If you are going through a divorce with children, you may hear more than once that you need to put your feelings for your soon-to-be former spouse aside for their sake. While you may be able to do so in order to negotiate a child custody agreement that will meet the approval of a Kentucky family court, that does not mean that you necessarily want to spend a significant amount of time with your ex thereafter. In fact, even though you may agree to communicate and compromise in order to co-parent, that does not mean that you and your ex can handle extended periods of face-to-face contact.
This raises the question of how to handle dropping off the children to the other parent. Your personal relationship could still be raw enough that even short contact may cause tension and anger, which could lead to arguments that are counterproductive to what you intend to do for the children. Therefore, you may need to consider finding a neutral drop-off location that provides security for everyone and discourages prolonged or contentious interaction between parents.
You do not have to simply agree to whatever your former spouse wants. The arrangements need to be as fair to both parties as possible. In addition, you may find it beneficial to include transportation issues in your agreement. What happens if a parent is unable to make it to the drop-off location or will be late? Your time is just as valuable, and your agreement should reflect that.
There may come a time when the tensions between you and your former spouse subside to a point where in-person contact no longer brings up negative feelings. However, until then, you can include specific instructions in your child custody agreement regarding how and where the drop-off will occur. A Kentucky family attorney can help you find a solution to this issue that works best for all concerned.
Source: thespruce.com, “Picking Neutral Drop-Off Locations for Visitation“, Jennifer Wolf, Accessed on Feb. 23, 2018