Mother's Day is nearly here and you’re probably still looking for the perfect gift. Flowers and cards are always appreciated, but maybe this year, you can get her something different: the peace of mind that comes with an estate plan.
Wait, what?
We know it’s not pretty or poetic but hear us out. An estate plan can be the perfect gift for mothers of any age or stage of life. In this series we will address the needs of moms with kids at any age...
For Your Own Kids
Now, let’s flip the script. If YOU are a mother, there’s nothing more important than planning for your family if the unthinkable ever happens… to you or (God forbid) to your kids!
If you have children over the age of 18, they need, at minimum, an Advance Health Care Directiveand a Durable Power of Attorney. Do you know that, without these documents, you have NO legal authority to make decisions on behalf of your child if he or she becomes mentally incapacitated and is 18 years or older?
Consider a horrific scenario, your child gets in an accident while traveling or is away at college.
- How will you make critical decisions with doctors on your young adults’ behalf;
- How will he or she feel about long-term life support (again, God forbid but do you remember Terri Schaivo?); and
- How will you handle financial decisions (talk to their credit card companies, banks, sell their car, access their social media accounts or online storage of their pictures, etc.)?
Sadly, you will not be able to do what you have always done for your children as their mother, without going to court. If your child (or any loved one for that matter) loses mental capacity (due to illness or an accident), you are headed to conservatorship (a super expensive and invasive court process that lasts for the rest of their life while incapacitated).
It is horrifying to think that something tragic could ever happen to your precious babies. We get it. So, take the first step. Help them get the paperwork they need in order now and then let’s not think about it again for a really long time!