What subject(s) does this advice apply to?
Communication between divorced parents
Dealing with long distances between divorced parents
Easing emotional trauma

Describe the situation or problem.
If your children spend time with both parents, chances are they need to be driven between houses. Who drives? You really need to talk about this when making the schedule. Arguments and misunderstandings can be minimized when you spell this out, particularly if there is some distance involved between the houses.

What advice can you offer?
When we both lived in the same town, the parent ôon dutyö picked up at the beginning of their time with our daughter and dropped off at school on Monday morning. After living in the same town and sharing custody for many years, my ex and his new family moved two hours away. This changed everything. We agreed to a new schedule where our daughter would spend time at his new house every other weekend. When we negotiated this new arrangement, he agreed to do most of the driving, since he had made the decision to move so far away. There were times when I needed to drive her to her dadÆs, but rather than getting angry about the imposition on my time, I tried to remember what was best for her.

This advice is most appropriate for parents with children in...
Preschool and Younger
Elementary School
Middle School
High School & Beyond