You and your ex have built a home together in a community you enjoy being a part of, a school district that meets your expectations and a place your kids enjoy calling home. As you finalize your divorce, you might not be ready to try and rebuild the stable home you’ve already created — or at least not yet. If that’s the case, then continuing to raise your children under one roof through bird nesting or nesting might be a good option for your family.
Nesting basically means you keep your family home or a mutual home for your children to live in full time. Instead of having your children bounce back between two homes, you and your spouse take turns taking care of your children out of one home.
Successful nesting works well for divorced couples who get along with one another. You don’t necessarily have to live in the family home at the same time, but raising children together and sharing the space still requires a lot of communication. If the end of your marriage included many heated debates, this type of arrangement might not suit you and your ex-spouse.
If you decide the mutual respect is still present between you and your ex, then it’s also worth considering if nesting will help your children meet their emotional needs. Parents of older children or younger infants might benefit from this living and parenting arrangement. This is because moving away from friends and familiarity is a tougher process as you get older, and frequent interaction between infants and both parents can be crucial to their development.
Nesting can also give you and your spouse extra time to decide who should keep the family home or if buying two new homes is a better idea. Divorce can be an overwhelming process filled with large decisions, so slowing it down can help you ease into your new reality while not losing focus of the needs of your children. And an experienced family law attorney can help guide your family through the legal ins and outs of divorce.
