Hey college preppers and parents!
​
​Coming at you on a Sunday, which have — for the longest time — been my Mondays.
​​
But now that my kiddos are getting older, I may need to switch it up a bit because we all want a little more weekend time together.
And that's kinda the parenting adventure, amiright? You feel like you maybe sort of the hang of a rhythm, and then...
​
​BAM. New variable...and no matter how old your student is, late April is the middle of it all.​
​
AP exams next month, end of the school year on the horizon, excitement about summer plans before June starts bustin' out all over.*
​
If you're a senior or the parent of one, College Decision Day is May 1st, and this window between the last round of acceptances in March and the decision deadline feels woefully short for a decision this big.
​Because it is.​
(And I won't even get into if your student is waitlisted at their top choice.)

So if you're still weighing, still researching, still refreshing your email and checking college portals...I see you. ​
​
Or maybe you've got that part sorted out—but now you're in (or dreading) the planning and shopping phase across Amazon and Target and seventeen browser tabs of college dorm checklists. How can you possibly forget the Twin XL sheets or the rest of their endless 'need-to-have-its'?

But the list for what you're about to need doesn't exist.

Because the teen-shaped hole in your life won't really show up at move-in.
​It shows up the first random late morning you put something in their hollow bedroom, or when a whole day goes by without a text.

A friend of mine said it best when her daughter left for college last year:

That's exactly what parent coach Diana Davidson and I want to talk about.

On Wednesday, April 29th at 6:30pm PT / 8:30pm CT, we're hosting a free live webinar, They're in College: Now What? about shifting from "Nest Manager" to "Side Guide" — what that actually looks like, and how to find your rhythm after your student leaves.

This is the fourth conversation in my What Comes Next? spring series for college-bound families.
Can't make it live? Register anyway and I'll send you the recording.

👉 Save your spot here​

I've been writing about the middle of things over on my free Substack too: the transitions, the decisions, the strange art of figuring things out while you're still inside them. Sound familiar? Come find me at Minding the Middle.

That quote's from a piece about my bubble wrap nickname, which some of you already know about.

For those who don't — this post might also have something for you right now, no matter where you are in the college prep process.

Keep on poppin' 🫧,

Mindi
​
*TL;DR: Pop on over to RSVP for the Wednesday April 29 webinar first and my Substack.
(Both invitations are open. No wrong order. 🥰)