Can I take DC on a 7 hour trip to see their Dad?

[mrboingboing]

As above. I'm losing track of what you can and can't do and when. They haven't seen him since October and he misses them terribly of course.

I think contact with parents who are separated has been permitted all along, but I might be wrong. I just wasnt sure because of the long distance and it needing overnight stays, so we avoided up until now.

It would be Easter weekend we'd be thinking of going.

@AnotherEmma

Can't you go to CMS? Is he self-employed?

Yes he's self employed. And doesn't put what he earns through the books, but to be fair, he earns very little as he's lazy and unmotivated.

Don't bother. Why put yourself to all the time, effort, expense and stress for a lazy fucker who doesn't even pay for his own kids? Stay at home and do something nice with your kids instead.

Guilt?! If he doesn’t understand his children, makes no effort to see them, call them or send letters, you have NO reason to feel guilty.

I really wouldn’t go. Leave the ball firmly in his court. Him seeing his kids is not your responsibility at all.

If you do go, travelodge for all of you so the kids don’t have to stay overnight and you can look after them after a day with him.

I agree with others. While you legally can do this I'm not sure I'd put this much effort in if he cant be arsed to be a father. You can't force him to be a parent so dont feel guilty

I really wouldn't bother under those circumstances. And i certainly wouldn't be putting all the responsibility for phone calls on the children. And id also be contacting cms. Anything in maintenance is better than nothing. Just for the message it sends!

You can stay in a Travelodge or Premier Inn if it is for essential travel.
I have had to do this a couple of times recently due to my elderly parent being ill.
I haven't had to provide any evidence as to why I need to stay. There is no restaurant open though, so you will need to take your own food.

Honestly I really wouldn’t put yourself out in terms of time,effort and money.

You could facilitate a video chat or too to help dd but suggest he comes and stays in a hotel for one night to see the dc.

Two 🤪 not too!!

Thanks all. Yes Greenmarmalade I think I might do this. He won't like it but the DC will be MUCH happier with me.

I only facilitated phone calls and visits with my DC’s dad when THEY wanted to and when i thought he was good for them. Otherwise, I didn’t do anything. These days they’re teenagers and see that he’s useless, and couldn’t care less about seeing him.

Can you imagine if you lived 7 hours away? Would you ever not bother travelling to see the kids?!

But yes- do whatever you can to mitigate damage and stress for them, and ignore any negative feedback from their dad.

On the plus side, you can all enjoy a mini holiday at a travelodge! Spend an extra day and make the most of a rare opportunity to make it work for YOU.

If you’re going to go @mrboingboing do you need to be with them all the time? Can you use the time the dc are with dad to rest, watch tv, walk etc?