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15 Ways An Elder Law Attorney Can Help Family Caregivers

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June 13, 2024, Caring.com

elder law attorney

Planning for the future can seem impossible when facing so many unknown variables. From wondering if or when you or a loved one will need caregiving to worrying about affording long-term care, many people find themselves overwhelmed and afraid of the burden these uncertainties may create. By planning for the future, you can protect yourself, your spouse and other loved ones – especially if the plan is written into legally binding documents that guide caregivers and family members when navigating difficult situations and making tough choices about medical care and finances.

According to the Administration for Community Living, there is a 69% chance of seniors over the age of 65 needing long-term care, whether at home, in assisted living or in a nursing home. Seniors transferring into long-term care may qualify for government assistance, and planning can help retain assets for a spouse or loved one. Resources also exist to provide financial assistance for paid family caregiving in many states.

An elder care attorney can be an invaluable resource while planning and will guide you and your loved ones through the laws to protect and preserve a senior’s legal rights. Finding good legal assistance can be difficult, but the information in this guide can help you understand when to speak to an elder care attorney, how they can help and how to choose the right one.

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Making Christmas cookies and memories

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Christmas cookies and memories
Pumpkin Cookies, Photo by slc

Remember making a batch of yummy Christmas cookies and memories with your children or grandchildren? Flour was everywhere, as was the laughter and the fun. Today, Christmas Eve, I am baking pumpkin cookies by myself and remembering past family times full of love.

A little over a year ago, close family members became distant and decided they don’t want a relationship with me any more for a variety of reasons. I’m still not really clear what would make them take such drastic and hurtful measures, but I am trying to “radically accept” the situation.

I have fond memories of baking with my daughter when she was growing up. She loved it and she has passed on that love of baking to her daughter. I also have fond memories of my three grandchildren being at my home with their Mom two years ago for Christmas. I tried playing Jingle Bells on the piano with both hands, we made personal pizzas, my granddaughter baked her first cheesecake with the assistance from my daughter, we read the Christmas story from the Bible and opened gifts. We made great memories that day for me to look back on now .

Many of us solo retirees spend the holidays alone for a variety of reasons, loss of family members being one of them. Traditions may be lost, but memories remain. The love remains.

Why am I making pumpkin cookies on Christmas Eve? During one of their last visits to my home, I made pumpkin cookies with my grandchildren. Today, I will enjoy making them alone while thinking of past good memories and hope for making many more in the future.

How about making Christmas cookies and enjoying past memories along with me today if you are also alone? We’ll celebrate together! Thanks for reading.

Retire early? Think again

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I retired at age 55 thinking my 20 year pension would be enough to cover my pre-Medicare healthcare premiums and other expenses until I reached age 65.  I was wrong.

retire early
abc12.com (click image for link to article)

Retiring early has been great, but the expenses due to inflation have increased dramatically. So, thinking about retiring early? Think again.

Like every fall during open enrollment, I recently analyzed my healthcare plan and was shocked to learn my monthly premium was going up again.  Inflation is really taking a bite out of my pension, but there is a silver lining.

The following chart shows the erosion that pre-Medicare healthcare premiums have had on my pension over the years.

Year       Monthly Premium          Monthly Gross Pension

2015                       $131                               $2,055.87

2016                       $131                               $2,055.87

2017                       $170                               $2,055.87

2018                       $210                               $2,055.87

2019                       $334                               $2,055.87

2020                       $384                               $2,055.87

2021                       $461                               $2,081.57

2022                       $500                               $2,107.59

2023                       $553                              $2,128.67

2024                       $616                               $2,149.96

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She shed spring spruce up

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I love being in the mountains.  Almost six years ago, I purchased a small property just outside of Estes Park in Colorado.  I visit “my side of the mountain” several times during the winter just to make sure it’s still there.  Luckily, it is.  Today, I am writing from my picnic table with my little dog, Goldi, beside me.  It’s about 50 degrees with a light breeze; beautiful up here.  I’m also taking inventory of what I need to, or want to, get done up here this summer besides a she shed spring spruce up.

Last year, I built a stone fire pit area, put up a rain gutter, repaired the road which runs through my property, split wood, put up lots of tongue and groove pine on the interior of the shed, put up a little garden fence, and partially furnishing my she shed.

cabin property
she shed spring spruce up

I’ve already started my annual raking of the pine cones and needles and doing a little road repair.  I discovered if I put pine cones and needles in the mud puddles it helps to dry them up and make the road easier to navigate.  My neighbors who live on the mountain year round make the ruts on my property but don’t help to keep it maintained.  We have a community road service guy but he hasn’t been out yet.  

This spring I hope to plant some wild flowers and hope the deer and elk don’t eat them all.  I’ve been preparing a flower bed so the deer can find them easily.

A deck is in the plan this summer.  County code does not allowed me to attach it to my shed.  I would also like to reroof the old cabin, reside one side and put in a sliding glass door.  I may also see about leveling it as it has a rotten sill on the north side.  

This summer, I am most looking forward to coming up here more often. Writing, hiking, and staying overnight for a few days at a time.  I may have to add fixing the slats on my antique bed so I don’t fall through during the night like last year.  I can’t wait! Mountain living is the life for me after my she shed spring spruce up.

Building a house book by book

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Most of us have heard about the non-profit organization Habitat for Humanity or even shopped in their thrift stores called the ReStore. We know Habitat builds affordable housing for selected families who qualify. Did you know the houses they build aren’t built brick by brick, but book by book?

ReStore
Greeley ReStore, Photo by slc

A couple of weeks ago, I was browsing in one of my favorite thrift stores, the local Habitat ReStore. This particular ReStore has a wonderful used book selection. While purchasing another furniture refinishing project, I asked the manager if they needed any help shelving books. His answer was, “Let me introduce you to the man who works in the book section.” I met Steve, a retired gentleman, who had been volunteering for Habitat for many years. He showed me around and welcomed my help. I started volunteering the next day.

Belle the bookseller
Belle from Disney’s Beauty & the Beast

Now, feeling like Belle in the Beauty and the Beast, I am a bookseller and I am loving it. Steve does a wonderful job sorting, cleaning and shelving the hundreds of books donated to Habitat. Before I showed up, he didn’t really have time to sort fiction into categories like romance, mystery, and fantasy. That’s where I came in. Now, Steve and I sort books into specific genres making it easier for patrons to find their favorite books. We have also pulled several rare, out-of-print, and new books for special pricing and shelving.

An avid reader throughout my adult life and a former marketing coordinator at Barnes and Noble, volunteering as a bookseller at the ReStore suits me. Now, I am helping my local community by raising money to build affordable housing book by book.

Are you doing something in your community? Tell us about it in the comments below.

Solo In Style

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This title is the name of an incredible Facebook group page by Deborah Ives I discovered recently. The whole name of the site is Solo In Style: Women Over 50 Traveling Solo & Loving It! It is a private group with 232K inspiring members.

In case you haven’t heard, women over 50 are leading the boom in solo travel with single, divorced and widowed women feeling more empowered, confident and financially independent than ever before.

Deborah Ives, Solo In Style

This morning, I read this impassioned post on the site by Lucinda Kang which began: “I wanted to share my experience after reading so many of your beautiful stories – told with vulnerability and love. While I am sorry many of you are going through painful crossroads, I am inspired by your strength and emboldened by this community of care amongst strangers.”

Solo in Style

Lucinda summed up this Facebook page beautifully. It is full of vulnerability and love, painful crossroads, strength and emboldened women who travel around the world in search of themselves, adventure and freedom. The site is full of inspiration and encouragement

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Cooking for one

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Do you stand in front of the refrigerator wondering what to make for dinner? Do you buy the same thing nearly every week from the grocery store? Are you tired of eating leftovers for a week when you do whip up your favorite chili, meatloaf or casserole? Do you throw away food because of expiration dates or maybe because leftovers have turned into a science project? These scenarios occur when you are cooking for one.

cooking for one
Fresh ingredients, Photo by slc

About three weeks ago, I finally decided to end the on-going decision of what to eat, spending time at the grocery store, eating leftovers, and throwing away food. I started the meal delivery service HelloFresh. What a major difference it has made in my life.

I look through about 35-40 different meals and pick three (can also choose 2 or 4) meals a week. This week I am having One-Pan Beef Enchiladas Verdes (830 calories), Italian Chicken over Lemony Spaghetti (740 calories), and Meatloaves with Creamy Thyme Sauce (760 calories). Yum! Each meal comes with the ingredients in the correct portions to prepare enough for two people with easy to follow directions. Only ingredients you provide are the olive oil and/or butter.

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