TMFTaxes:

Thanks so much for your clear and concise replies to my questions!
Just to let you know, I had already checked out your FAQs on Ed IRAs, Hope, and Lifetime tax credits, but the nuances I was after were not addressed there. They were, however, nicely written and very helpful.
I was so quick to jump ship to this board because while you are clearly present giving out your excellent advice here, I did not notice a Fool holding court on the Paying for College board, and so thought it was quite probable that none of the readers would get around to answering my questions [OK, so I just got impatient :) ]. BTW, someone with your demonstrated knowledge of the tax laws is all the "authority" I was looking for.
I actually find it very interesting how this type of account has all the earmarks of a trust, and am grateful to you for pointing out the benefits of this.

One more quick question: after having shoved any leftover/unused funds from one child to the next until it is all in the account of the last child, should a miracle occur and I see that there will be a decent amount left over after paying for her education, I assume it will be OK to put back money into the older kids' accounts in an equal manner, assuming they are all under the age of 30 when I do so? With 4 kids, I've learned that the appearance of "fairness" is very important to avoiding complaints, and I assume this won't change as they get older :) .

Wavelength