Making Lemonade Children's Articles THE TEN COMMANDMENTS For Divorced Parents 1. Thou shalt not make derogatory statements about the other parent. 2. Thou shalt not make your child your best friend to confide in. 3. Thou shalt not use your child as a messenger service. 4. Thou shalt not deny your child's feelings or your own. 5. Thou shalt openly give your child permission to love and respect the other parent. 6. Thou shalt not change house rules to compete with the other parent. CONSISTENCY + DISCIPLINE = LOVE 7. Thou shalt not change the visitation arrangements. 8. Thou shalt never make your child feel "stuck in the middle". 9. Thou shalt never blame or indicate the divorce is due to or revolves around you child. Divorce is A GROWN UP MATTER. 10. Thou shalt always practice loving, positive, and consistent parenting and make your child's world a safe and special place to live. Excerpt taken from "Dear Mom and Dad: What Kids of Divorce Really Want to Say to Their Parents" by Gillian Rothchild. Published April 1999 by Simon and Schuster's Pocket Books. loveyurkid@aol.com