These days, it appears that retailers completely ignore the Thanksgiving holiday and simply jump to Christmas. Not only will you see holiday decorations at malls, and “pre-holiday” deals peppering advertisements. While the holiday season is supposed to be “the most wonderful time of the year,” it may be difficult to buy into that statement when you have to co-parent with someone with the sensitivity of the “Grinch Who Stole Christmas.” but even the evil Grinch showed that he had a heart…eventually.
This is why we want to focus this post on the importance of compromise. It is critical for divorced and separated parents to understand that the holiday season is not necessarily about them. Rather, it is about the children and creating memories for them that will last a lifetime. As such, parents should be mindful of scheduling time with the kids around events where they (they kids) are the center of attention.
These events may include holiday recitals and plays, family gatherings and even favorite holiday movies. When considering recitals and school events, what kid wouldn’t want to have both parents there to support them? As for family gatherings, children deserve to know (and be spoiled by) both sides of their family.
Because of this, parents should be careful about limiting parenting time between the child and the other parent. Not only is this in bad taste during the holidays, it could be viewed as a violation of an existing parenting time order. For those without an order, being stingy about parenting time could play a part in how a family court judge may award parenting time in the future.
The preceding is not legal advice. If you have questions about your specific situation, an experienced family law attorney can advise you.