Visitation with Your Kids at Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is one of the most special days of the year with your children. If you are divorced or otherwise living separately from your child’s other parent, Thanksgiving can be a source of stress when coordinating holiday parenting time. A formal Illinois or Wisconsin Parenting Plan can help ease this stress year-to-year by laying the roadmap for your family and guaranteeing your fair share of quality holiday time with your children.
Holiday Parenting Time Schedules
The holiday parenting time schedule is a crucial part of any Parenting Plan. Without a Parenting Plan in place, you are relying solely on negotiation and trusting in your co-parent to share important holidays with you. The holiday schedule will help your family organize a clear and fair balance between homes for your children. The schedule can be arranged in many ways.
Some families choose an every-other-year schedule, where each parent gets the full day of Thanksgiving, with one parent receiving the odd years and the other parent receiving the even years.
Another option is to split the holiday every year. An exchange takes place mid-day to allow both parents part of Thanksgiving every year. Travel requirements, distance, and school schedules can often influence which type of holiday schedule is best for a family. This schedule can also be emotionally exhausting for children.
If your work and family schedule allows, celebrating Thanksgiving on the Friday or weekend following Thanksgiving is another option that would allow you to enjoy a celebration with your children every year without the hassle of an exchange in the middle of a holiday.
Consistency is important both to ease the stress on parents, but also to help children feel secure in knowing which parent they will be spending Thanksgiving with each year and to make sure that children have the opportunity to build relationships with extended family members through holiday events with both sides of the family.
Conflicts with Holiday Parenting Time
A Parenting Plan prepared by an experienced family law attorney will help your family avoid Thanksgiving parenting time conflicts by clearly outlining the rights and parenting responsibilities afforded to each parent. If you already have a Parenting Plan in place and are still having Thanksgiving conflicts, it’s probably a good time to schedule a free consultation with our Illinois and Wisconsin licensed attorneys. Even established Parenting Plans need occasional review to make sure that they still work for your family. Call or text us at (815) 200-8802 to schedule a consultation.
Happy Thanksgiving from Attorney Zachary Townsend and all of the team here at Pro Legal Care LLC.
