Real World Mom

Seems like forever since I’ve written (it’s actually pretty close to that long!).  It’s been a somewhat challenging year for me, so I’ll use that as an excuse I guess.

Let’s see…  The last month of school was a difficult one for me on a personal level, but, thanks to the understanding and cooperation of some great professors, I finished with a perfect grade point average!  I also received two awards.  The one I’m most proud of was for “Academic Excellence.”

It seems the summer has flown by, and now I’m trying to mentally prepare for my next-to-last semester of college.  As usual, I’m a bit nervous.  New professors, new challenges, etc.  Hopefully I will continue to do as well as I have thus far.

I’m feeling a bit rusty at this, so I think I’ll keep this post short, and consider it a warm-up for the days ahead!

Literally!  Life has become quite crazy in the last three days, lemme tell ya!  Today is the worst so far…

• fight traffic getting to school
• find a parking spot (and usually walk a long way)
• classes from 9:30 to 1:45
• go home
• change my clothes
• Unpack my backpack, pack my purse and book bag
• squeeze in a blog post (this is the step I’m currently in
• get to work on time, where I will hopefully have a chance to tackle some homework, and try to stay awake and not go postal for four hours
• come home
• eat dinner
• more homework
• try to get to bed at a reasonable hour so I can be up and ready for my morning class

Have I mentioned I’m only about half-way through my day and I’m already exhausted?  Well, I am!

Luckily though, all of my classes seem like they will be challenging and interesting, and my professors are great (so far)!  Hopefully once I have this new and hectic routine down, all will be well.

My reader and email is backed up beyond belief, but I will get to it as soon as I possibly can!  I miss you all and I haven’t forgotten you!

It’s been a whirlwind of a week for me, and I doubt it will end anytime soon.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get to do my Friday Fragments post, because I had to post part two of my AJ Wright shopping adventure.  (That was so much fun!  If you haven’t read about it yet, you should take a minute to do it now!)

So, here was my last week in a nutshell…

• On Monday, when I got to work, my supervisor called me into her office.  Uh-oh!   But, she offered me the job on a permanent basis–with a raise! (More of a raise than I’d been expecting too!)  Yay!
• Tuesday, the class I had been worried would be cancelled was cancelled.  Ugh!  This threw me into major stress mode.  After getting in touch with my advisor and the dean’s office, all was well by Friday (but not the way I’d like it).  They will have the class in the spring semester, and I will be permitted to take that class and the one that would normally follow it simultaneously.  So, at least I’ll be able to take it, but it’s going to be a little more difficult.
• So, I was stressing about being down to four classes for the semester instead of five.  I went through the college catalog again, and found several courses I would like to take.  However, since the semester was about to start, none of them were available!  (More panic!)  After talking to Tim and my advisor, I decided to let it go and just take the four classes.  In the words of a good friend, “Sometimes things happen for a reason.”
• My 20-year-old son, M, called on Saturday night to say it looks like he’s going to be a dad.  I’m still in shock, but excited too!  Although, I am way too young to be a grandmother! She hasn’t gone to the doctor yet.  I’ll feel better once she goes and it’s been confirmed.  I’ll keep you posted!
• Mr. Winger (not his real name), whom I first wrote about here, was released from the nursing home on Friday morning.  I’ll miss his nightly visits, but I hope that he does well at home.
• Marie (not her real name) called on Thursday night!  She is the extraordinary lady who inspired my post People Come Into Your Life for a Reason.  Her fiance had been at the nursing home for about three weeks before he passed away, and Marie and I bonded during that time.  I was very sad that I didn’t have the chance to say goodbye, so, when she called the other night, I finally got that chance!  I also told her I’d never forget her.
• At work on Friday night, Brad (not his real name), made a special trip by my desk to say he just realized it was a holiday weekend and that he wouldn’t be seeing me for three days.  That really made me feel good!
• On Saturday, we had family over for a barbecue.  It was so nice to sit and catch up with them!  And the meal that Tim made was delicious!  :)

School starts tomorrow!  I’m excited but a little nervous.  I do feel more confident about being able to handle it all now that I’m only taking four classes, and Tim has already begun holding down the home front.

Hope everyone is having (or had) a fun and safe Labor Day weekend!  (Now I can go to the beach!  Yay!)

School starts for both my daughter and I next week.  She’s fine; I’m a freakin’ mess!  And not on her account either, because, as I said, she’s taking everything in stride.

I’m stressing, big-time, over how I’m going to successfully (key word here) manage school, work, and home.  During my first two semesters of school, I wasn’t working, so I had plenty of time to devote to homework and housework.  That’s no longer the case.  I am grateful to have a job, especially one that I like, but it is going to take time away from home and studying.

The successful part is so important because I’m a perfectionist.  There.  I said it.  I want the house to be clean, the laundry kept up with, no dishes in the sink, etc.  I also want to maintain my good grades (so far, I’ve earned all A’s and only one B after a year of college).  This goes back to my “Superwoman Myth” post from July, but I can’t seem to help it!

Tim has promised to help keep the house standing, and he’s already started pitching in quite a bit.  I know he can–and will–handle this, so I really need to work on letting go.

I’m taking five classes, so that’s going to be a lot of work.  I know I can do it, I’m just worried about having enough time to do it.

Hopefully, once I get a routine down, I’ll be ok.  It’s also possible that I could get some studying done while at work (it’s often pretty quiet for the last hour or so).  And I have Wednesdays and the weekends off, so, if worse comes to worst, those three days can all be spent on homework.

Am I overreacting?  Probably.  (Hopefully!)  In a month or so, I’ll likely look back and see that I was worrying over nothing.  In the meantime, though, I’ll worry…

*Edit: I just came across this quote, and thought the timing was quite appropriate:

“I’ve had many problems in my life- most of which never happened”  -Mark Twain