When the extended family gets together for a holiday, amidst the fun, awkward quirks and tense conflicts sometimes come out. This year may be worse than most. The recent election brought some huge political differences to the fore. Close to half of the people who voted chose Donald Trump, and more chose Hilary Clinton, who […]

One caveat as we begin: If one parent is actually abusive or otherwise harmful to the children, then the better parent’s avoiding the custody fight will not put the kids in a good situation. This article is intended for parents who are in the normal range of parenting abilities and styles. Here’s the short version: Custody

by guest author Paul Denikin Caring for a loved one who has Alzheimer’s can be overwhelming at times, and when the individual’s capacity for understanding and retaining information dwindles, there may be a time when you are required to step in and help make decisions for their day-to-day care and future. It’s extremely important to remember, however,

by guest author Susan Oberman   The details of everyday life when parents live separately (or even when they live together), can be overwhelming. The complexities of children’s schedules and parent’s work obligations make it necessary for parents to communicate daily or weekly to make decisions: What activities, friendships, and cultural experiences are appropriate? What

by guest author Ellen Purcell .   . The Problem: “When we are out with other couples, he’s the life of the party, but once we are home again, he hardly talks with me at all.” . The Explanation: Typically men and women view social conversation quite differently. Women tend to be looking to establish or

When divorcing, both parties need to understand their financial, emotional, and legal situations. For decades Stan Corey, author of The Divorce Dance, has been educating divorce clients about their financial situations and about the long-term implications of decisions they are making during divorce. When I talked with him on Family Matters, he talked about what people need

  By Guest Author Catherine J. Byerly Structured settlements aren’t something you hear about all too often in divorce – but they can come up, and when they do you want to have all the facts. But first, what is a structured settlement? A structured settlement is a particular way of resolving an amount of

  We did not even know that we had been nominated, but Colin Family Mediation Group LLC won the Best of Burke Award in the Legal Services category in 2015 and again in 2016! It is wonderful to discover such high regard for the work we mediators do. Below is a copy of the full press

by guest author Vee Cecil If you have been diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer’s disease, you are probably able to go about your daily routines with relative ease, save a few mishaps here and there. But as your symptoms increase, you may begin to struggle with daily tasks, such as grocery shopping, which were once second

  The adjective “blended” is frequently used to describe stepfamilies. Unfortunately, this term makes the stepfamily process sound like a smooth transition, uninterrupted by conflict or disagreement. Anyone who has been a member of a stepfamily—myself included—knows that this is not the case. Dr. Patricia Papernow, author of Surviving and Thriving in Stepfamily Relationships, identifies five