Giving gifts to your children is likely one of the highlights of special occasions, such as Christmas. For children who have divorced parents, these gifts might turn out to be headaches. Michigan parents who are divorced and have children might like to take some points about gifting to the children into consideration before another gift is purchased.
Children of divorced parents usually have two homes. When a parent at one home gives the child a gift, especially if the gift is a special one for the child, the gift might be taken back and forth from house to house. This can sometimes lead to parts of the gift being forgotten at one home, lost or broken.
Another situation can occur when a child is given something by a non-custodial parent that the child is required to leave at that home. This can be traumatic for the child since the child will only get to play with or use the gift occasionally.
Parents can help their children deal with gifting occasions by working together to ensure the gifts that are given to the child are appropriate. For example, a non-custodial parent giving a child a pet to take back to the custodial parent’s home isn’t a good idea unless it is cleared with the parent who has physical custody first. If items are taken back and forth, making a checklist for the child and both parents can help to prevent missing or forgotten items.
While gifting isn’t something that is covered in child custody agreements, there are many aspects of caring for children after a divorce that are covered. If you feel the need to seek a modified child custody arrangement, seeking the assistance of an experienced Detroit child custody attorney can help to make the process easier.
Source: Detroit Free Press, “Holiday gifting can be vexing for kids of divorce” Leslie Italie, Dec. 23, 2013