In the previous post about developing a parenting plan around your child, Kathleen Christensen shared that the relationship between her and her ex had gotten so bad at one point that Kathleen would only talk about substantive issues if they were meeting with their lawyers or their psychologist. Amazingly, Kathleen says, now, after three years of living apart they are able to … [Read more...]
A Parenting Plan Driven By Your Child
I think by now you have an idea of how challenging divorce was for Kathleen Christensen. Just to refresh your memories, Kathleen was married for about nine years and their daughter was seven when they separated. Kathleen has described the co-parenting relationship she has now as a miracle. She credits not only the collaborative divorce process for this but also the decision to … [Read more...]
Formal Separations: Taking The Roof Off The House
In her first guest post, Judy Osborne, author of Wisdom for Separated Parents:Rearranging Around the Children to Keep Kinship Strong, talked about how the arrival of children into a marriage, throws the spotlight on your own family background creating the opportunity to decide what you want to keep and what you want to do differently. It's almost inevitable that your family … [Read more...]
Parenting: Normal Differences and Formal Separations
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Judy Osborne, author of Wisdom for Separated Parents:Rearranging Around the Children to Keep Kinship Strong. Through interviews separated parents, Judy uncovers another trait of Baby Boomers: the concept of separated family members as "kin," forever linked by love for, and responsibility to, their children. When Judy and I talked, … [Read more...]
When There Is No Co-Parenting
Grace's comment about her children never staying with her ex, caught my attention because it's very rare that courts will block a parent from parenting time. So I asked her what their parenting schedule looked like. Here's Grace: He was supposed to have them every other weekend and half the summer, every other holiday, the standard custody arrangement but he refused to take … [Read more...]