The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

11| O akville B eaver | T hursday,A ugust 30,2018 insidehalton.com It's Not Win or Lose, It's How you Play the Game Around August every year we pull out the fall calendars and the cheque books and the sports bags and dance bags hoping some of that equipment will still fit. Time to register the kids for their fall activities. Managing the kids' activity schedules and the associated costs is enough of a challenge in an intact family. When parents separate, the kids' extracurricular activities can become a divisive issue. Here are a few things to consider when creating a parenting plan to avoid possible conflict over activities when registration time comes around every year: 1. Set a budget. Put it in writing. Stick to it. This is obviously helpful even where parents are not separated. When coaches and instructors tell us our children have "what it takes" it's hard not to give in to pressure to pay for the next level of training, etc. Consider all of the costs - not just the initial registration fees but tournaments (and associated costs such as travel, meals and hotels), equipment, costumes, private coaching, dance exams, makeup, photographs, videos - and how you will fund these throughout the year. 2. Set out your mutual goals. Separated parents won't agree on everything. When it comes to the kids you probably have some common goals surrounding their best interests including health and well-being and academic standards. If you put these in your parenting plan all future discussions about whether to increase or reduce the extra-curricular activities can refer back to these goals to help with the decision-making process. 3. Set limits. Whether it's the number of hours in a week, or days, or tournaments or the number of activities in which a child will participate set this out in a parenting plan to avoid future disagreements. 4. Set out responsibilities. Who will do the driving? Who will be responsible to care for siblings when one child is participating in an activity? Are parents required to volunteer? Will all parents have the opportunity to attend practices, games, recitals, etc. regardless of the schedule? 5. Include a detailed "Dispute Resolution" provision. Think about… What will you do if there is a disagreement in the future? How will you come to a child-focused resolution? Will you work with a mediator (and, if so, how will you choose the mediator and how will you share the cost?) If you really can't agree will you outsource the decision- making to a third party such as a parenting coordinator or an arbitrator? For help creating the best parenting plans for your family please do not hesitate to contact us at Berry Gage LLP Family Law, Mediation, Wills & Estates. www.bgfamilylaw.ca Advertorial The month of May can be deceptive, tricking you into believing that there is tons of time ahead to have a garage sale. A blink later August rolls around, and there, on the other side of the van- ished-too-soon summer, you have the feeling that time is running out. So, you have one last chance to go all out to have a really successful ga- rage sale. It doesn't take long to dis- gorge junk from the shadows - junk you don't need and wonder why it's still there. I'm talking about digging ev- erywhere: the loft in the ga- rage, the slightly musty re- cesses under the stairs, the dead zone corner under the kitchen counter where old pots and small appliances go to die, the drawers of shame in that never-used desk in the basement, the linty cup- board above the washing ma- chine. I am talking every- where. Go all out until youwhere. Go all out until youw hear an echo. It's amazing what you find, and it's oh, so cathartic.find, and it's oh, so cathartic.f Some of it you might actually be able to sell. Give me plusses, you say. OK. Forget the wonderful fact that you are finallyfact that you are finallyf achieving some Zen in your home. A bigger plus is that you are cleverly giving your-you are cleverly giving your-y self permission to move ahead in life and giving your- self a reason to put new ener- gy into your old stuff. Give yourself an incentive that isyourself an incentive that isy specific - a week's groceries or gas money not dinged off your debit card for one day. your debit card for one day. y Another plus: it gives the kids something to do. Kids now have the attention span of a goldfish before they need to bow their heads in rever- ent praise of their electron- ics. Helming a garage sale teaches them valuable com- munication and bargaining skills that'll serve them well later in life. Garage sales give you a chance to catch up with neighbours. We are all in des- perate need of more social and less rush, rush. Isn't that what it's all about - savouringwhat it's all about - savouringw summer before September pulls into our driveway? Let's bring a little therapy to your home. Stephen Ilott is a profes- sional home organizer with decluttering.ca and author of "The Domestic Archaeol- ogist." For more informa- tion, visit www.decluttering- .ca or contact him at in- fo@decluttering.ca or 416- 460-8098. THE LAST OF THE SUMMER GARAGE SALES OPINION YOUROPINIONS SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT INSIDEHALTON.COM GO ALL OUT TO ACHIEVE A SUCCESSFUL PURGE, WRITES ILOTT STEPHEN ILOTT Column Thank you Oakville for choosing us one of the BEST! REGULATION GAME ACTION COACHES FOR ALL GAMES DESIGNED FOR BEGINNERS 4 TEAM SKILL SESSIONS CALL 905.845.6989 OR VISIT ICESPORTS.COM/OAKVILLE UNDER THE PROGRAMS TAB! REGISTER NOW FOR THE FALL SEASON NEW!