In this week’s blog post, I am going to highlight a program that I have been using to help keep my life organized: Plan-a-Palooza. As an FYI: I am not an affiliate of this program and do not receive any compensation for any sales from this event… it has truly made a difference in my life, and that is my primary reason for sharing about it in this week’s blog post!
Let’s be real—keeping everything organized when you’re managing a participant-directed program for your young adult is a lot. Add in work, home life, and trying to squeeze in time for yourself, and it can feel like you’re juggling too many plates in the air—and dropping at least one of them no matter how hard you try.
That was me, too.
I’m a mom, a wife, a business owner, and the primary planner and organizer for L’s programming. Over the years, I have tried many systems and “solutions” to try to keep all of the plates in the air, but I always felt like something was dropping no matter how hard I tried. Once we started on our journey with self-direction, I realized that I needed something more realistic, flexible, and doable. Then, about 2.5 years ago, I was listening to a podcast that featured Megan Sumrell and her company, The Pink Bee, which addressed all things time management, organization, and productivity. That’s how I found Plan-a-Palooza, and it completely changed the way I approach planning.
What Is Plan-a-Palooza?
Plan-a-Palooza is a live, 2-day interactive workshop created by time management coach Megan Sumrell. She is not your typical planning coach—she is a business owner and mom who felt the same way I did and used her background to create her company “The Pink Bee” and her corresponding podcast “The Work+Life Harmony Podcast”.
Megan created Plan-a-Palooza as a guided system for mapping out your year with intention and clarity. Her approach isn’t about doing more—it’s about doing what matters most in a way that actually fits into real life. Whether you’re managing your adult child’s ISP and programming needs, Medicaid and SSI paperwork, therapies, staffing schedules, or other transition-related responsibilities, this system helped me to stop feeling like I was always reacting—and started helping me feel like I was in control.
What is included in Plan-a-Palooza?
Plan-a-Palooza focuses on big picture annual and quarterly planning. (Megan’s companion program, The TOP Program, dives into monthly and weekly planning—we’ll cover that in another post!) Here is everything that is included in the event:
What You Get (and Why It Works for Busy Parents)
While I love that Megan does an intensive deep dive for those 2 days, most of us don’t have the “free time” to sit through an entire webinar. That’s why you also get access to the recorded replay through December 31st!. She also breaks the replays down into bite-sized segments so you can go at your own pace.
This setup was a game changer for me. I could pause, process, and return to it as needed. There’s no pressure to absorb everything at once—and that made all the difference. I was able to “rinse and repeat” numerous times over the course of those 2 months so that I could fully process what I needed to do, at a pace that worked for me.
Why It’s Been a Lifesaver for Me
Planning season used to fill me with dread. I’d look at our calendar and feel overwhelmed before I even got started. But now, I set aside time each October and November to walk through Megan’s process, and I head into each new year with a clear roadmap. I also do a mid-year review in June, right before the start of the new DDS budget year to make sure that our plan is still in alignment with our budget and other obligations.
The best part? I no longer feel like I’m constantly reacting to what’s next. Instead, I feel proactive. I can spot overwhelm before it hits and adjust as needed. This system has made room not just for L’s goals and services—but for my goals, too.
Call to action:
If you’re parenting a young adult with a disability and navigating the complexities of a participant-directed program, Plan-a-Palooza could be the planning tool you didn’t know you needed. It’s empowering, realistic, and incredibly validating to go through this process with a community of others who also want to plan with intention.
And the best part? It’s affordable.
Early bird pricing is just $47, (the price goes up to $97 after September 1st.) To learn more visit the website at megansumrell.com/plan
Let’s enter the next year with purpose—and a plan that works for you, not against you.
-Cheryl
#Life Without a Filter 