Anyone else dealing with legal fees?

My custody modification just got approved but holy shit, the lawyer bills. $6k later and we basically just formalized what we've been doing anyway. I know people say "don't go to court" but sometimes there's no choice. Wondering if I should've done more DIY stuff or if that would've been messier. Also wondering how to explain this to my kids when they're older? Not their problem but also... it's a lot.