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Birthdays, Mother's Day and Father's Day
How to handle the children's birthdays, the parents' birthdays, Mother's Day and Father's Day in two homes, with the dates for 2026 to 2030.
Christmas and Winter Break Custody Schedule
Christmas is the holiday parents most often split rather than alternate, because few want to miss it every other year. Here are the common ways to divide Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and the rest of winter break, with the days of the week through 2030.
The short version
- Most common: Christmas Eve with one parent and Christmas Day with the other, with an exchange around midday on the 25th, swapping each year.
- Alternatives: alternate the whole holiday by year, keep the same split every year, or divide winter break in halves and alternate the halves.
- This year: December 24, 2026 is a Thursday and Christmas Day is a Friday.
- Write down: the exchange times, how the halves of the break are counted, and how New Year's Eve is handled.
Splitting Christmas Eve and Christmas Day
In the most common split, one parent has the children from Christmas Eve afternoon until noon on Christmas Day, and the other from noon on Christmas Day until a set time — often the next day. The next year they swap. Both parents get part of the holiday every year, and the children wake up on Christmas morning in alternating homes.
| Year | December 24 | December 25 | Christmas Eve and morning with | Christmas Day from noon with |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Thursday | Friday | Parent A | Parent B |
| 2027 | Friday | Saturday | Parent B | Parent A |
| 2028 | Sunday | Monday | Parent A | Parent B |
| 2029 | Monday | Tuesday | Parent B | Parent A |
| 2030 | Tuesday | Wednesday | Parent A | Parent B |
A variation moves the exchange to Christmas Eve evening, so one parent has the day of the 24th and the other has Christmas Eve night and Christmas morning.
Other ways to handle Christmas
Alternate the whole holiday
From December 24 to 26 with one parent, alternating by year. It suits parents who live far apart or travel to family, at the cost of a Christmas without the children every other year.
The same split every year
If one family's main celebration is on Christmas Eve — as in many Scandinavian, Polish and Latin American traditions — and the other's is on Christmas Day, keeping the split fixed gives each household the day that matters to it.
A second Christmas
Some families celebrate again on December 26 or 27 at the second home. Children rarely object.
Dividing winter break
Winter break usually runs from the day school lets out until the day before it restarts, and its length differs by district. A common approach is to split it in halves, with the parent who has the first half one year taking the second half the next.
Take a district whose last day before the break is Friday, December 18, 2026 and which reopens on Monday, January 4, 2027. That is 17 nights of break. Switching on December 26 at noon gives the first half 8 nights (December 18 to 25) and the second half 9 (December 26 to January 3). Splitting an odd number of nights is never exactly even, which is one more reason to alternate the halves by year.
If you also split Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, write down which rule wins. Usually it is the Christmas split, with the halves covering the rest of the break.
New Year's Eve and New Year's Day
They often go with whichever half of the break they fall in. Some families alternate them separately, and teenagers may have plans of their own — worth asking about rather than assuming.
Gifts, travel and the children
- Coordinate gifts. Agree on the big presents so they are not bought twice. In the app, a shared wishlist lets both parents see gift ideas and tick off what has been bought — just do not share that list with the child.
- Give notice of trips. Where you are going, a contact number and the return time, by an agreed date.
- Let gifts travel. A present from one home is the child's, wherever they are.
- Make room for a call. A call to the other parent on Christmas Day helps.
In the United Kingdom and Canada, Boxing Day on December 26 is a public holiday too, and is often part of the split.
Putting it in the Co-parenting app
Public holidays are filled in for where you live, and you can import your child's actual school holidays — the dates the school has published — for almost every school across North America, the EU and Australia. See how to import a school calendar, then check the dates it finds against the school's own information.
The Christmas arrangement goes into the schedule as a proposal: change the days directly, or apply a template between two dates — a different rotation for the summer, for example. Nothing changes until the other parent accepts it, and once the schedule is active, every change is a request the other parent has to accept. The FAQ has more on schedules and change requests.
Related guides
- Holiday custody schedule: the four ways to split holidays, with an even/odd-year example
- Thanksgiving custody schedule: five common arrangements, with dates to 2030
- Spring break and summer: summer rotations, vacation weeks and notice deadlines
- Birthdays, Mother's Day and Father's Day: the days that do not fit a rotation
- What to include in a parenting plan: the full checklist
Frequently asked questions
Who gets the kids on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day?
It depends on the plan. The most common arrangement is Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with one parent, then Christmas Day from about noon with the other, swapping each year.
How is winter break usually split?
In halves, from the day school lets out to the day before it restarts, with the parents alternating which half they have each year. Christmas itself is often handled separately.
Does the winter break schedule override the regular schedule?
In most plans, yes. School breaks override the regular rotation, and specific holidays such as Christmas override the break schedule.
What time should the Christmas Day exchange be?
Midday or early afternoon is common, so that each home has a meal and the children are not traveling late. Choose a time and write it down.
How do we avoid buying the same presents?
Agree on the big gifts in advance and keep one shared list of ideas, marking what has been bought.
6 November 2026
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Holiday Custody Schedule
How to split holidays between two homes: alternating years, split days, fixed holidays and divided breaks, with an even/odd-year example for 2026 to 2030.
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