"Your mom goes to College" says Kip from Napoleon Dynamite.
That's me….I'm the mom, almost 40 years old, been married almost 20 years, and here's my story.
For the past 2 years that Stephen has returned to working at BYUI I have been dreaming and scheming of someday going back to school…when JT started first grade. It seems like at the beginning of each semester I would go through majors and envision myself in the distant future with some sweet career. Don't get me wrong – I LOVE BEING A MOM. It is my first choice and I want to spend the rest of my life being as good of a mom/grandma as possible. It is what I always wanted to be when I grew up and I'm living my dream. BUT for some reason I also yearn for more knowledge and a marketable skill in case of tragedy. I decided I would do it (take some classes) when I was released from being Primary President. Well this year in January, I anticipated being released as changes were evident but to my great surprise I was extended the calling to be the YW President. I realized that my education would be on hold and that Heavenly Father has different plans in mind for me.
I Love the Young Women and serving them and now feel like I'm in the groove! In April, Stephen decided that he would submit my application to BYUI and got me an interview with Stake Presidency to be endorsed. I was dragging my feet because I didn't see how I was EVER going to survive school, being a parent and wife, community volunteer, doing my best in my calling, and keeping up with housework. SO I enrolled in a guitar class…:) It ended up being a lot of work (practicing 45 min a day) and after 2 weeks I found out I couldn't even take the class because I was accepted for the Fall/Winter semesters. I'm not going to lie – I was relieved.
Move on to May – Stephen decided that building a gym onto our house would be a great idea…I consented dragging my feet because of many worries concerning time, energy, & money. It was very important to him (that is a long story for another entry). We are still in the process of finishing things up – getting very close!! To pay for this gym project the idea to finish our attic and turn it into an apartment was suggested, but things have been off and on complicated with that. I decided instead of sitting around waiting to see if the apartment idea was going to work that I would go see what kind of work I could do to help supplement the income. The only acceptable idea for me was to work for the school district so that I could have the same schedule as my kids. I decided to be a substitute teacher, put my name on the lunch lady list, and also applied for a couple of other positions. As I filled out applications and made a resume I was a bit discouraged at the lack of experience and qualifications I have. It was in that moment I decided that I am NOT OK with it, it is time for me to chip away at earning my bachelor's degree. I don't care if I never ever use it and have a job – in fact I hope I never have to really. BUT I WILL have skills and qualifications to do something I choose to do – even if it takes me the next 15 years. I'm grateful I have earned my associate degree so I am not starting at ground 0. I don't want to ever feel trapped in a job or situation if I could be doing something now. It is exciting and scary and overwhelming, BUT really GOOD!
So I am easing in slowly…signed up to take Family Foundations (a religion class on the Family Proclamation required for graduation). Stephen is in my class and my brother in law John is our teacher. I really enjoy the class a lot so far. I am also taking a class called, Career Exploration. I decided that taking time to discover the best path for my personality, interests, and skills would save me a lot of time in the grand scheme of things and I also want verification that I am choosing the best degree choice for the lifestyle and family time I want. Last but not least I am enrolled in beginning swimming!!! YIKES…I'm most nervous about this class as it is going to put me face to face (literally) with a few of my fears. It will be a great thing to be able to accomplish and I look forward to the end – not the journey in this class. 🙂
And that is the behind the scene look at this new College adventure!