Working Summer Vacation Into Your Child Custody Schedule

During summer vacation, the rules are relaxed a little. Children stay up later and might head off to camps and sports clinics and parents plan vacations to get some quality time with their families, away from the same old routine back home.

But when you share custody with your former partner or have to keep up a parenting time schedule, it can be difficult to plan a fun getaway for yourself and your child. Going away or allotting time for your child to attend summer camp can often mean altering your custody or parenting time schedule. This is why it is so important that you maintain open communication with your former spouse. With some flexibility and willingness on both sides to compromise, you can give your child a summer full of fun and lifetime memories.

Use the following tips to work your child’s summer vacation into your custody schedule.

Communicate With Your Former Spouse

Always keep your former spouse updated about where you are taking your child. Whether you are planning a trip to the other side of the world or simply to another part of the state, let your former spouse know when you will be in transit, where you will be, and how he or she can contact your child in the event of an emergency. Your child might want to keep up regular communication with him or her during the trip through text message, phone calls, or email.

Be Willing To Be Flexible

If your former spouse’s vacation time will cut into your parenting time with your child, ask if you can take the child for an extra day or two after he or she returns from the trip. Or if you drop your child off at summer camp, let your former spouse be the one to pick him or her up.

Get It In Writing

If you are not sure that your former spouse will cooperate with you about altering your child custody schedule to allow for summer vacation and activities, or if you simply want to be sure that there is a record of your request for an altered summer custody schedule, work with your attorney to have it written into your child custody order. Many families do just this – for example, each parent might opt to have three weeks of uninterrupted vacation time during the year written into their custody agreement. Talk to your former spouse and your attorney about creating this type of agreement if you feel it might be best for your family.

When you are ready to begin working with an attorney who is well versed in the issues that New Jersey families face, contact The Law Office of Eric B. Hannum Esq., LLC. at (732) 365-3299 to schedule a consultation with a member of our firm. We are proud advocates for New Jersey families throughout Burlington, Ocean, Monmouth, Mercer, and Middlesex counties.