Divorce can be extremely stressful, especially if you’re not on good terms with your ex.
As tensions rise, you may find yourself wanting to cut-off contact entirely. It’s understandable, and probably seems like a good solution in the heat of the moment.
But deep down most of us know that when there’s children involved, completely cutting off communication isn’t really a viable option.
You might find yourself wishing there was some kind of co-parenting website or app that could share necessary information about your kids, while keeping you out of the fray.
Well your wish has been granted.
Look, we all know that finding some way to get on the same page with your ex, despite differences in parenting styles and personalities, is essential to the wellbeing of your children.
Younger kids are especially vulnerable to the psychological effects of divorce. These effects can be made worse if their parents are fighting in their presence or using them as go-betweens.
You don’t want to be that type of parent.
In fact, most divorced parents know they have to figure out some way to maintain cordial communication with their ex for the sake of their children. Knowing this doesn’t make the task any less daunting though.
Divorce can bring all sorts of new issues into your family life that need to be dealt with.
Here are 8 common co-parenting problems divorce attorneys see ALL the time that you may suddenly find yourself facing:
- Scheduling issues
- Keeping track of the kids’ vital records
- He said/She said type disagreements
- Tracking your shared expenses for the kids
- Harassment, particularly if you’re co-parenting with a narcissist
- Forgetting to share info about the kids your ex may need
- Accessing the kids’ schedules when you’re away from home
- Needing to share info related to your case with professionals
It’s a lot! We know.
That’s why we wanted to share one of the best co-parenting tips judges and family attorneys tell their clients, which is to use a co-parenting website to make communication easier.
Our Family Wizard Co-Parenting Website
There’s a couple of different co-parenting websites out there, but the one that is the most well-known and recommended is Our Family Wizard.
It’s so effective that judges in all 50 states have ordered families to utilize this co-parenting website in contested custody cases.
“For several years now, I have suggested the parenting program, Our Family Wizard, to try to alleviate some of the communication issues I often see in custody and visitation cases. As a divorce and custody attorney, this program allows me to connect to my client’s account and retain messages and communications between the parents.” – Seif & McNamee, LLC
If you’re newly separated and emotions are running high why wouldn’t you want to use technology to help make things easier?
Our Family Wizard provides a neutral safe space to facilitate communication between divorced parents. This, in turn, can reduce conflict and make your kids lives more stable as a result.
And at the end of the day, a successful co-parenting plan is about supporting the overall well being of your children. We’re pretty sure both parents would agree with that.
So let’s revisit the 8 co-parenting problems identified by family law professionals and show you how a co-parenting website like Our Family Wizard (OFW) can help.
1. Scheduling Issues
This is probably the number one issue divorced parents have to face.
Think about it, between visitation days, holidays, kids’ activities, doctors appointments, etc. there’s a LOT of stuff to keep track of!
It’s hard enough to manage when you’re both under one roof, but splitting the responsibilities between two households increases the complexity tenfold. This is exactly what the OFW Interactive Calendar was designed for.
The calendar keeps clear, documented records of your co-parenting scheduling plan to prevent misunderstandings. You can also map out holidays and vacations in advance to avoid future arguments.
In addition, the calendar tracks a history of scheduling changes and allows parents to request time swaps if needed.
This is cool for a couple of reasons, the first one being you want to remember when someone changes their parenting day. But also, if your ex has the bad habit of missing days or trying to switch a lot, this will all be recorded for your attorney.
You can also print out the calendar and put it somewhere your kids can see so they know what to expect.
This can help make the transition to a two-household situation easier on them.
2. Tracking Your Kids’ Vital Records
It’s sometimes surprising (and a little overwhelming) how much info you need to keep track of relative to your kids!
Things like medical records, insurance details, school records, emergency contacts, activity schedules, etc.
The OFW co-parenting website comes with an Information Bank where you can securely store and update all this important data so that both parents can easily retrieve it.
Our Family Wizard has a mobile app too, which means you can access these records on your smartphone. This can be a lifesaver when you’re at your child’s school or doctor’s office and need the information to complete a form.
Related: Co-Parenting Tips That Work: Even On A Toxic Ex
3. He Said/She Said Disagreements
Ever find yourself in the situation where you KNOW your ex agreed to do something, but now they’re denying it? So frustrating!
The messaging center in OFW is designed so that none of your messages can ever be tampered with. You never have to worry about something being edited or “lost”.
This is why Our Family Wizard messaging is admissible in court.
“OFW has been a HUGE blessing since being court ordered to use it. It has brought undeniable accountability to co-parenting my son, and the conflicts have become far less frequent. As a direct result, I have watched my son flourish and become confident and loving to both myself and his mother. No further need for counseling and a complete 180 with his academics. Thank you!” – Corey K.
If your co-parenting partner promises to do something, it’s recorded right there in black and white with a date and time stamp.
By communicating through the app, everything is thoroughly documented, so there’s no more arguing about who said what.
4. Tracking Your Shared Expenses
Who’s responsible for paying for braces? What about camp? How do you track child support payments?
Tracking shared parenting expenses is a giant pain…but if it’s not done accurately, it can cause a lot of stress and arguments.
You can use the OFW co-parenting website to categorize and track all of your child-related expenses.
It has a nifty reporting feature so you can instantly see where you stand.
You can also make and receive secure, documented electronic payments through the OFW Expense Log and upload copies of receipts and invoices. This way any child support or reimbursed costs are all documented.
5. Harassment
If communication between you and your ex has gotten heated or even harassing, OFW has an add-on feature called ToneMeter that can check the tone of any outgoing messages before they’re sent.
The program flags content that may be inappropriate, so the writer can dial it back before clicking send.
It’s a pretty cool way of encouraging more mindful communication between co-parents and keeping family discussions from turning combative.
Related: When You’re Co-Parenting With A Narcissist
6. Forgetting To Share Info About The Kids
Have you ever been out and about and think to yourself, “I’ve got to remember to tell the kids’ dad to bring their soccer gear when he picks them up”?
Then, you head off to work, dad shows up later with no soccer gear in sight, and you’ve got a carload of bummed out kids who can’t go to practice…
Yea, it happens. Like a lot. There are so many little nit-picky details to remember!
And if you’re not exactly BFFs with your ex having daily phone chats, a lot of details can get lost in the shuffle.
This co-parenting app has a journal function where you can make instant notes on the fly whenever you think of something and share them with your co-parent.
You can also use the journal to track your kids emotional well-being during the divorce process and refer back to it to gain some parenting insights.
7. Accessing The Kids’ Schedules When You’re Away From Home
Like we mentioned earlier, Our Family Wizard has a mobile app available so you can manage your calendar, shared expenses, kid’s info, etc. in real-time from wherever you are.
Anything entered in the app has the same level of security and degree of documentation as the co-parenting website.
Related: Top Ten Helpful Parenting Books
8. Needing To Share Info With Professionals
The OFW app lets you share information with the family therapist, mediator, attorney, or judge working your case in a safe, documented environment.
They, in turn, can send you secure messages. And you won’t have to worry about losing them because it’s all archived right there.
Related: 5 Secrets To Successful Parallel Parenting
Divorce is not easy for parents or kids. Everyone in the family feels a tremendous sense of loss and anxiety.
Emotions run high and can cause all sorts of miscommunication, misunderstanding, and conflict. None of which is helpful to your kids as they transition into their new reality.
Using a co-parenting website like Our Family Wizard can reduce a lot of the stress of managing communication and schedules across separate households.
Children need to feel loved and valued by BOTH their parents. If you can use a tool like this to help take fighting out of the equation and create a more stable, consistent environment for your kids, everyone wins.
Overtime your kids will adjust to their new situation and come out okay. They’ll be calmer and happier as everything starts to become a familiar routine again.
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