You will hear a lot about co-parenting as you start to work on custody arrangements for your children. Co-parenting, according to U.S. News and World Report, is simply the term to describe parenting your children with a partner with whom you are not in a relationship.
Doing this is not easy. Some parents may have a decent relationship and find it to be not that hard, but others may not have such a good relationship and find it very tricky to make the setup work.
Requirements
To effectively co-parent, you need to have open communication and cooperation. You need to find what works for your situation to allow you to get on the same page when it comes to your kids. You have to figure out how to work together and put your children first. There needs to be a level of mutual agreement that decisions will always focus on what is best for your children.
Plan
To effectively co-parent, you have to develop some type of schedule. You can do this informally through an agreement you reach together or formally through the court. The schedule needs to cover all situations, including holidays, vacations and unexpected situations, such as illnesses.
Your plan also needs to cover some basic rules for parenting. You need to agree on how you will handle different situations, such as punishment.
Your plan needs to encompass every aspect of parenting. You want it as detailed as possible to avoid issues in the future. A solid plan can make it much easier to co-parent even if you do not always get along with the other parent.
