If you are contemplating ending your marriage, your paramount concern is likely the welfare of your children. After all, kids often struggle to adjust to divorce. This may be especially true if your kids must shuffle between your post-divorce home and your ex-spouse’s.
When deciding child conservatorship, the formal name for child custody in the Lone Star State, judges must consider the best interests of the children. If stability is an issue, you and your ex-spouse may want to entertain the idea of nesting for a few months or years after your divorce.
What is nesting?
Nesting, sometimes called birdnesting, keeps the kids in the family home. During your scheduled parenting time, you live with the children. When your parenting time ends, you live somewhere else. Your ex-spouse does the same.
Why is nesting good for kids?
The obvious benefit of a nesting arrangement is the stability it offers your children. Rather than having to move to a new home or possibly even a new school, your kids stay in their pre-divorce environment. Other than not have both parents home at the same time, your children may have roughly the same lives after your divorce as they did before it.
How can you make nesting work?
Nesting requires cooperation between both parents. If you and your ex-spouse want to try nesting, you may want to consider drafting a nesting agreement. This agreement outlines each parent’s rights and responsibilities. It may also include a provision for resolving disputes.
While nesting certainly is not appropriate for every family, it may give your kids ample time to adjust to your divorce. Ultimately, though, you must carefully weigh the advantages and drawbacks of the arrangement before figuring out what works for your family.
