Lets go back to the beginning shall we. I was 1.5 years out of high school and I had been working full time since graduating. It occurred to me that it was high time to go to College. So I did. I got me a nice chunk of student loan money from the government (Don't worry, I'm still smacking myself in the head for that one!), and off I went. Pretty gung ho I was. I went for1.5 years, non-stop. By the time I stopped, I only needed one more course and a practicum until I got my Social Services Diploma. But being the foolish 20-something that I was, I just stopped. Cold turkey. No looking back. Sigh...
Fast forward to 2007 (5 years later). I thought, "Hmm, what do I really need to finish that Diploma anyway?" When I found out it was really only two courses I thought, "What the heck was I thinking?" The reality was that I wasn't really thinking at the time. So I looked into it, and the college granted me permission to finish my Diploma (even though I was past the 5 year deadline). Nice folks those college types.
So starting in the Fall of 2007, I did a Psychology course by distance learning in the mornings before Abbi woke up, and sometimes even after she went to bed. It took me 5 months, and I ended up getting an A in the course. In the Spring of 2008, I started in on a 6 week, full-time practicum at a Foster Care agency. Child care was split between my cousin Ruth, and Rob's Mom. It was an incredible experience, and from that, I was hired on to work 2 days a week until I started my maternity leave with Gabe. Once I started working, I put Abbi in a daycare, which I think was a really great experience for her.
To be honest, at the time I really wasn't sure I would, could or should finish it. But thankfully common sense kicked in, and I pushed through. It was tricky with a two year old. Trying to focus and set aside time for my studies seemed nearly impossible some days. So now, as I think of starting all over again, I'm fairly intimidated at the thought (perhaps overwhelmed is a better word!). I'll be plugging away at this part time, and I also now have a second child on board. Wow.
The current "hot topics" around my house include things, such as; potty training, firetrucks, Barney, trains, Finding Nemo, and other random arguable topics that Abbi decides to bring up. My world view is coming from places like Barney (unfortunately a favorite around these parts), Super Why, Dora, Baby Einstein, Goodnight Moon, and Old MacDonald. So as you can see, I'm feeling a little like my brain has been fried by all this "kidness." I wouldn't trade this time for anything, it is so precious (Well, I wouldn't describe every day as "precious," but you get the idea!). But some days it really does your head in! Academia is not really on the forefront of my mind right now.
I had applied to UVIC's Bachelor of Social Work program late in 2008. Around the same time I also applied for a Metis & Non-Status Bursary through the Alberta government. Basically its grant money for Native people who could never qualify for Indian Status who are pursuing a degree in the Social Services field. So both of those applications were long gone, and I basically forgot about them. I found out in June that I did indeed get accepted to UVIC, and then in July I found out that I was granted the bursary! Wow! Both things caught me completely off guard. Most days I still can't believe it!
A prerequisite of getting into UVIC is completing three general elective courses. My Diploma is quite old at this point (6 years), so some of my courses no longer transfer. They wanted all this done by this upcoming September, as well as a 5 day course in Victoria two weeks from now. Um, yeah, not really happening in my current life space. So I have been granted a deferral until September 2010 when I will officially start the program.
In the meantime, I have to finish those three courses. I plan on doing them nights and weekends at a local college here in the city. I figure a classroom environment might be a better place for me to get my head around this school business again. Plus, the hours work pretty well around Rob's work schedule.
So there you have it. I'm feeling so incredibly blessed at this opportunity, and I know that things like this don't happen every day. So although it feels a bit soon, and a bit crazy, I feel its something I need to pursue. The hope is that I will be finishing up my degree around the same time that the kids would be starting school. Thus, allowing me to return to the work force with a fairly reasonable amount of education and training.
I figure this will likely affect my blogging regularity once I start my schooling. I do hope to still get to my garage sales, and do crazy rehab projects, but I know my mind will also be focussed elsewhere. So I am feeling a bit of a time crunch when it comes to finishing up some projects. My to-do list is taped up to my left. One item crossed off, far too many to go. One at a time I keep reminding myself. "One thing at a time..."
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