A new year is a great opportunity for making changes that will better your life. If you have a co-parenting relationship with an ex, now is the time to make decisions about how you want that relationship to go in the future.
There are several things that you should think about when you’re trying to evaluate the co-parenting relationship. Taking the time to work through these can help you to determine what changes you should make.
Set time for yourself
Plan to take time for yourself, especially when the children are with their other parent. When you’re taking care of yourself, you can care for the kids better. This doesn’t mean that you have to go plan lavish weekends, but taking the time to go for a walk or get some extra rest will likely benefit you.
Commit to respect
You and your ex must respect each other. Think about ways that you can do this. While you can’t control your ex, you may be able to set the tone for the parenting relationship. Be sure that you think about how things come across when you’re having discussions about the kids. Keep the focus solely on the kids so you can work through the challenges.
Be sure that you have a parenting plan in place. If you’re just now embarking on the divorce, you may have to do some work to get this handled. It’s usually best if you can get it done quickly after the split since the children will be able to enjoy stability once they know what’s going to happen. There’s a chance that you and your ex may not agree on everything. Having someone on your side who can discuss the options with you may be beneficial.