Childcare Expectations
It is hereby stipulated that the breakdown of childcare responsibilities will be dictated by the provisions of this contract relating to the division of household labor and the respective obligations to contribute financially to the household. Specifically, childcare shall be considered one element of household responsibilities and those responsibilities shall be borne in proportion to the respective financial and work-related contributions of the partners. In the event the partners contribute equally with respect to finances, they will share childcare responsibilities equally. The same variables that dictate household responsibilities more generally shall also govern childcare responsibilities.
It is hereby stipulated that the children shall take the same surname as the father in keeping with prevailing social norms but that the female spouse may, at her option, choose to take her husband's surname or a hyphenated variation thereof incorporating both surnames. Disciplinary methods shall be agreed upon in advance of implementation based on need but it is hereby stipulated in advance that corporal punishment shall not be allowed except symbolically.
Religious Expectations
It is hereby stipulated that the children will receive a general introduction to their parents' religious traditions but without any obligation to adopt them. They will be taught either an agnostic or atheistic religious perspective and they will not be taught that morality is an issue between any "gods" and man. They will be taught secular morality and ethics and they will be encouraged and permitted to determine their own religious perspective and beliefs thereafter. Religious and other holiday observances shall be mutually agreed upon and either party retains the option to disavow any participation at will. Children shall have the same option after...
Retirement plans and expectations will be discussed periodically and any choices or decisions that must be made in that regard shall be determined jointly. All personal property shall be owned jointly except for family heirlooms and personal property owned prior to the marriage, which shall be owned by the original owner. Neither partner shall incur any joint legal debt without the consent of the other. It is hereby stipulated that credit will only be used as necessary for major purchases such as homes and motor vehicles. All other expenses must be paid for in full from savings and subject to the provisions of this contract relating to mutual financial support responsibilities.
Social Expectations and Obligations
It is hereby agreed that both grandparents will have similar social access to children but that they will not participate in childrearing decisions. Further, the parties will not invite parental contribution into any marital decisions without consulting one another first and obtaining one another's consent for disclosure of personal matters to parents in any decision-making capacity. It is hereby stipulated that neither party shall involve the other in purely social relationships that are not necessary without consent and that neither party will exert any pressure to enter into or maintain any social relationships. Conversely, both parties shall have the autonomous right to pursue friendships individually without interference. The only proviso in that respect is that either party may veto the other's right to bring friends into the home when the objecting party is also in the home, such as where either party dislikes the other's friends.
