The CoParent Circle blog
Calm, practical guides for co-parents.
Research-backed essays on custody schedules, parallel parenting, parenting plans, and what holds up in court.
- Guide9 min read
Parallel Parenting Plan: Free Template for High-Conflict Co-Parents
A court-ready parallel parenting plan template that reduces conflict by minimizing direct contact, defining decision-making, and locking every exchange to written, timestamped rules.
Read the guide → - Guide6 min read
The 2-2-3 Custody Schedule: How It Works, Pros & Cons, and Who It Fits
A complete guide to the 2-2-3 custody rotation: how the week is structured, which ages it suits, the trade-offs vs. 2-2-5-5 and week-on/week-off, and how to run it without losing your mind.
Read the guide → - Guide11 min read
Managing Shared Expenses as Co-Parents: The Definitive Guide
Pro-rata splits, what counts as "extraordinary," receipt workflows that survive a courtroom, reimbursement deadlines, and the IRS dependency rules nobody explains. The complete system.
Read the guide → - Guide12 min read
Long-Distance Co-Parenting & Move-Away Cases: The Complete Guide
How relocation cases work, what judges weigh when one parent wants to move, and how to build a long-distance schedule that actually keeps both parents in your child's life.
Read the guide → - Guide11 min read
Introducing a New Partner to Your Kids: A Co-Parent's Playbook
When to introduce a new partner, how to tell your co-parent, and what most parenting plans actually say about it. A practical, age-by-age guide that protects your kids and your custody order.
Read the guide → - Guide11 min read
Holiday & Summer Custody Schedules: A Year-Round Planning Playbook
Thanksgiving, Christmas, spring break, summer block — the parts of the year custody plans most often fail. A practical, court-tested system for dividing the holidays and summer so the year runs itself.
Read the guide → - Guide5 min read
How to Document Co-Parenting Communication for Court
Every family-law attorney has the same advice: document everything. Almost no one explains how in a way you can actually do on a Tuesday night. This is the practical version.
Read the guide → - Guide4 min read
What "Court-Approved Co-Parenting App" Actually Means
There is no national court that approves co-parenting apps. So what's the phrase actually doing — and what should you really look for when a judge says "use one"?
Read the guide → - Guide5 min read
Co-Parenting With a Narcissist: A Practical Playbook
You can't fix a narcissistic ex. You can change the structure of the relationship until their behavior stops costing you and your child so much. Here's the playbook that actually works.
Read the guide → - Guide5 min read
50/50 Custody Schedules Explained: 2/2/3, Week-On/Week-Off, and 2/2/5/5
Three schedules, three different shapes of family life. A practical comparison of the most common equal-parenting-time rotations — with calendar examples, age guidance, and the trade-offs nobody talks about until month three.
Read the guide → - Guide2 min read
Court-Admissible Co-Parenting Apps: A 2026 Comparison Guide
If you're picking a co-parenting app because a judge, mediator, or attorney asked you to, the marketing pages won't help much. What matters is whether the records the app produces will hold up when entered into evidence.
Read the guide → - Guide6 min read
Parallel Parenting: A Complete Guide for High-Conflict Co-Parents
When traditional co-parenting isn't safe, sustainable, or working, parallel parenting gives both parents a structured way to raise their child with minimal direct contact — protecting the child from conflict while preserving each parent's relationship.
Read the guide →