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Parenting Plan & Custody Order Templates

Plain-language resources for the parts of family court nobody explains.

Step-Up Addendum | For Kids 5 & Under

Step-Up Addendum | For Kids 5 & Under

$17

The Step-Up Addendum

PDF + editable DOCX · Works with any parenting plan

Your parenting plan describes one schedule. Go look for the word "when." Look for the sentence that says what this schedule becomes when the baby is two, and four, and in kindergarten.

In most plans there is no such sentence. There is one schedule, written for the child as they are on the day of the hearing, and an unspoken assumption that everybody will be reasonable later.

Later is a filing fee.

A step-up clause is never neutral

It is either a calendar, which arrives on its own and needs nobody's permission, or it is an invitation, which the parent who prefers the status quo can simply decline.

"The parties shall increase parent-time as the child grows" is an invitation. "Advancement is subject to the agreement of the parties" hands a veto to whichever parent benefits from standing still. "Parent-time shall increase when the other parent demonstrates readiness" makes readiness a matter of opinion, held by the person least motivated to see it.

A step-up plan with four steps and no self-executing advancement is not a schedule. It is four future motions.

The Step-Up Addendum is an educational drafting template. It is a starting point to bring to a licensed attorney, not legal advice, not a finished court document, and not a substitute for an attorney. Created by a parent who navigated the family court system, sold by ValuED Sales LLC dba May Divorce Be With You.

What's inside

Twelve modular provisions with bracketed placeholders, plus the reasoning behind each one:

  • A numbered Step Schedule, with each step's parent-time and an advancement date stated as a calendar date or the child's exact age in months

  • Self-executing advancement, so each step begins without further order, agreement, notice, or confirmation, and the party who objects is the one who has to act

  • Advancement conditions for parties who elect them, written so the condition is objectively verifiable, its evidence is named, and it is deemed satisfied if not challenged with documentation inside a stated window

  • Pause and regression, with defined triggers, a maximum duration, and automatic resumption unless a party has filed

  • Who determines that a step occurred, when the two parents describe the same facts differently

  • Child support and the overnight threshold, identifying in advance which steps cross it and stating a recalculation date

  • Where parent-time happens during the earliest steps, when a child is too young to be away from a familiar setting

  • Virtual and telephone contact during the step period, and whether it counts against anything

  • Which holiday schedule governs while the ladder is still running

  • A named terminal schedule, an express sunset of the step provisions, and the modification standard that applies afterward

  • No-new-status-quo and non-waiver language, so an informal accommodation during one step does not become the default

  • Triggering events specific to a graduated schedule

Plus a worked example of one state's statutory ladder, a section on how the three categories of state law handle graduated schedules, and attorney notes explaining the drafting intent behind each provision.

The section I want you to read even if you do not buy this

There are two kinds of step-up plan and they look nearly identical on paper.

A developmental step-up expands because a child is getting older. Nobody did anything wrong. A reintegration step-up expands because a parent is coming back, after supervised time, after treatment, after estrangement, after an agency case. The steps look the same. Underneath, it is a completely different document, because the conditions in a reintegration plan are not milestones. They are the disputed facts of a safety case, written as a calendar.

Section 4 explains the difference, gives you the vocabulary, and then points you at the door. If that is your situation, this addendum has already done the most useful thing it can do for you, and it says so plainly rather than selling you something that does not fit.

This may fit your situation if

  • You have an infant or toddler and the plan being drafted describes one schedule

  • You already have a graduated plan and every step turns into a negotiation

  • You are drafting now and want the ladder written before anyone has a reason to fight about it

  • You want the drafting reasoning, not just the language

What this is not: Legal advice. A finished or court-ready document. A child-support calculation for your case. A reintegration or safety plan. A guarantee of any outcome.

⚠ Read Before Purchase

This is an educational publication, not legal advice. The author is not an attorney. Purchase does not create an attorney-client relationship, and no information shared with the seller is protected by attorney-client privilege. Materials were drafted with reference to Utah law. Statutory citations and procedural references will not match other states' law without modification. An attorney licensed in your state must review and approve every provision before use, including in Utah.

Do not use this product as your starting point if any of the following applies to your case: domestic violence; active protective order; substance abuse affecting parenting; CPS or DCFS involvement; abuse allegations, substantiated or not; active mental health crisis; international parental abduction risk; significant special needs; complex finances or hidden-asset concerns; or active parental alienation. In any of those situations, go directly to a licensed family law attorney.

National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233 (text START to 88788), 24/7, free, confidential. In immediate danger: 911, always.

Refunds. All sales are final. These are instant digital downloads, delivered immediately on purchase, so we do not offer refunds. Two exceptions: if a file fails to download or arrives corrupted, email sruff@valuedsales.com and we will re-deliver or refund. And if you bought the wrong custody structure, email within 14 days and we will exchange it at no cost.

Limitation of liability. To the maximum extent permitted by law, ValuED Sales LLC's liability for any claim arising from this product is limited to the amount you paid for it.

Privacy. Your email and payment information are processed through Stan and Stripe to deliver the file and may be used for occasional related updates. Unsubscribe anytime. See Privacy Policy.

Reviewed and updated August 2026.

By completing purchase, you confirm you have read and agree to the Terms of Service and the Read Before Purchase scope statement above.

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