You and your ex-spouse have a few children, and one thing you may have considered is how to divide their time between two homes fairly. Your youngest is not even in elementary school, while the oldest is getting ready to drive. Your middle child has complained that they feel left out, and you have to figure out how to balance their relationships with the end of your own marriage.
One thing that some parents do consider is splitting custody and dividing the children into different primary residences. For example, if you are a teacher at the elementary school that your youngest will be attending, it may make sense to have them in your custody most of the time. The older child, who is rarely home, can be given a more flexible schedule where they can stay at either parent’s home (with notice). Then, your middle child could have more attention by living with your ex-spouse, who will have more time to devote to them, since the other children are not present at the same time.
Splitting custody doesn’t mean your children won’t see each other
It is important for children to be able to develop a sibling bond, but that doesn’t mean that they need to be together every day. If it is more beneficial to split up their custody times during the week but to have them all together on the weekends, then that may be a good idea. If two of your children don’t get along, you may opt to keep them separated the majority of the time to prevent conflicts.
There are many reasons why splitting custody can work to the benefit of parents and their children. If this is something you’re considering, make sure to put together a strong parenting plan and custody schedule before moving forward.