It must be the Universe, but lately I have been meeting people, running into articles, having questions asked, and having people send me things that all have to do with how to prepare our precious cargo . . . and ourselves . . . for that fateful day when we ship them out into the big big world.
This looks different for each of us and can be an ever-changing landscape. Maybe they pack it up and go to college. Maybe we have to go with them. Maybe we are building a guest house where our kid can assert some independence but be close enough for needed support. Maybe we are looking at residential options. Whatever it looks like, these are difficult waters to navigate on our own.
On numerous occasions (usually around his displeasure at new rules or new responsibilities) I have explained to our son that our job is to prepare him to be independent and have his own life. I often throw out there that if he can't learn to use the microwave, he is going to starve at college. Since college is a goal of his, and so is eating, his microwave skills have steadily improved!
This Fall, some of our blogs will be dedicated to planning. We are fortunate to have an upcoming guest blogger who will talk about special needs trusts. I am working on compiling some information on ABLE accounts and securing someone in the field to talk about those. I am also trying to review some books that I can recommend and will be posting different links and resources. Additionally, I really hope that some of you out there would like to share your thoughts, feelings, or ideas and make some use out of the Forums section.
To get our series started, I'd suggest this beautiful piece shared by a good friend of ours.
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