Parenting is full of decisions you will have to make with
your ex, whether you like each another or not. Cooperating and communicating
makes decision-making easier on everyone. If you aim for consistency and
teamwork with your ex, child-rearing decisions tend to fall into place. Here's how...
● Consistency: It’s healthy for children to be exposed to
different perspectives and learn to be flexible, but they also need to know
they are living under the same basic set of expectations at each home. Creating
consistency between your home and your ex’s avoids confusion for your children.
● Rules: Rules don’t have to be exactly the same between
both households, but if you and your ex can establish generally consistent
guidelines, your children will not have to bounce back and forth between different
disciplinary environments.
● Discipline. Try to follow similar consequences for broken
rules, even if it did not happen in your home. So, if your children lost iPad privileges
while at your ex’s home, follow through with the same restriction. This can also
be done for rewarding good behavior.
● Schedule. Where you can, create consistency in your
children’s schedules. Making meals, homework, and bedtimes similar can go a
long way toward your child’s adjustment to having two homes.
