The woman was very concerned about the welfare of her children being left with her former husband. He self medicated and she was concerned about her children staying with him for long periods of time. She also requested that any time he wanted to take the children out of state, that he advise her of the planned trips, duration of the trips and when they would return, as well as a contact number in case of an emergency. She adhered to the same request. Her children were 8, 11 and 15. She provided them with a cell phone so that they could call her in the evening, if they so wished.
The visitation process kept her former husband on his toes because he made sure that all of his self medicating items were not lying around when the children came for visits. What he did when they were not there, was no one's business.
She is a very wise woman and if she had not requested certain things, she might not have gotten them. She stated her facts and voiced her concerns quite strongly and she "appeared" very calm when doing so. She then requested certain things and the court listened and favored her requests. Sometimes, we have to put in requests and see how the court will react. In her case, she was willing to "mirror" what she was requesting so that it didn't look like she was just painting her former spouse as a menace.
Each case is different, but you can't allow fear stop you from inquiring.
Sit quietly, the answers will reveal themselves when you least expect them to. The past is gone, the present is a gift and you need to focus on today, allow the future to reveal itself when it is ready.
