Guide
Custody Calendar
A custody calendar is the repeating plan for where a child sleeps. The pictures below are two-week slices of four common patterns. Your order may start on a different day, skip holidays, or use a county rule that is not one of these. The slice is a picture, not a ruling.
How to read the grids
A is Parent A. B is Parent B. A cell is the night that starts that day. White is Parent A. Blue is Parent B. These slices start on a Monday, except week on/week off, which starts on the Friday exchange.
- A · Parent A
- B · Parent B
Every other weekend
Parent B has Friday and Saturday night one weekend, then no weekend the next. Sunday night stays with Parent A when the return is Sunday daytime. Many orders call a Wednesday dinner a visit, not an overnight. That dinner does not appear here.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | A | A | A | B | B | A |
| A | A | A | A | A | A | A |
2-2-3
Two nights, two nights, then a three-night weekend. The next week flips. Neither parent goes a full week without a night in this slice. The year count starts on the first Monday.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | A | B | B | A | A | A |
| B | B | A | A | B | B | B |
2-2-5-5
Monday and Tuesday stay with Parent A. Wednesday and Thursday stay with Parent B. The five-night block, Friday through the next Tuesday, alternates. Then Wednesday through Sunday alternates the other way. The year count starts on the first Monday.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | A | B | B | A | A | A |
| A | A | B | B | B | B | B |
Week on, week off
Seven nights with one parent, then seven with the other. This picture uses a Friday exchange. Parent B has the first Friday through the next Thursday night. Parent A has the following week.
| Fri | Sat | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B | B | B | B | B | B | B |
| A | A | A | A | A | A | A |
From a picture to a number, then to a record
The parenting time calculator turns these patterns into overnights per year. Custody Journal's calendar is where you keep the dates that actually happened, including a change that the pattern does not show.
Common questions
Which custody calendar pattern is the right one?
The one in your order or written agreement. These four are common examples. Ohio counties publish their own schedules on the Ohio hub.
Why doesn't the grid show holidays?
Holidays usually replace the regular week. Add those nights in the calculator if you want them in the yearly split. Do not assume a holiday belongs to the parent who would have had that weekend.