I’m about to have a baby. Well, to tell the truth, I still have a couple weeks before my due date—but I’m also feeling a little bit like everyone I know is on baby watch. I’ve never been so critical of every single feeling I have, wondering if it means something more. It’s my first baby. I’ve never been through this before, so I think that has a little bit to do with the way I’m feeling right now. It’s always really nerve wracking to go through something new, especially when it’s going to … [Read more...]
Removing a Virginia Guardian ad Litem
In Virginia, as in most states, the standard we use for custody cases is the best interests of the child. In Virginia, as in most states, we have a number of factors that comprise, basically, what factors we believe account for what types of choices, when it comes to custody and visitation, are in a child's best interests. Even still, though, it's not always easy to tell exactly what's in the best interests of a particular child under a unique set of circumstances. As far as a judge is … [Read more...]
Facing a Virginia Child Custody Case
I’m about to have a baby. Well, to tell the truth, I still have a couple weeks before my due date—but I’m also feeling a little bit like everyone I know is on baby watch. I’ve never been so critical of every single feeling I have, wondering if it means something more. It’s my first baby. I’ve never been through this before, so I think that has a little bit to do with the way I’m feeling right now. It’s always really nerve wracking to go through something new, especially when it’s going to … [Read more...]
Preparing for a Custody Trial
Trials are tough. They’re really intimidating and, at the end of the day, it’s really hard to know how the cookie is going to crumble, so to speak. There’s a lot of risk inherent in leaving everything (especially when “everything” is as important as custody of your children!) up to a judge—the one person in the courtroom who knows the LEAST about the case. When you’re preparing for a custody trial, you’ve go to be really careful, because you don’t want to put so much as a single toe out of line. … [Read more...]
Reunification in Virginia
Sometimes it seems like the types of cases we see come in waves. We don’t have many cases of a particular type or with a specific theme and then (bam!) all of a sudden we have five or six, and we’re all grappling with similar issues. Of course, especially in custody, no two cases are the same, and the way a case is decided can be determined based on one specific fact, so it can be hard to take particular points away from a specific type of case. That doesn’t stop us from trying, though! And one … [Read more...]
Do I have to have my own place to get custody in Virginia?
For most women, the period of time leading up to their custody case is one of upheaval. That’s not always the case, though; sometimes, custody can come up without being part of an underlying divorce or break up or whatever the case may be. For a lot of women, though, the custody case is triggered by something else—something like a breakup or a divorce—and that something else can lead to a little bit of instability in other areas. Women ask me all the time whether they’ll need to get their own … [Read more...]
Managing Co Parenting Problems: Our Family Wizard
Sharing custody is hard. When you and your child’s father decide not to stay together, you’ll have to make a commitment, at least to some extent, to sharing the responsibilities related to custody between the two of you. Things that you may not have given a thought to before – like picking up the kids from school or daycare, or communication regarding doctor’s appointments and parent teacher conferences – can become a whole lot more complicated. When you add to an already difficult situation the … [Read more...]
Will he take our child and run?
For most moms where a custody case is at stake, one of the biggest, most suffocating fears they have is the possibility that their child’s father will take the child and not return him. Whether he takes the child and runs or whether he just refuses to return him to mom, it doesn’t matter; the fear is real, and it’s crippling. How do I prevent him from taking the child and running? Really, the only way to prevent him from taking the child and running is by getting some kind of custody order … [Read more...]
Custody in separate homes
At some point, after you and your child’s father call it quits, you’ll live in separate homes. In some ways, that makes custody of the child you share more difficult. In other ways, though, it lightens the burdens on you both. If you and your child’s father have just recently made the decision to separate, it’s daunting to think about the two of you living further apart than you do. Not so much because of each other, of course, (after all, you made the decision to end your relationship), but … [Read more...]
Co Parenting Problems
I’ll be the first to say that co parenting isn’t easy. I mean, there’s a reason why you and your child’s father called it quits on your relationship, and there’s no doubt that the lingering feelings between the two of you make being parents together and presenting a united front incredibly difficult. Even in the happiest marriages, moms and dads have big disagreements over how to raise children and the types of decisions they have to make in their children’s day to day lives. Combining two … [Read more...]
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