Little Blessings

Usually, January is a slow, cold month: we're just getting back into the routine of school, winter has slowed down the hustle and bustle of life...but this month has been an extraordinarily stressful time for me. First, I took a winter intercession class right after Christmas. It required me traveling to campus (4 hours away) and staying in a hotel for a few nights. That was actually not so bad: I got to visit with friends that I made during summer school, talk to my professor "in the flesh," clear up some questions, etc. However, we did not get many assignments done while we were there. "No biggie," I thought, "I have a month to get them done." In the meantime, I started back to school (both university and work), I found out that the lesson I was co-teaching was starting early (which meant that I literally had to lock myself in the school library one weekend and work my tail off trying to get a WebQuest written and designed), my daughter's basketball team was playing numerous games, we had a plethora of activities (school, church, personal) that we were involved in, so on and so forth. Not surprisingly, the month flew by much quicker than usual.

I am stressed. I am cranky because I am stressed. I am eating junk because I am stressed. I am not getting enough exercise because there don't seem to be enough hours in a day...and that makes me stressed.

All of my assignments are due at the beginning of next week. I also have my teacher certification test for library-media this weekend. Our college has 100% pass rate (no pressure). STRESS!!!!

What could possibly give this girl a break? A gracious God.

Snow! We have snow!! Snow = snow days = no work = being holed up indoors with nothing pressing to do other than finish homework assignments!!!

All day yesterday, I lounged around in pajamas working on homework for probably ten hours. I wish I could say I got more accomplished, but at least I feel like I'm making progress! I haven't begun studying for my big test nor have I completed two major projects that are due Monday, but I have big plans for today.

I'm just so grateful for little blessings like snow days. What a difference they can make!!

So Much Can Happen in a Year

As we were ringing in the new year, I couldn't help but think back on the dawn of 2009. It's amazing what can happen in a year. When 2009 began, I had just happily completed my bachelors degree and had decided to work on freelance writing from home. Since then, I began working on a masters degree (rather unexpectedly), went to summer school away from my family for three weeks, met some incredible new university friends, accepted a full-time job, and closed my business of five years. None of these things I ever expected to happen when we were counting down from 2008 to 2009 on New Year's Eve which makes me wonder: what will 2010 hold?

21 Years to Finish a Degree???

One woman did it! She started back in her 30s as a single mom and talks about the difficulties of juggling work/family/school and doing homework alongside her daughter. 21 years later, she has two degrees. I call that patience and determination. I'm grateful that my education is only taking three years! Whew!!!

Click HERE to read the article.

Semester Recap!

Goodness! Have I been a terrible blogger or WHAT? I wonder if there's anyone left to read my random musings? It just goes to show you how difficult this semester has been. I truly have felt at my wit's end at some points and completely overwhelmed with all of my responsibilities. Some days I would break into tears, and other days I would feel completely triumphant knowing that I was handling so much.



In the end, I survived. "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger," right? I don't know that I feel particularly "strong," but I do feel relieved that the semester is over and that I came away with A's and a wealth of information (seriously--my brain runneth over).



Honestly, the absolute BEST thing that I did to improve my studies was to begin working at the school library as an assistant. It's so true that experience is the best teacher. It's been invaluable to be able to put theory into practice. I felt like I've had a true advantage over some of my fellow students who haven't yet had the chance to work in the day-to-day or continually learn from an experienced library media specialist as I do each week.



However, I will admit that working full-time has severely impacted my life. The job itself is not particularly stressful, but having less time to work on assignments, plan dinner, do housework, chauffeur children or just hang out with my husband has been stressful. There were many days that I just had to ignore the growing piles of dirty clothes and work on a collection development policy instead. I noticed that I had my hair trimmed less frequently (no time to make it to the salon), I rarely leave town during the week, and our healthy eating habits have started fading away. I did try to keep some things a priority. I didn't skip bedtime stories with the girls, I tried to keep a semi-regular exercise schedule and I tried to quit working on assignments in time to watch favorite television shows with the husband before bedtime.

So, the semester from Hades is over. Thankfully, I don't expect the spring semester to be quite so rough since I won't be taking as many hours and the workload shouldn't be quite so intense. Right now, I'm just trying to soak up some homework-free days and enjoy the holidays with my family before I get back to books...and blogging (I swear!). :)

Somwhere Between "Losing My Mind" and "Only Slightly Crazy"

Where in the world have I been? Well, those of you who are truly University Mamas and Papas wouldn't be asking that question because you know that my current location is somewhere between "Losing My Mind" and "Only Slightly Crazy." October and the first of November have been, in my experience, the hardest part of the school year (or any part of year, for that matter). On the personal end of things, our family begins to juggle basketball schedules, 4H competitions, holidays, special events at church and in the community, etc. It's like there is a mad dash to cram in a bunch of stuff while the weather is still partially nice and the Thanksgiving/Christmas rush hasn't started. On the school end of things, it always seems like the biggest projects and papers are due during October/November. Add all these things together, and you have a recipe for extreme stress overload.

I kid you not: there were many nights last month that I sat at my computer on the verge of tears and/or a heart attack. Okay...maybe not a heart attack, but perhaps a chest pain or two. You know the feeling where you could hyperventilate if you were the hyperventilating-type? You don't? Oh. Well, that's kind of what it felt like.

In summation, October was miserably stressful.

I quite literally survived by sending myself e-mails and setting alarms on my phone to remind me of things. Everything from orthodontist appointments to "thaw chicken" showed up in my phone and/or inbox.

Thank goodness for technology...and for a family who has stuck with me and chipped in throughout this crazy roller coaster ride. The best news is...the semester's almost done!!!


(P.S. If only I had one of those combo washer/dryers that begins drying a load after it's done with the wash cycle. That, my friends, is what I call harnessing the power of technology for REAL!)

This Is How My Brain Works Lately

i've got to finish my bibliography tongiht. i wonder if i have cited everything correctly. i really should double-check my guide. i need to email myself a reminder. i wonder what we should have for dinner? do we have any chicken in the freezer? do we have any milk? i really wish i had a big glass of chocolate milk right now. or milk chocolate! i have got to get my eating back under control. we were eating so much healthier when i wasn't working full time. wonder how i can keep my vegetables fresher longer. do they sell something for that? where am i going to find winter boots for the kids. what size do they wear now? i should just measure their feet. i need to keep a tape measure in my purse. or put their sizes into my phone. i wish i had a better phone. should i get a blackberry or an iphone or that new samsung thingy. has consumer reports reviewed them yet? i'd really like an iphone but i hear they're getting bad service. man, my back hurts. is it my shoes or plain ol' stress? i sure could use a massage. or a vacation. i'm really tired of whining about being tired and stressed. i wonder if next semester will be better. i hope so. because i'm tired. and stressed. wonder if there are any hershey bars left in the girls' halloween bags...?

The Homework Excuse

Do you ever find yourself using your student status to get out of obligations or events? I admit--I do it a lot. I'm not being dishonest when I say, "I really need to spend the weekend doing homework/studying," because there's ALWAYS something that I could be working on. However, in theory, it's entirely possible for me to set aside one evening and get all my work done so that I could enjoy a much-needed day off to sleep in, reorganize closets or just hang out with my family. While people may understand (and, indeed, pity) my full schedule, they don't seem as willing to accept a response of "I can't do [fill-in-the-blank] because I just need a day where I don't have anything scheduled." They may say, "Oh, I understand," but their eyes say, "You just don't want to do it." That's why I use the homework excuse like a crutch.

As I write, it is lunchtime on Saturday and I am still in my pajamas. I haven't accomplished much other than eating the great breakfast my hubby prepared and washing one load of clothes. I tried to go back to bed and get a little extra sleep; that didn't work, but I read a chapter of a non-assigned novel instead. Oh--and I made a trip to the grocery. I can think of a long list of things I NEED or COULD be doing, but I don't mind admitting that I need some laid-back days like this to keep my nerves in check.

I'm already beginning to wonder....what will life be like without the homework excuse to fall back on? I've been able to pass out the homework excuse for almost three years now. I think I'm going to miss it. I guess I'm going to have to learn the art of saying "no"--gasp!