The Last Minute Rush to Rest

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! With the kids jingle bell-ing and all that stuff. You know the tune. Now you are going to sing it all day.

It is also not lost on me that this season coincides with the legal end to the year, and by December 31, all the documents need to be signed, sealed, and delivered to count for 2025.

We write letters to Santa and Uncle Sam, we write letters to our children that they will read after we are gone. Those letters are our estate plans.

After the Thanksgiving holiday, I notice an uptick in estate plan inquiries. No doubt everyone was sitting around the table and talking about family, the stories from the past, the legacies of the future.

And no doubt someone remembered how hard it was to sort through the affairs of their deceased parent, all because they either didn’t have a will, or only had a will.

It is no surprise that I have been creating trusts for most of my estate planning clients. Going through the probate process is fun for no one, especially while also grieving. A Revocable Trust is one way to guarantee that your heirs can skip probate. Properly formed with all assets transferred, a trust ensures your loved ones can carry on without the hassle of the court system.

They aren’t only for the wealthy, they are for anyone who wants their memory and legacy to be free from the “she was the best mom, but her estate was a mess” statement.

You love them, you provided for them, now finish strong with a solid estate plan.

Our Unhurried Plans

The Hands have chosen to eliminate a few things from our calendar this year, all in the spirit of slowing down and truly experiencing advent. After almost 20 years, we are not hosting our annual Cary Christmas Parade party, where we gathered on the parade route and fellowshipped and watched the best parade ever.

We also opted out of the Christmas Card routine. While we enjoy receiveing all of your family photos, getting everything together this year did not fit in our desire to be present during advent. Scroll up for your annual Hand Christmas Photo.

And if you want to join in our daily advent devotional, you can find it here.

Client Spotlight

Coming full circle is fun.

In 2020, at the height of COVID, my hospital clients were looking for ways to keep people safely at home while received care.

The Hospital at Home model was born (or revived?)

For years before that, we had been lobbying our friends in Washington to provide Medicare reimbursements for remote care. No Dice. They only paid for real time monitoring, and not much at that.

Flash forward to 2025 and I am approached to partner with a company on the forefront of Remote Patient Monitoring.

AND - they have Medicare reimbursement codes!

EmmiTec.Health is doing things that we have needed for some time.

They provide better care, at home, by keeping an eye on the patient and intervening earlier.

It saves everyone time, money, and the hassle of getting to a clinical setting.

It is cool that this new partnership was only after a decade of work to get here.

Want to know more about Emmitec and what they bring to your patient care? Reply and let’s get the conversation started.

This Christmas - Give Memories Instead of Junk

You know the frustration I am talking about:

• Mountains of toys stacked under the tree.

• Thousands of dollars invested in gifts.

• 15 seconds to open, ogle, quickly toss aside and move to the next gift.

• 6 weeks later realizing that more than half the gifts remain in the box.

• 3 months later donating said gifts to charity

Maybe there is a different way. My children do not remember a single thing purchased for them years ago, but they still talk about that trip to London, New York, Asheville, and (of course) Disney.

Instead of investing in junk that will mean nothing in under a year, consider investing that same money in a vacation that will create lasting memories AND build your family bonds. if you need ideas, I happen to know a good travel company.