Getting Creative with Holiday Visitation Planning on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years

Thanksgiving is tomorrow, which means that Christmas and New Years are also right around the corner. It is time to plan and get ready for holiday visitation and all the family events by being proactive in preventing potential breakdowns in co-parenting and holiday cheer. In this divorce attorney podcast, Mark L. Scroggins visits with us about holiday visitation arrangements and avoiding custody problems. He suggests negotiating solutions to conflict in good faith but also seeking resolution in court if necessary.

Despite all the planning and preparation for a smooth holiday season, plans can change in an instant.

Consider this scenario: You and your children’s co-parent live in Frisco, Texas and use the Collin County Standard Possession Order(SPO) and as the possessory conservator the kids are with you on Thanksgiving for the odd numbered years from the end of school until Sunday night. Last year, in 2017, it was your to be with the kids on Thanksgiving. Around Halloween that year the children’s other parent called you to ask to bring the kids with them on a family vacation to visit their grandparents in Houston. You agreed to swap years and made your own alternative plans including buying airfare to Colorado to visit your relatives who moved there. Everything was set until the week before Thanksgiving.

As it turns out, your children’s other parent is trying to back out of plans one week before Thanksgiving and you are already packed and ready to fly out of state. Apparently the new significant other upset the grandparents in Houston and they are no longer welcome to visit with the children so long as the new significant other is coming with them. Grandma says she will see the grandchildren in Frisco in a couple weeks when she drives up to Dallas for Christmas shopping.

As the kids’ other parent is in conflict with their new significant other, they don’t think the kids should be around them this Thanksgiving and they want to revert back to the original plan for Thanksgiving in as stated in the SPO. Now you have to cancel your plans with people looking forward to seeing you on a surprise basis and you get to lose out on the airline tickets as well.

What can the person in the story learn about holiday visitation planning? How would you react in that situation? Listen to the podcast and learn some tips from Mark L. Scroggins.?

Board-Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, attorney Mark L. Scroggins and the team at Scroggins Law Group in Dallas, Texas represent clients in a variety of divorce and family law matters.

At Scroggins Law Group, we have more than 25 years of experience with family law cases in Dallas, Collin and Denton Counties. When you retain our firm, you can trust that your case is in the hands of a highly skilled, dedicated professional. We understand the unique challenges of a high value divorce case, and more importantly, have the knowledge and experience you need on your side.

To learn more about the Scroggins Law Group and all of the different ways we can help you, please feel free to Contact Us today or call (214) 469-3100 to schedule a consultation.