Articles Tagged with family

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By: Carolyn J. Woodruff, JD, CPA, CVA
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Creating a new family tradition can be a way to bring cheer to the holidays for both children and adults, especially when the family structure is changing due to divorce. One way to bond in a new family dynamic is to incorporate ‘matching outfits’, such as holiday themed pajamas or the famous ‘ugly Christmas sweater’.

According to The Suburban Mom blogger Jen Burg, whose blog has featured a variety of expert tips on navigating family life, matching pajamas can help kids feel cozy and relaxed during the holidays and provide an opportunity for fun family bonding activities. She also notes that the pajamas can make for some cute pictures!

The ugly Christmas sweater has earned its place in American lore and has become increasingly popular in recent years. It even has a special national day! The third Friday in December is known as National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day. It is a day when people don their best, most hideous, sweaters to bring joy and laughter to all they meet.

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By: Carolyn J. Woodruff, JD, CPA, CVA
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Greetings, Ask Carolyn readers. September is Hunger Awareness Month. Today’s blog explores the topic of single-parent poverty related to hunger issues and whether the American Rescue Plan will help reduce poverty. See the end of this blog for more information and links to resources.

Single parent poverty is a harsh reality that has a significant impact on families. Twenty-five percent of all families in America are single-parent households. Our country has more than three times the rate of single-parent households than others around the world. Looking deeper into the statistics shows that 80% of single-parent families are headed by the mother, with a poverty rate of 34%. (Chamie, 2021)

The United States Department of Agriculture surveys households annually to determine levels of food insecurity. In 2020, 10.5% of households experienced some food insecurity. When you factor in the rates for households headed by single parents, the rate is much higher at 27.7% for households headed by a single mom and 16.3% for households headed by a single dad. (USDA, n.d.)

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Venn Crawford
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The Seven Nights of Santa traveled to Lithuania for the first time this July, thanks to our friend Andrew Mastecas’s excellent work in translating the book.

The Seven Nights of Santa
My husband Dwight Ensley and I first published The Seven Nights of Santa in 2013. In my work as a family law attorney, I see a lot of divorces involving children. Holidays such as Christmas are often difficult for such families – there are disagreements over how to celebrate or which house the kids open gifts in. Additionally, media images of “traditional” families don’t represent the experiences of children of divorce. These experiences are what inspired The Seven Nights of Santa, which shows how Christmas can be magical for families of all shapes and sizes.

We give away copies of the book to clients going through a divorce, but their children aren’t the only ones who need this message. That’s why we teamed up with Andrew Mastecas, a 9th grader from New York City, who translated the book into Lithuanian and donated the copies to orphanages in the country.

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Carolyn Woodruff
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Dear Carolyn,

I am a grandmother with an adorable sixteen-month-old grandson. He has recently started a preschool while his parents work. He is learning sign language, which I think is like deaf people learn and use. I don’t remember learning about this when my children were babies. What do you think about this?

– Interested in Sign Language

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Carolyn Woodruff
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Today’s Ask Carolyn addresses the marriage of minor children in the United States and a domestic violence situation involving parents who won’t allow their 20-year-old to move out.

Dear Carolyn,

I am concerned about an article I recently read concerning underage girls as young as 12 and 13 years old marrying older males in South Carolina. To me, this is sexual abuse. The article said that nearly 7,000 underage girls – some as young as 12 and 13 – have married in South Carolina in the past 20 years.

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Carolyn Woodruff
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The fourteenth amendment of the United States Constitution creates the Parental Rights Doctrine. It is fundamental to our society that parents have the right to raise their children and the average American, I believe, has a longstanding commitment to parental rights. Except in extreme circumstances, parents have the fundamental right to parent a child and decide what is in the best interests of their own child (this article doesn’t address custody disputes between two good parents each of whom has a fundamental right to parent). This article does address the fundamental rights of parents over CPS.

In further advancement of the Parental Rights Doctrine, the United States Supreme Court has had moments of brilliance on this issue. For example, in Troxel v. Granville, 530 US 57 (2000), the United States Supreme Court aptly stated: “The liberty interest at issue in this case—the interest of parents in the care, custody, and control of their children—is perhaps the oldest of the fundamental liberty interests recognized by this Court.”

So where has the societal shift happened that has placed CPS so squarely in the middle of this fundamental right to parent? I believe the shift happened with the passage of the Adoptions and Safe Families Act of 1997 during the Clinton administration. In my opinion, that Act needs to be abolished and we need to return to the Social Worker Model for CPS, as contrasted to the current Law Enforcement Model. The Social Worker Model is “working with others to accomplish a goal.” Perhaps the CPS worker would suggest a needed service, such as counseling through Family Service of the Piedmont, a great organization.

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Carolyn Woodruff
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Dear Carolyn,

I am a concerned mother of a 19-year-old boy, who has a drug issue and is prone to suicidal threats. He did try to kill himself once when he was age sixteen, and he was placed in the behavioral health section of a local hospital for treatment. He has recently moved out of my home and into the home of some of his friends. What kind of legal options do I have?

– Need to Know

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Venn Crawford
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He might be your father, stepdad, or husband, but this Sunday, you’re celebrating him for being Dad.

There’s a lot of work that goes into being a dad. Dad brings us water and sits with us when we’re sick to our stomach. Dad walks the dog we promised we’d take care of. Dad keeps us safe from the monsters in our closets and the real ones outside. Dad does all this because he loves us. And that love right there is what makes him a Dad, whether he’s related to us or not.

This Fathers’ Day, make sure to give your Dad some of that love back, and let him know that yes, you do notice how much he does for you. If you’re not sure how to celebrate him, check out some of the ideas below.

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Carolyn Woodruff
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Today’s Ask Carolyn answers two questions about summer vacation. Our first reader wants to know what the ground rules should be for a multi-generational beach trip. Our second reader is taking the family cat for a sail.

Dear Carolyn,

I just turned in the dates for my summer vacation weeks with my sons (ages 6 and 9) to my ex. In even years I pick first by May 1. I get three total summer weeks split as two weeks and one week. Week isn’t defined, but that is another story for another day and a source of arguments. I picked Saturday to Saturday because of my beach rental for the one-week session. My two boys and I are camping in the Rockies the two-week time. Now for my questions regarding the one-week time, which I would like to do with my parents, the paternal grandparents of my children:

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Carolyn Woodruff
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Today’s Ask Carolyn includes the questions about broken separation agreements that I answered Tuesday, as well as an additional question about grandparent visitation.

Dear Carolyn,

My grandson is 7, and a tragedy has occurred. His mother (my daughter) died in a car accident. My grandson lived with me for the first year of his life while his father and my daughter were stationed active military in another country.  I kept a consistent relationship with my grandson until recently. His father has remarried and moved. The stepmother has just concluded an adoption. The father and new stepmom are not allowing me to visit. Can I get visitation? I have called, sent gifts and I have tried everything I know. What can I do?

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