Samantha Rodrigues, a sophomore at Evergreen Valley High School, arrives home from school on a Monday afternoon. She puts down her books, goes to her room and packs up everything she needs for the week. Then she waits for her mom to pick her up and take her to her other home a few minutes away.
At her dad's house, Samantha shares a room with her younger sister, Diana, and has a pet turtle. At her mom's house, Samantha has her own room, as well as three dogs. She admits that while her room at her mom's house is always clean, her room at her dad's house is always messy.
"I don't remember what it's like to live at one house," said Samantha, 14, whose parents have been divorced since she was 3.
In the United States, countless teens have to deal with the effects of divorce. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the divorce rate has increased 54 percent since 1950, though rates have declined slightly since the 1980s.
While often one parent takes custody of a child, many parents share custody, meaning kids have two homes. Statistics on just how many teens shuttle between homes are hard to come by.
Nancy Quiggle, a psychologist and clinical coordinator at the University of California-San Francisco, believes joint custody can be good and bad.
"It's very family-specific," Quiggle said. "I think it can work out very well if the parties cooperate and focus on trying to mask their differences. And of course teens should be listened to."
Samantha keeps all her clothing and belongings at her dad's house, so when it comes time to switch houses, she must pack everything she needs. She doesn't mind living at two homes, but her parents are constantly pressuring her to choose one.
"They always ask who I want to live with. They say I need to choose eventually," said Samantha. "But it's hard to pick between them. I love them both."
Other teenagers don't like being in a joint custody situation. Rather than having two homes, they feel they don't have any.
"People don't realize how lucky they are to live in one home," said Shani Chabansky, a 16-year-old at Gunn High School in Palo Alto. "I feel like I don't have a home to call my own."
Shani's parents have been divorced since she was in the third grade, and now live within a few minutes of each other.
"I have to move stuff all over the place. It's not as easy as people think," she said.
Even the most responsible student can forget something at the other house and have to go back and get it. When most teenagers are worrying about what grade they got on a math test, teens of joint custody worry about packing up all their stuff for the other house, or making sure they're not forgetting anything. One day, Samantha left her math book at her other house and wasn't able to get it.
As a result, she couldn't do her homework and received a zero the next day.
DK Simoneau, author of the children's book "We're Having A Tuesday,'' which focuses on kids who switch back and forth every week, knows all too well the effects of divorce and shared custody. A child of divorce herself, Simoneau switched back and forth between her parents' houses for most of her adolescent years. Now divorced herself, her two children also live at two homes.
"It's a good idea as long as the parents can make it work," Simoneau said. "Kids need the influence of as many positive adults as they can."
Simoneau is a strong believer in joint custody, but also believes that each situation is different. "If going back and forth were really becoming bothersome for the child because of logistics, I would recommend talking about other solutions. Maybe the schedule needs to be looked at, or other processes need to be in place. I wouldn't just blanket say you should live with one parent."
There is no right or wrong answer to joint custody; different solutions work for different situations.
"The adults put their children in these situations. It's up to them to find solutions that work for everybody. Parents need to stop worrying about what the parents want, and focus on the kids," Simoneau said.
Teens in joint custody often say their lives would be easier if they lived in one place because they find themselves constantly having to choose between families. Holidays and graduations become stressful times because they don't know which family to sit with, or which to spend time with. When they find out good news, which parent does a teenager call first?
Shani admits living with one parent would be less hassle, but she doesn't want to choose between them. "I would much rather live with one parent, but then the other would be really upset or offended."
Naomi Shachter, 17, of Palo Alto has been switching houses every two weeks since her parents divorced three years ago. Although she doesn't necessarily enjoy living at two homes, she would never choose to live with one parent.
"It sucks. It can be a big hassle," said Naomi. "But it's the preferable option."