Estate Planning with Heart®

The Family Thread: a Holistic Guardianship and Child Well-Being Blueprint

Built for two people who matter most: the child who needs stability, and the guardian who provides it.

Start Your Plan

We approach trust and estate planning differently because:

  • Providing for your child’s future goes far beyond a dollar figure.
  • Named guardians need guidance that only you can provide. 
  • We know the trust and estate plan is simply the how.
    The “why” matters so much more.

It Starts with Well-Being Provisions

Your child’s trust doesn’t simply mention “health, education, maintenance, and support” and leave the rest to chance.
Our Well-Being Provisions give a trustee guidance on how your trust should safeguard and improve your beneficiaries’ quality of life.
This goes beyond a simple money distribution schedule based on your child’s age.

Ask the trustee to meet with your child twice a year to:

  • Review well-being goals 
  • Talk through the best use of trust funds 
  • Support strong relationships, inclusion, and belonging

Create a Well-Being Baseline - things like:

  • Safe, stable housing in a healthy community 
  • Access to quality healthcare 
  • Education and skill-building 
  • Enough resources that basic security and life expectancy are not at risk 

Invite “Expanded Well-Being” - opportunities for your child to: 

  • Explore creativity, arts, culture, and travel 
  • Be entrepreneurial and globally engaged 
  • Develop strengths, resilience, positive relationships, and a sense of meaning 
  • Give back to others in age-appropriate ways 

Direct the trustee to use positive approaches,
not threats or withholding money,
because we know external rewards can undermine intrinsic motivation and well-being. 

We Coach You on
How to Ask Potential Guardians

Naming guardians is emotional and complex. We don’t just hand you forms.
As part of this plan, we:

  • Help you think through the right guardians (and backups) for your child
  • Provide talking points and scripts so you can have honest, respectful conversations
  • Give you talking points to work through concerns, objections, or misconceptions about what it means to be a guardian
  • What to do if someone says “No” 
  • Help you address hard topics, like:
  • Finances and support from the trust
  • Expectations around religion, education, therapy, screens, and travel
  • How to handle extended family and tricky dynamics

Our goal is for both you and your chosen guardians to feel informed, respected,
and supported.

Concrete Support for Real Life:
Distributions with Purpose 

We give your trustee practical, real-world examples of how to use trust assets to support your child over time, such as:

  • Starting or growing a business (with a real business plan)
  • Buying or improving a primary residence in a sustainable way
  • Paying for IVF and assisted reproductive technologies
  • A safe, reliable car
  • Post-graduate education, room and board
  • Maximizing retirement account contributions
  • Reasonable professional fees (lawyers, tax professionals, financial advisors)
  • Travel to maintain family relationships and for cultural enrichment
  • Support for therapy and mental health care
  • Wedding contributions, adjusted over time for cost of living

For children living with guardians, we also clarify:

  • How the trust can support the guardian’s household (e.g., housing, furnishings, extra costs of caring for your child)

When a separate trustee must make decisions if a guardian is also serving as trustee, to avoid conflicts of interest.

Long-Form Guardianship,
Not Just Names in a Will

Cross-referenced in your durable power of attorney, so first responders and courts know exactly who to call and what your wishes are. This document gives a judge a roadmap and gives your guardians real guidance, not guesswork. Details include:

  • Emergency contacts and custody history
  • Nominated guardians of the person and estate
  • Prohibited guardians and reasons
  • Religion and spiritual preferences
  • Education priorities and IEP notes (if applicable)
  • Firearms, social media, phones, digital media and AI
  • Mental health/therapy preferences
  • Pets and charitable giving
  • Important family and friend relationships, and who you don’t want involved
  • Your values, traditions, and how you want your child raised day-to-day

Guardians Don’t Do This Alone 

Your plan is designed so guardians and trustees are not left guessing:

  • The guardianship nomination gives them your parenting roadmap.
  • The Well-Being Provisions give the trustee a decision-making compass.
  • The trust includes specific distribution guidelines for vacations, travel to see family, age-appropriate charitable giving, and care for pets so your child’s life feels grounded, familiar, and well-supported.