge successfully and happily from their parents' divorce. At the heart of a positive co-parenting relationship is always remembering that the kids' interests come first, even when the relationship between the parents is full of pain and conflict. This means recognizing that each child's relationship with both parents is very important and must be protected.
Parents should continue to work together after their divorce to give their children a sense of stability. This can include common rules at both households. Of course, this does not mean that parents need to agree on minor issues; many times, conflicts over parenting choices helped to contribute to the end of the marriage. However, shared basic expectations about kindness or fulfilling academic responsibilities can be common between both parents' houses.
In addition, co-parents have a responsibility to develop communication options that make life as easy as possible for the children. This can include setting up a shared online calendar or copies of a physical calendar with clearly marked information about custody schedule changes, holiday plans and activities. Online communication can also make scheduling easier for both parents as well as the children. Email and text messages can be great mechanisms for communication.
Parents may work hard to keep their children out of the middle of divorce issues, but it can still be challenging to negotiate the change to co-parenting. A family law attorney may work with a divorcing parent to develop a fair agreement on child custody, parenting plans and other key issues.
