Arranging to Take Your Child on Holiday
Taking your child away on holiday gives you a great opportunity to spend some quality time together and build some lasting memories. As eager as you may be to do this, you are going to have to co-ordinate with your ex to make the process run smoothly and keep her happy. Make sure you leave yourself enough time to work out any glitches and hopefully you will soon be off on a fun packed holiday.
Plan in Advance
Deciding to take your children away at the last minute is not going to go down well with your ex and just leaves you open for things to go wrong and her to hold them against you. Think about when their school holidays are and leave enough time to finalise the details so everyone is happy.
Check Commitments
Has your child got a football match or ballet show planned? Are they going to miss their best friend’s birthday? Is your ex planning to take them to see their Grandma? You need to co-ordinate all your diaries so that you can find a time that best suits you all so there is no cause for complaint.
Ask Your Ex
Yes, in an ideal world you would be able to take your children wherever you wanted without asking permission from anyone. However, in reality it is best to keep relations smooth so that you do not work against yourself. By asking your ex for permission you showing her respect and hopefully she will reciprocate by agreeing.
Negotiate
So you want to take them away for 3 weeks to India and your ex would prefer 3 days in Cornwall. Sit down with her and try and negotiate a compromise by calmly pointing out the pros of your plan. Make sure that you acknowledge and accept any concerns that she may have and try to find some middle ground.
Ask Your Children
While your ideal holiday might be cycling through France you need to think about what your children would enjoy. Ask them where they would like to visit or what their favourite activities are. Then you can do some research and plan the trip together so that they can get excited about it.
Lessen the Distance
Although your children have probably spent time away from their mum staying with you they may not have left her for an extended amount of time. Think about this in advance, take a photo, their favourite home comfort and make it easy for them to contact her if they want to.When you are planning a holiday with your children you need to think about their needs but also consider the opinions and concerns of your ex. You want her to be supportive of your plans so tread carefully, ask her permission and try to negotiate a plan that everybody is happy with. It can be a great time to share with your children and if this one goes well, then hopefully you can plan many more over the years.
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