For many couples, the real difficulties do not start until after divorce. Especially if you have children, you will be in a partnership with your ex-spouse for a number of years after the ink dries on your divorce papers. One of the most difficult aspects of family life after divorce is figuring out your family’s new living situation.
The traditional arrangement of moving children back and forth between two separate parental households does not work for all families. Because of this, some families are trying out a new living arrangement: nesting.
What is nesting?
Nesting mimics the way that parent birds care for babies. Namely, the babies do not move between two separate parental nests. Instead, the babies stay in the same spot and the parents fly in and out to attend to them. In the same manner, you may decide for your children to stay in one family home and have the parents do the rotating in and out of the house.
What problems can this solve?
Particularly with older children, you may encounter resistance to moving them frequently. Often, nesting is a good solution to keep the children in the same neighborhood with the same friends. Especially if you live in a very expensive location, you may not be able to maintain a household in the same neighborhood as a single-income entity. Nesting is a good way to ensure that your children maintain a stable upbringing.
Nesting is also helpful for families with children who have special needs. Often, moving special-needs children frequently is a huge risk. Nesting allows them to stay in the same living situation with all of their necessary medicines or medical equipment.
