I agree with most of the advice that you have been given, but I wanted to add two points. If you are saving for retirement (and I realize that you may be unable), put that savings in an actual retirement account that will not be tapped in the financial aid process. I believe that is like a 401k, 403b, or an IRA, but someone who knows more could probably list them for you. If you are saving in other types of savings accounts, colleges will see that money as an available asset to cover tuition.
Also most people are suggesting waiting until junior year to narrow down a list of schools. This seems right about schools that are academic fits, but know that financial aid offices are generally looking at the prior year in determining aid. So the year that they are considering is from January of your child’s sophomore year to December of your child’s junior year.
This can actually be very important if your family is getting needs based aid and your wages fluctuate at all. If it is under your control, make sure that the year being considered (end of sophomore to beginning of junior year) shows your typical earnings for that year. It can be really problematic if colleges are assessing their original financial aid package based on an unusually high earnings year. So if you can delay a bonus or something like a freelance gig until January of junior year instead of getting it a month earlier, it could help with the initial freshman year package. Obviously, need based aid will go down for your kid’s sophomore year in college, but I think it will be easier to make the case that your income is unpredictable and fluctuating then (for the the second year of college) than before your kid matriculates.