While a court might approve a plan where a toddler splits their time evenly between homes, it’s more likely that a young child ends up spending more time in one home. A court may see it as giving the child more stability that way. It may not be practical for one parent to have their child as much as the other due to work commitments.
A parent might suggest that their toddler prefers to be with them. Is this true? Does the child really prefer to be with them or are they misinterpreting their toddler’s words or actions?
Toddlers can’t make such decisions yet
Maybe your toddler does go running to you every time they are upset. Maybe they do say they love you the most when you ask them (which is not a good question to ask). That does not mean they really do prefer you to their other parent or would prefer to live with you. At this stage in their life, they do not have the capacity to make such decisions, as they have so little grasp of what is involved.
Rather than place too much weight on your toddler’s words or actions, think about how arbitrary some of their other words and actions can be. Maybe last week the only vegetable they would eat was peas, but now they scream at the sight of even a speck of green on their plate.
Perhaps they always wanted Daddy to read them the bedtime story until three days ago when he refused to buy them a sweet in the store, and now they insist that Mommy must do the reading. Toddlers can be fickle, but one thing is almost certain. Barring exceptional circumstances, they love both of you and will benefit from continuing to see a good deal of each of you.
A court will have no interest in a parent’s claim that their toddler has expressed a preference for living with them, and they may think the parent is trying to manipulate their child. Instead, the judge will make a decision based on what they consider to be in the child’s best interests. Learning more about how courts define this can help you work toward what is best for your child.