Why I am returning to college after 15 years.
Isn't it amazing how we want to put everyone in little boxes? I fit the box of the typical mom at home. I wear a pony tail and yoga pants. I realized through all our recent changes in life, moving to a new house, a new side to the country, and following my husband to a new job. I was ready to start ANEW. So, I am going back to school to get a second Associates Degree and expand my tools of knowledge.
What am I going to study? Well, I decided I would focus on Web Development/Design. This was originally inspired by a frustration with having to deal with blogger templates and not having them be exactly what I wanted, I decided it was time to learn how to change that. Plus, learning how to make my blog more beautiful is going to benefit in so many ways. So, here we go, me a mom, going back to school. But, why would I put myself through this? For our family, time and money is at a premium. However, I see a future in Web Development/Design as a new way to protect my family's future.
So, how did I get here? Well, I already have one degree but have found it challenging to do what I want with it. It seems amazing to me that we expect 18-year old teenagers to be able to choose a path that they will follow for the rest of their lives. At 18, I could barely figure out what I wanted to eat and how to live on my own. I could not decide what to do for the rest of my life, and went along taking several classes for inspiration. So, I ended up with a Liberal Arts focused A.A. Being the first college graduate in my entire family was something to be very proud of, and I always will be. Yet, my lack of focus and wanderlust through college did not serve me well when it came to acquiring skills for the working world. Following my college education, I found myself in higher level retail management positions. I was very good at these positions, but I was not thriving. As a newlywed and a new mother, I knew something had to change. These were simply jobs, and not careers. Plus, I needed to be in a position where my family could come first. Therefore, my husband and I made the decision for me to be a work at home mom. I could raise and nurture my two toddlers, but now those two toddlers are 9 and 11 years old.
Now, my kids need to run from school to activities. We are knee deep in soccer, scouts, taekwondo, and various reading competitions. They are both full of emotions, struggles, and always changing goals that tweens constantly deal with. So, I need to be here with them to help the walk through it. So, I had to find a path that allows me to continue being with them. That desire fueled by frustration over controlling my blog's look and functionality is what drove me to pursue this path.
I believe Moms should be able to choose if they want to stay home. They should not be stuck either working or staying at home. When we are so young it is impossible to predict these difficulties when we are in the 20's. What's an amazing thing about technology, we can do this when we want to on our own time. Moms need that. Moms need to be able to be at home with their kids and still work and contribute to their family's finances if they choose. So, being open to going back to school is a way to change those tools that may have been the wrong fit.
Did I process some guilt with this? Now, my precious little wonders will not have my full attention all the time. Well, anyone with tweens knows that their attention needs are different. Plus, this is showing them a new perspective. We focus so much on learning what you want to be when you grow up. What is forgotten, is why do we have to be one thing? Why do we need to be the astronaut or lawyer all our life? I want to show them that yes they may pick their path to study in college, but they may change their path, and that's ok. Both of my kids are excited to spend time with me and see how college works. This gives them a great preview of what to expect in their not so distant future.
So, my artsy mind is attempting something new. Web Coding! Holy Smokes Batman!! It really isn't as hard as it looks, and is quite interesting. All of my life, I decided I couldn't do something like programming. I assumed I wouldn't be able to handle the left-brained nature of the beast. Now, I realized I was just holding myself back. I would love to eventually start some kind of program to help other moms feel empowered with technology and think outside the box. (This is my very first statement of this, so it will be a WHILE)
My entire learning process throughout all of this is to be open to change, and I don't need to fit into a box. I can do many things with all my talents. One person, who follows me on Twitter, describes what I want to be perfectly, "Designer of all things Digital" So, can I describe what exactly I'll be doing? NO. I am not just a work at home mom. I am not just an Avon lady. I can be a great mom, college student, web developer, Avon lady, photographer, graphic designer, blogging wonder of the universe!
I believe Moms should be able to choose if they want to stay home. They should not be stuck either working or staying at home. When we are so young it is impossible to predict these difficulties when we are in the 20's. What's an amazing thing about technology, we can do this when we want to on our own time. Moms need that. Moms need to be able to be at home with their kids and still work and contribute to their family's finances if they choose. So, being open to going back to school is a way to change those tools that may have been the wrong fit.
Did I process some guilt with this? Now, my precious little wonders will not have my full attention all the time. Well, anyone with tweens knows that their attention needs are different. Plus, this is showing them a new perspective. We focus so much on learning what you want to be when you grow up. What is forgotten, is why do we have to be one thing? Why do we need to be the astronaut or lawyer all our life? I want to show them that yes they may pick their path to study in college, but they may change their path, and that's ok. Both of my kids are excited to spend time with me and see how college works. This gives them a great preview of what to expect in their not so distant future.
So, my artsy mind is attempting something new. Web Coding! Holy Smokes Batman!! It really isn't as hard as it looks, and is quite interesting. All of my life, I decided I couldn't do something like programming. I assumed I wouldn't be able to handle the left-brained nature of the beast. Now, I realized I was just holding myself back. I would love to eventually start some kind of program to help other moms feel empowered with technology and think outside the box. (This is my very first statement of this, so it will be a WHILE)
My entire learning process throughout all of this is to be open to change, and I don't need to fit into a box. I can do many things with all my talents. One person, who follows me on Twitter, describes what I want to be perfectly, "Designer of all things Digital" So, can I describe what exactly I'll be doing? NO. I am not just a work at home mom. I am not just an Avon lady. I can be a great mom, college student, web developer, Avon lady, photographer, graphic designer, blogging wonder of the universe!
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