By Richelle Hofer, CEO & Financial Advisor at Impact Wealth Management
This post is deeply personal. It’s a reflection I wrote the night before my youngest son graduated from high school—and the season of life that followed. I’m sharing it here not just as a financial advisor, but as a mom entering a new chapter.
A note from the day before everything shifted…
The night before my youngest son graduated from high school, I sat down to write. My heart was full, and my emotions were raw. I didn’t know exactly what to expect from the next chapter—but I could feel it coming. The following is what I posted on Facebook that night. It still captures so much of what this transition has meant for me.
Tomorrow, my baby, my Zachie, graduates from high school.
It feels like the end of my #boymom era. I never really pictured this moment because I never wanted it to end.My heart is screaming that from this day forward everything shifts.
But tomorrow, nothing changes.Every single day since I became a mom has been an end of sorts… a day I’ll never reclaim. Every single day has had challenges and every single day has had hysterical laughter. Every. Single. Day.
Tomorrow, nothing changes.
I wake up every day loving my boys with everything I’ve got.Tomorrow, nothing changes.
I wish I could go back and relive the last 23 years—to soak up every hilarious moment, to tuck them into bed and read them stories. But I know that in 23 more years, I’ll be looking back wishing I could relive this moment right here.Tomorrow, nothing changes.
I love being a mom. There has been no greater challenge, and there has been no greater gift.
Tomorrow, nothing changes. 🧡🧡🧡
The Moment After
Of course, the next morning, Zach came upstairs and saw I’d been crying. He looked at me and said, “Don’t worry, Mom. Imma keep you plenty busy.” 😅
And he’s right. The parenting doesn’t end—it just changes. But the house feels different. The pace feels different. And when you’ve spent decades building your world around your kids, there’s a moment when you ask:
Now what?
The Financial Treadmill—and the Pause That Follows
For years, I kept thinking things would get easier financially once we were past the next milestone.
“Once we’re done with diapers and formula…”
“Once they’re out of daycare…”
“Once they’re out of sports…”
“Once they graduate…”
On and on it went. And now—here we are.
Of course, we still help our kids from time to time. But they no longer depend on us for day-to-day needs. And suddenly, there’s space to breathe. Financially. Emotionally. Relationally.
But that space can feel disorienting if you don’t know what to do with it.
This Season Matters More Than You Think
For many families, the years between launching your kids and launching your retirement are the single most important financial recalibration window of your life.
You might be wondering:
- Should we downsize or stay in the family home?
- What should we do with our extra cash flow?
- Can we finally remodel the kitchen—or do we need to catch up on retirement savings?
- Should we still carry life insurance now that the kids are grown?
- Are we supporting adult kids in ways that are helpful… or that might be holding them back?
These are important questions—and they deserve real planning. Because the decisions you make in this “between” season will shape the kind of freedom you’ll have later… maybe the rest of your life.
The Squishy Part: Rediscovering the Dreamer in You
Here’s the part I didn’t expect: I had forgotten how to dream for myself.
When your kids are little, you put your own dreams on the back burner. Then, your dreams become their dreams: the childhood you want to give them, the opportunities you want to create, the safety net you want to build.
And when that season ends… dreaming can feel strange… unfamiliar.
But without a vision, we wither. We drift. We settle into autopilot. We need something to move toward—not just something to move on from.
So my husband and I made two decisions:
- We’re taking a road trip—just the two of us. Time to explore new dreams, uninterrupted.
- We signed up for a marriage retreat. Yep. Like two little newlyweds.
We had the co-parenting part down. But this is a new phase of life and marriage—and we want to honor it, not just slide into it by default.
Your Turn
If you’re in this season too, I want to leave you with three simple questions:
- What does life look like now that the house is quiet?
- What does your money need to do differently in this next chapter?
- What’s something you used to dream about—that might be worth revisiting?
You don’t have to have all the answers. But you do need a plan—and a vision.
If your finances haven’t caught up to your new reality, let’s talk. If your identity feels a little wobbly, you’re not alone. If you need help sketching a roadmap for the future—this is what I do.
Because even when everything feels like it’s changing…
You don’t have to figure it out alone.