Back to School Category

Friday, December 18th, 2009

The results are in.

So if you’re reading the Twitter stream over there ———————————> (or following me on Twitter or a friend on Facebook) you already know that I made a 4.0 for the semester.  This is not super amazing since I was only taking 2 classes, but the math class was HARD.  It was 5 distinct math subjects (algebra, geometry, 4pointOhconsumer math, statistics, and probability) so it was really tough.  I’m used to math classes where you build on previous units rather than starting a whole new one every few weeks.  And the computer class…well, let’s just say I know how to use one but understanding how they work is a different story.  Once we got past that part I did well enough to pull an A out of it.

This gives me a cumulative 4.0.  Amazing stuff, considering I’ve never had anything even close to a 4.0 in my life, much less a cumulative 4.0.  Granted, this is only 3 classes.  But I also have 3 kids now and a whole host of responsibilities I didn’t have the first time around.  This time though, I am more driven, more focused.  And I have a ton of people cheering me on.  It makes me feel good to know that I’m not disappointing them.

Monday, December 7th, 2009

Motivation Monday: Finish up this semester

So much to do this week…luckily I’ve caught up and finished all of my classwork and tests for my computer class and all that’s left is the 3 part, 400 point (gasp!) final.  It has to be finished by this weekend, so I’ll be working on it whenever I have the chance.  I have to make about 350 points on it to snag an A, so this is really stressing me out. (Where did the girl who was thrilled with B’s go???  I think she’s become an over-achiever!)  The good news is that I still have an ungraded extra credit paper, so that total may be slightly less when it’s all said and done.  Still, I’m a little freaked out and procrastinating!

Then next week, I have my math final.  I have to make about a 91 to score the A there.  Since my lowest test this semester was a 92, I like to think I can do it but I’m still WAY stressed.  It is a proctored final, which means I actually have to go in to take it.  Scary stuff!  I’m allowed 4 index cards with formulas and notes, so maybe I can cram enough on those to help me ace this one.

Needless to say, the focus this week is to get done with school.  Once that’s done, I’ll be ready to tackle getting the house ready for my mom’s visit.  She’s arriving on the 22nd and I’m so excited that she’ll be with us for Christmas!

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

Bah.

I have a finance exam due in about 2 hours.  I’m almost done, but I came to the computer to check out some notes the professor put online and got (as always) sidetracked by the facebook and the twitter and the email and the million time wasters that distract me daily.  I also have the tiniest bit of a hangover (I swear, it was only 1 margarita, but being pregnant and/or nursing for 4 years straight now and not drinking at all for most of that has done terrible things to my tolerance) and my husband, who was supposed to have the morning free to help me with the kids, is now showing houses (not complaining, because we need income more than I need to make a perfect score on this exam) which means I have to deal with them as well and OMG Violet is putting a Hot Wheels in her mouth and Colin just hit her and now they’re both screaming because I took the car away from her and put him in time out and how the heck am I going to pass this exam?

And why, in God’s name, am I blogging about all of this instead of just taking the stupid test?  I am my own worst enemy.

Monday, August 24th, 2009

Cue the new semester freak-out.

Today is the day I can log in to Blackboard and start my fall classes.  On tap this semester is a math class and a computer class.  I’m no math whiz, but I have always been able to get through with an A or B. (Except pre-calc…I got a low C and was just thrilled I didn’t fail completely.  Still don’t understand the concepts.)  And computers…well, clearly I’m comfortable with those.

And yet, when I logged in this morning and read the syllabi (syllabuses?) I started having a panic attack.  And just in case this doesn’t sound familiar to you, I assure you it happened last semester, too.  When I read about writing papers! and taking tests! I had the OMG, why did I think I could do this??? panic attack and almost withdrew right then and there.

We all know how that one turned out, though.  If you don’t, you can go back to this post and see.  Yeah, there was no reason to worry.  But the Fear and Self-Doubt are back and compounded by the “I budgeted money for books but then had to pay to get the car fixed and thought I could do without them but looks like I can’t” problem.  I need to come up with about $200 (and yes, I checked other sources to see if I could get them cheaper…not by much, and then I have to pay shipping) or pray that someone on FreeCycle has some they can offer me.  God has provided before and I believe He will again, but the worry of that and everything else has had my heart pounding and my stomach rolling all morning long.

When I called my husband and proceeded to tell him that there was a final exam that I have to take on campus WITHOUT the book and that I hadn’t done math in over 10 years and there was NO WAY I could pass this class, he (I assume, because I know him so well!) rolled his eyes and said “Don’t you have an entire semester to learn how to do this stuff before the final?”  Um, yeah…I guess I do.

Let the learning commence.  It’s a new semester!

Sunday, July 19th, 2009

A+

apluspaper[1]When I logged into Blackboard to take my last quiz and do one last mini-writing assignment, I noticed that the minimum point requirements for each grade were up.  To get an A, I needed a minimum of 420 total points.  I figured the last quiz would take care of that and I could skip the writing assignment.

I was wrong, but not in a bad way!  I have already amassed 480 points.  I can blow off the quiz and still have more than enough points for an A.  So that’s what I did.  I feel a bit like a loser for skipping it, but there’s nothing to prove here…I already have an A and that’s what matters!

I am really proud of myself.  I wasn’t entirely sure that I could do this school thing again, but this grade has given me the confidence I desperately needed to keep going!

Friday, July 10th, 2009

Blah.

Today’s mail bore bad news.  I knew that tuition went up, but getting that bill for $302 hurt.  A lot!  I am going to have to go on a monthly payment plan this semester, something I didn’t want to do.  Because my biggest fear is that there will be a month where we can’t make the payment…and then what?  It’s a level of stress I could have done without.

And then I start looking at my junk mail.  Because I like to torture myself with advertisements for things I desperately want but cannot buy.  Like the Dell laptops that are super-duper cheap.  They have a netbook for $399.  even better, an Inspiron 15 for $479.  And they come in pink.  PINK!  I totally need a pink laptop.  At this point I’d settle for the itty bitty netbook, because it is SO hard for me to do school work at this computer.  The children are constantly running in and out of the room because there’s no way to block it off and the chaos makes it impossible for me to concentrate.  And by the time they go to bed, I’m so fried that I don’t feel like I can do what I need to do.  Right now it is not a huge problem (obviously, since I’m rocking my psych class) but when I start algebra in the fall, then bio and chem at the same time in the spring, it is NOT going to work.

I really try not to complain here…considering our situation, it is a miracle that we are still surviving, much less able to afford tuition!  Sometimes it really gets me down and I just want to pull the big drama queen move and quit because I can’t have it easy.  Ridiculous and immature, but it really reminds me just how hard it is to better yourself if you haven’t been given a lot of opportunities.  I don’t qualify for financial aid despite the fact that we are below the poverty line right now.  I don’t have money to pay for a babysitter so I can go to class, nor do I have family locally who can help with the kids.  Most people in my situation wouldn’t have the money for a computer to do distance education, so if they didn’t already have one they’d be unable to do that.  It is so easy to sit back and talk about how easy people have it here in the US, how much opportunity there is out there for everyone.  The truth is it’s NOT that easy.  I know I won’t be quite so quick to judge people in the future.  The last 12+ months have taught me a lesson in humility that I won’t soon forget!

Monday, July 6th, 2009

Labels

Wife.  Mother.  Student.  Teacher.  Employee.  Volunteer.  Friend.  Daughter.  Sister.  Runner.  Blogger.  There are a million more I could add.  Lately I don’t seem to be doing any of them well, if at all!  I am so overwhelmed by all of my responsibilities that my wants (like running and blogging) are not getting the time they deserve.  I’m also exhausted by the terrible insomnia that I’ve been dealing with over the last few weeks.  I feel like a zombie and I know I’m not handling any of my responsibilities (especially being a good friend!) well.  I feel slow and stupid most days, like my brain is on vacation.  It’s frustrating for me.

The good news is that there are only 2 weeks of summer vacation left for my oldest, so we’ll be home more.  I’ve put a lot of effort into packing his short break full of fun things to do and that has taken up a lot of my time.  Not that I don’t do fun things with the little kids, but I don’t feel the need to do so much in such a short period of time with them.  Our days are a bit more laid back when their older brother is in school.  Plus I’ll be homeschooling my middle child this year (there’s always a lot of learning going on, but this will be a bit more formal since we can’t afford preschool for him like we did with my oldest) and that will be good for at least a few hours a week where we can hang around the house and just relax and have fun while we learn colors, shapes, letters, numbers, etc.

Tonight, I am neglecting my running in order to blog.  I’ll hop onto the elliptical and give myself a good workout, but it’s not quite the same.  There is something about hitting that track or greenway and just running…for 30 minutes, I have no other responsibilities.  The only thing I have to do is move my legs and arms and listen to some tunes.

I haven’t worked for over a week.  I just can’t force myself to do it.  I need to go schedule a few shifts so that I can get back into a routine with it, but it seems to be the thing that’s really gotten neglected lately.  Something we can’t afford, especially considering tuition just went up by 20% (*gasp*) and I only had a month’s notice to come up with the money for it.  I guess a netbook isn’t in my future anytime soon…which is a shame, because I could really use it with the school and work stuff!

The one thing that I feel like I’m really excelling at (which is funny, because I’m honestly not putting as much effort into it as I could!) is my psychology class.  Right now, I could blow off several of the upcoming assignments and still get an A.  I won’t, but it’s nice to know that I can if I need to.  I am more determined than ever to finish school and become a nurse.  Doing so well in this class has really given me the confidence that I needed to convince myself that I can do this, even while I’m saddled with so many labels that contain so many responsibilities!

Wednesday, May 20th, 2009

Back to School…Summer Registration

Drama (most of which played out on Facebook & Twitter via status changes and comments) was rampant, but in the end I managed to get registered for one class this summer!  I am taking a psychology course as my first step on the road to being a registered nurse.

A week or so ago, I found out that the summer course offerings were very slim this year.  The only ones offered were a computer class (which was my first choice), a math class, and a psych class.  Since I’m limited to distance ed right now, this wasn’t great news.  All were available online, but there was only 1 section available for some of them and everything was full.  I found a substitute class I could take for my math, but it was an extra hour (which meant additional tuition) and the book was more expensive.  So it really wasn’t going to work.  After I threw a drama queen hissy fit, I pouted for a bit and decided I just wasn’t going to even try to take summer classes.  I would save the money I’d budgeted and try to take more classes later on.

And then spaces started opening up in those classes.  And I figured I’d at least go to registration and see if I could get into one of them.  I gopt there before it even started, and there were already a lot of people ahead of me.  As time ticked away, I just knew my classes were going to be full and I was going to be SOL. (That’s sh*t out of luck for those who don’t know.)  When I got in there and told the advisor what I wanted, she shook her head to my 1st two as she checked them, but by some miracle, the psych class was open.  So I’m enrolled, paid for, and I’ve bought my book.

After that was done we hit Walmart for some prescription ibuprofen for my poor knee and a few household items we needed, and then my wonderful husband treated me to a “college student’s lunch” at Taco Bell.  I can’t believe I’m doing this again!  Maybe this time I’ll do a much better job of focusing on classes rather than partying…

Thursday, May 14th, 2009

School Stuff

After carefully evaluating our financial situation and looking over the required courses I have to take for nursing, I’ve decided to take 2 classes this summer rather than the 1 I’d initially planned on.  The good news is that I got credit for 4 classes I took when I got my bachelor’s degree, so there’s a few that I can avoid.  The bad news is that financially I can’t afford to take more than 1 or 2 classes per semester.  So I had to do a lot of shuffling and write up a new plan to make sure I got everything in before I applied for the actual nursing classes.  With any luck, I’ll be able to start those in Fall 2011 and be an RN in Spring 2013.

Now I just have to hope that at least 2 of the classes I feel ready to take now are available online.  It looks like most of the online sections are full, so 2 classes may not even be an option.  I’d forgotten just how frustrating registering for classes can be!

Saturday, March 7th, 2009

Brain Dump for a Saturday

Life has changed for the better since Baby Violet arrived, but it leaves little time for me to blog.  At least 3 or 4 times a day something happens and I think to myself “That deserves a blog entry!” but by the time I get to sit down at the computer uninterrupted, I sit here and stare at this post screen and can think of absolutely nothing to say.  I hate feeling like my memory is shot, but I suppose that’s what having 3 small children will do to you.  So today, I’m going for a brain dump…all of the random things bouncing around in my head that don’t qualify for a long post or that I don’t have the energy to come up with a full post about.

  • The weather!  Gorgeous!  Yesterday was “Kites with Dads” at my oldest son’s school and it couldn’t have been more perfect.  Unfortunately, by 4PM yesterday everyone in my house except Violet had come down with a fever.  So while everyone else in the state is out enjoying the beautiful weather, we are stuck inside moaning about how bad we feel.  I think I’m going to manage to get out anyway, because it seems completely unfair that I should let a cold interfere with this day!
  • Violet has the most amazing smile.  We spend lots of time talking to her and trying to get her to give us a big toothless grin.  Almost as much fun as the little noises she makes…the girl loves to “talk” to us.  I am very much enjoying watching all of this, especially since I am about 99.999999% sure that she is our last.  (There always has to be that *tiny* bit of doubt, right?)
  • She slept for almost 7 hours the other night.  Granted it was not the 7 hours I would have liked to sleep, but 7 hours is pretty amazing!  It was 9:45PM to almost 4:30AM.  I felt like a new woman.  Sadly, she hasn’t repeated that feat!
  • Facebook.  I’m hopelessly addicted.  Is there a 12 step program?
  • If you think breastfeeding and/or breastmilk is weird or gross, skip this one.  Pumping sucks.  Really, really sucks.  I have absolutely awful pump output.  I’m going to a baby shower tomorrow and it took me 3 days to pump enough milk to make me feel like I could leave her without starving her.  I get up in the morning and pump when I’m full so I should be getting plenty but I just don’t respond to the pump.  I can pump for 15 minutes, get at best 1.5-2 ounces on each side, unhook everything and 5 minutes later my shirt is soaked.  I’ve tried hospital grade pumps, hand pumps, and everything in between.  I’ve tried nursing on one side and pumping on the other but it’s awkward and doesn’t yield much more.  Frustrating and annoying!  Luckily I don’t have to do this often.
  • I am afraid to say anything because I’m sure I will jinx it, but I *may* have a legitimate work at home job lined up.  No selling, no telemarketing, and 100% free to get started.  I’m in training right now and so far everything is going well.  It’s ironic, because just the other day I mentioned to Amy (on Facebook) that I needed a job but that my husband’s current schedule made it hard for me to find anything.  Now I don’t have that worry!  I’m praying this turns out to be something that can help us out while we get everything figured out.
  • Cloth diapers…I’m really doing them!  I have a very small stash right now, but she’s in cloth almost 100% of the time at home during the day.  I hope to add nights to that soon, but that will require a better system than what we currently have.  I have a dozen prefolds (the old fashioned flat kind) and 4 pull-on covers and 2 wrap style covers.  I also have 1 BumGenius 3.0 One-Size diaper that I absolutely adore.  We just got our tax refund back and I plan to buy some more of those once we’ve gotten caught up with all of our unpaid bills.  The advantage is that she won’t outgrow them like most other diapers and they are so easy!  Almost like a disposable…the only difference is that you have to wash them.  I’m also using cloth wipes and home-made wipe solution.  It is saving us a ton of money!
  • And to wash my cloth diapers, I have found the absolute most amazing substance on this earth.  It is referred to in my house as “laundry crack” because it smells divine and I find myself going out to the laundry room just to sniff it.  Yes, really.  I got it from Simply Clean and could not be happier with it.  It gets the stains out and my clothes come out soft without fabric softener!  I’m also using their pail freshener for our diaper pail and the room smells so yummy.  My husband likes it because the smell washes out so he doesn’t get a headache, but you can use the scented dryer balls she sells to add scent to your laundry.  So far my favorite is Honey Almond, but I really like Butt Naked, too.  I have a list a mile long of the ones I’d like to try!  There’s a place that’s selling it in Concord, but I haven’t been there…I just ordered online.  And the best part?  If you buy in bulk, it’s cheaper than any of the detergents at Walmart.  Seriously, I took a calculator and worked it all out.  We’re using up the rest of the junk we have and then switching over to this for everyone’s clothes.  It’s gentle enough for me with my allergy issues, baby’s sensitive skin, and my oldest son’s eczema.  Try it.  You’ll like it.  A LOT!
  • I found out I don’t qualify for federal financial aid for school.  I am more bummed than I can express about this, because it may mean I can’t go back to school.  I’m hoping the aforementioned job provides enough money to pay for tuition but unless my husband gets something better in the meantime I may have to wait or give up the idea completely.  Big time bummer.  I’m still hoping there may be something available from the school or the state but I’m not holding my breath considering the current economic climate.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh…my brain feels better now that I’ve gotten all of that out.  Now I’m heading outside to enjoy the day until I need to take some more drugs for this cold!

  • I am a mom to 3 living in Sanford, NC. I am a wife. I am a student. I am a Christ follower. I am a friend. This is the craziness of my life.
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