If you are a mother and have just gone through a divorce or separation you may find yourself in a precarious situation. If you have an ex that is very disruptive to the children’s lives – as in saying bad things in front of them, or just leading a very ‘bachelor’ lifestyle – it might be inevitable that you go for full custody of the children. Especially if you currently have joint physical custody arrangements. This is definitely not the most ideal solution for the children, but it it’s necessary for their safety, then it should be done. The same can be said about irresponsible mothers with ex-husbands that should go for custody.
In either case, full custody for mothers or fathers is not an easy task, because you need to prove to the court system that the children are in physical or psychological danger by being with the other parent. You will need to purchase a small notebook that you can use as a journal, a day planner works great for this. Use that journal to record everything that transpires between you and your ex.
Such as, visitation time pick-up and drop-off, people that were present, any arguments that you had or were incited by the other parent. You need to log anything that you even remotely think might be relevant should this ever go in front of a judge.
Other important things to save are any letters, emails, or text messages that you receive for the other parent. These rarely get dismissed as evidence in court and they are the direct words coming from the other parent. Things like these can be very damning to the other person when they are obviously going to be on their best behavior when sitting in the court room.
Most of all, do your best to protect your children but you still need to allow them access to the other parent.