It's the end! Of this semester, anyway. Finals are done, papers have been turned in, I've gained a few more grey hairs, but it is finally over!

I tried out some new things this semester to help me get through it as sanely as possible, and I want to talk about them for a bit before moving onto some other things about this semester. One of the things I did was to Set Semester Goals and Do a Mid-Semester Check of those goals to make sure I was one track. Here are those goals with the results:

My Spring 2017 Goals:

1. Read all my textbooks. I did read all my textbooks front to back, so that one is good!
2. Do my homework ahead of time. This started to get shaky towards the end, and in Math, I actually didn't do three chapters of homework (which were actually very small) until the day before the Final. Ouch. BUT! I didn't need to turn them in. I did them as sort of a review. However, I was still disappointed that I let this goal fall through.
3. Really get math out of the way. Yes and no. I did pass this semester's math. MORE than passed. I got an A in a math class for the first time in my life and I am so jazzed and proud of myself! Having an Assignment List and planning ahead really helped, but so did having a study schedule, doing (most) of my homework ahead of time, attending all classes, and going to tutoring. If you'd like to read about this process, click here. However, I need to take Math 25 during Summer so I can apply to transfer in the fall.
   

   For reals.

4. Be a better team leader. I don't know if I was a better team leader. I think the group project of this semester could have been done better, but it got done and we got an A, so the results kind of make it worth it. I did speak with a few people about how to be a better team leader, and I realized there was no one formula for every situation. Each team is different, and each project is different. To expect everything to work flawlessly despite your best preparations is wishful thinking at best. I think being a good team leader is understanding that there will be bumps in the road, and the best you can do sometimes is hang on and go with the flow instead of forcing things to go one way or the other. 
5. Balance school and life a bit better. Work and school worked out great. Keeping up with chores and school? Not so much. My room and car are both complete messes right now. I don't think my organizational skills have anything to do with that though. More on that below.

I think, looking back on these goals, I did a relatively good job on them. However, this semester was really hard for me. I dealt with a lot of things that I don't know if many college students deal with but I'd like to think the experience puts drops in my "resilience" bucket.

The hurdles.  
First, there was my birthday mid March. This may not seem like a big deal, but I turned 35 in the middle of my new school journey. I still have 3 years to go (which I am not happy about, my Sophomore "year" is turning out to be two years), and as much as I love school, I kind of want to stop being the 35 year old working on her bachelor's. I don't want this to seem like a complaint, seeing as I am grateful to be given this second chance. That isn't to say I certainly don't feel a little anxious to get it going!

G.Ma departed us Spring Semester 2016, and Pappy left us a year and some-odd days directly after.

Then, there were two deaths in my family. The first was a cousin who was younger than me by 3 years. I'm used to older people like grandparents dying. But this was the first time in my life that someone in my age group had died. My mortality was suddenly made so aware to me as I reached my 35 year milestone, and I got a good dose of you better make sure that what you are doing in your life is what you want. I'm an introspective person anyway, so delving into that wasn't hard. But seeing someone your age in a casket is hard on top of the grief you feel.

The next was my Pappy, my last grandpa. This hit me triple fold because he was my last grandparent to die. I am now grandparent-less. Even though we weren't close, he was a constant in my life and I suppose it goes to show that nothing is permanent. Life changes whether you like it or not and I discovered I didn't like it, even though his dying took a year and you'd think that'd be plenty of time to get used to the idea. It's not and never is. I had the honor of being the person to place my Pappy's ashes in the columbarium. 

Sometimes during your college journey you will face changes and situations that are very difficult and make you feel all alone. You've decided to go to college and be dedicated to yourself. No matter what happens, you must persevere.

But as this was happening, we learned that my mother had a different father than all of her siblings. We found out who he was, and that he died in 2013, two hours from where I was living at the time. It was hard to juggle the joy of discovery with the grief of a person you've never met and didn't know you wanted to know until the decision to know them was never yours to begin with.

Then, there were some medical issues. I had a doctor suggest I had diabetes when I went in for an allergy test. This gave me quite a scare, and looking back, it wasn't a good idea for him to casually suggest that. I spent a good part of March chasing down medical tests and doctors, only to learn that I am not diabetic and am in no danger of being diabetic, and what I was experiencing was a histamine issue related to the automimmune disease I have, Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

Despite all this, I managed to keep it together at school. I don't want to say I blocked it out or compartmentalized, because I didn't. I was crying and distraught over reports and homework, trying to figure out the quadratic formula from the quadratic equation between blurry tears. I was trying to wrangle group members into participating while trying to support grieving family members. I've had to pull off the side of the road to cry like I've never cried before on the way to class or work. 

If I had not put together an assignment list or study schedule, all this would have put a serious monkey wrench in my goals. Scheduling my time and creating a buffer for emergencies really helped me out this semester. At no point during all this did I want to quit. I wanted things to calm down, and for my group members to step up, but wishing for something to happen doesn't negate the reality facing you. Sometimes you really do have to put on your big girl pants and get things done, even if everything around you is on fire.

The highs.
But, I would be remiss to leave you on that note, which many may see as negative (but please remember, being positive does not mean to ignore the reality of life which may include many dark or "negative" aspects). This semester did have some very positive results (aside from, you know GETTING AN 'A' IN A MATH CLASS!).

First, a teacher asked me to use my Child Study Paper as an example for future classes. I've had one other teacher ask me to use my stuff last year, but this paper meant a lot to me. It makes me happy to know that the hard work I've done will also benefit other students. In fact, I've also been asked to guest speak next semester. I will be presenting to next semester's CDE3 class, and explaining the Child Study Paper to them. A few teachers also asked me for advice so more students can be successful next semester. To find that my work is so respected has made me so grateful for this school experience. I want to be a teacher and am glad to see that before I am even officially a teacher my efforts are helping to guide others.

Spring 2017 ended in As for all classes and a 4.0 for the semester, and a 3.6 cumulative!

How was your semester? In what ways did you feel you could have done better, and how do you plan to address that in the future?

I can't believe it's already Spring. While Fall seemed to drag, it's weird to think that we are already in 2017. Honestly, it feels like 2010 was just yesterday!

Along with every new year comes new goals and changes. I find myself facing challenges that I've turned away from for so many years, and am now now better prepared to tackle them. This Let's Go feeling hit me in the middle of Winter Break, and I found myself reading textbooks for Spring's classes ahead of time. I prepared a new organization system and redid my binder, and put together an Assignment List. I feel friggin' ready.

Even so, the first day of Spring 2017 had me in my school counselor's office. I expressed my concern with two classes that are part of my degree that may have me missing work. We discussed other options, such as registering to other schools while also attending Chaffey, where they may be better equipped to accommodate the schedule of a full time working student. I sent emails to other schools and received some replies, and will be working this strategy into my academic planning.


My first class, Observation & Assessment for Child Development, had me at a satellite campus to Chaffey in Fontana. I hadn't visited this satellite campus before, but was glad to see that it included services such as a library and counseling. The professor of this class was very lively and organized, which I appreciated. I mentally took note of some of the other older students in the class, but didn't think much of it at that time.

Thursday had me in Family, Community, & Child, another Child Development with my favorite professor, where again I noticed more non-traditional (older) students! They each had amazing stories to share as we talked and introduced ourselves. I wrote to my professor after that I was glad to see that I wasn't the only non-traditional student in attendance! I was able to bond with some of these students, and hope for a wonderful semester with them!

On Saturday I woke up early to attend Intermediate Algebra. If you've read this blog before I changed my schedule on the right hand side, you know that I attempted this class in Fall 2016. It didn't work out. The professor's teaching style and my learning style didn't mesh, and I decided to try again this semester. The professor this time around seems to be more my style, of which I am grateful.

I have quite a few assignments already done, and already have plenty planned out!

The first week was uneventful (especially in comparison to Fall 2016's first week!) but already the homework was rolling in. I had set up my Assignment List so that I wouldn't forget anything, and already it is coming in handy!

Spring Semester is finally here! With it comes New Year's resolutions, new semester goals, and new school supplies! You're ready to face the rest of the school year with a new sense of purpose!

First, a small recap:
In 2015, I decided to go back to college with two goals in mind. I wanted to have an education under my belt that reflected my work in Social Media Management (which I no longer do, btw), and I needed something to do that would distract me from my decision to end my career in Halloween.

On the very first day of school, I dropped Selling. I decided right then and there that this was not the direction of my life.

However, I was drawn into my other classes, especially Family Communications and Child Development. I found a lot of answers to questions I didn't know I had, and worked through a lot of issues bubbling beneath the surface. Intro to Psychology was also interesting, and I learned from 2015 that I absolutely loved being in school.

My goals for Spring 2016 were pretty much to determine my major. It was a tossup between Communications, Psychology, and Child Development. It took me a whole semester (!) to get these details nailed down with the counseling department, but by the close of Spring 2016 I had my major, and I had a plan. I was set to graduate with two AAs: one in Social Sciences, and one in Child Development. Other goals included getting Academic Clemency and sorting out issues from transferring credits.

Summer 2016 I wanted to knock some prerequisites out of the way, and a waitlisting issue had me in Intro to Philosophy. I found a new love of my life at that time, and promptly registered for another Philosophy class for fall.

Fall 2016 I had two goals. One, get through Math...which I did not do. I had to drop the class midway through because I failed the midterm. I would have stuck with it and busted my butt for a C, but the thing was...everyone failed the midterm. I realized I did not want to stick through a semester of Math and do all the work I was doing to be handed an F, when I know I could pull better than that. The second goal was to really determine if Child Development was really the major for me. Call me indecisive, but I like to really consider my decisions, especially ones that have lifelong consequences such as determining a major. I took classes without my favorite teacher (to make sure that I wasn't just doing the classes because I liked being in class with my favorite teacher), but at the end I realized this is what I wanted to do: be a teacher.

After the year and a half spent back in college, I realize that I need to set some stringent goals if I want to transfer on time. I've looked back at what I've accomplished (determined a major, managed to get all As since returning to school) and all that I failed to accomplish (complete Math requirements for my major), and all that I wish I had attempted, and have come up with a few goals:

My Spring 2017 Goals

1. Read all my textbooks: This seems like a no-brainer, but how many of us actually read all of our textbooks? Last semester I found myself skimming some books, which I didn't like because I like to read. I think I had some time management issues that kept me from committing to my reading, but this semester I want to stay dedicated. I've even started the reading already!
2. Do my homework ahead of time: When I come from home from school I like to sit down and watch a show. This semester, I want to come home and immediately get started on homework. 
3. Really get math out of the way: This is the last semester I want to spend doing Math. I want it done! I need to get it done so I can take statistics, and I do not want to waste another semester in Math!
4. Be a better team leader: I found myself floundering in one group project last semester because I did not take my own advice and take the leadership role right off the bat. I did not delegate and I did not plan. Even though we got an A, this project caused me a lot of anxiety that planning would have alleviated. My goal is to be a better team leader so at least I can rest a little easier!
5. Balance school and life a bit better: My room, car, and desk were an atrocious mess after this semester! At some point my organization system crashed and I did nothing to fix it. Papers were everywhere, I abandoned my binder at some point, and my textbooks found a home on the floor of the passenger side of my car. This was not okay...just looking at the mess caused me anxiety because I knew I had to clean it but had no time to do so! This semester, I want to make sure I stay organized, and make sure I have time to take care of Real Life things like cleaning.

Aside from these academic goals, I have other life goals (or resolutions) that I have in place for this year that will effect my school:

2017 Life Goals

1. Pay down more debt: I paid off one credit card (for my abrupt wisdom teeth removal in Summer), but I have two more bills I'd like paid off before I transfer. Like many adults going into college, I am chiefly responsible for my own finances. If I am going to get student loans in the future, I want my credit to be tip-top. This may mean I need to pull more work hours (I work full time) or even buckle down on my budget more. Either way, this is a goal and I will do what I need to make it happen!
2. Get my side hustle going: I'm an artist and create illustrations for books, but I started a coloring page side hustle that I've done nothing with. I'd like to get that off the ground this year.
3. Start working in my major: I'm already looking at night, weekend, and 24/7 child care services to send my resume to. I like the job I am in and would like to keep it, but I'd like to start working in my major in a part time or volunteer basis. Last time I went to school I waited until I graduated to start working in the field, which put me at a severe disadvantage. This time around, I want to avoid that mistake. The trick will be to find something that will work with my work and school schedule.

What are some of your goals for Spring 2017?