Connecting Nests

Florida · 3-4-4-3

3-4-4-3 in Florida

One parent has three nights and the other four, then it flips the following week. In Florida this is written into a Parenting Plan, where time with a child is called time-sharing.

Build this plan for Florida — free

Template for educational use — not legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney in your state. Laws change; confirm current requirements with a licensed attorney in Florida.

The rotation

A = one parent, B = the other. Each cell is one overnight. This rotation divides regular school-year overnights 50/50 — about 182 and 182 nights a year.
WeekMonTueWedThuFriSatSun
1 AAABBBB
2 AAAABBB

What Florida expects

Florida uses 'time-sharing', not custody or visitation, and requires an approved Parenting Plan in every case involving minor children. The statute expects the plan to describe how parents share daily tasks, the time-sharing schedule, designation of who handles school and health care, and the technologies used to communicate with the child. Florida moved to a rebuttable presumption of equal time-sharing in 2023.

Governing law: Fla. Stat. § 61.13(2)(b).

Florida requires its own form — Family Law Form 12.995(a) — Parenting Plan. Agree your terms first, then transcribe them onto it.

The honest trade-off

Exchanges land on the same two days every week, which makes it easy to remember, and no one waits more than four nights. The trade is that which parent has the weekend flips each week, so weekend plans need a two-week memory.

Other schedules in Florida