PhD Student Mamas Tackling 2008 - Page 2

[gradmama]

Hi Mamas! I usually hang out in the Working/Student area, but was procrastinating any number of things I should be doing instead and I found you!

Name: gradmama
Age: 30
Children and birthdays: Dd13, Dd11 (almost 12), Dd10
Academic Area: sociology
Stage of Degree: 2nd quarter PhD program (have to get MA first so I'm really just starting)
Goal for 2008: get through first year, propose MA project and maybe start doing interviews?
Geographical Location: (if you are comfortable sharing): CA

[pharmamamma]

Hello Ladies

Name: (screen or real) Pharmamma
Age: 30
Children and birthdays: 1 son age 9 (12/14/98)
Academic Area: Dr. of Pharmacy
Stage of Degree: 2nd year out of 4 (or 5)
Goal for 2008: Pass all my classes and stay sane.
Geographical Location: Oregon

I don't think I would have made it this far it it weren't for my supportive husband and our local Montessori school (which helped mold my son into an amazing and independent boy).

[Aletheia]

bumparooski... another group is started here: http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=724081

[Aletheia]

My goal today: In the next 1.5 hours, I'd like to begin and finish the lecture and teaching notes for Lesson 6 for my on-line course. I'd also like to begin reading the Freud for Lesson 7.

Anyone else? What are you doing today?

[dogmom327]

I'm working on my proposal. My goal is by Friday night (at the very latest) to have the proposal for one of my three papers done and off to my chair.

Now if only DS would take a nap...

[dogmom327]

So maybe if at least one person posts every day, it will stay bumped up high enough to gather more participants Here's my contribution to the cause...

Today's plan: work on the same paper as yesterday but I have to get it finished by tomorrow. It's pretty much done, now I just need to edit and clean up the cites. I'm a little worried about the theory. That's always my weakness. I think it's okay but it will be interesting to see what my Chair thinks.

Aletheia, did you get your lesson plan from yesterday done? Sending productive vibes your way!!!

[snowyowl]

I have one week to go before my next comprehensive exam. I'll be so glad when it's over. If I try to cram one more poem into my brain, everything else is going to spill out.

[Aletheia]

Oh, snowywl- I know the feeling! Good luck!

dogsmom, thanks for bumping us up again. and for inquiring on my progress!

I was a bit ambitious on my goals for wednesday, and this morning i had a (lengthy) phone appointment with my technical support person, so i'm a bit behind. but i worked diligently yesterday and this morning too! tomorrow i have no nanny, so i won't be back here til Monday.

[dogmom327]

Snowylw--Hang in there! Quals are horrible. I told DH the other day that if I hadn't made it through quals before DS was born, I'm sure that at this point I'd be seriously considering dropping out. I don't know where I'd find time for the intensive studying again. I admire you doing that with children!!

Aletheia--A nanny must be so nice! I'd like to leave DS with someone occasionally but he's recently decided that bottles are an unacceptable substitute for the real thing and we haven't quite mastered the sippy cup. So until I can be assured he won't starve, I guess I'm on my own...of well. Honestly though, I'm not completely convinced I'm ready to leave him--but there's a part of me that really wants and needs to.

Yesterday was pretty productive and I was able to get the portion of my proposal done and off to my Chair. Two more portions to go! Only one has to be written from scratch (more or less) though so I should have the entire proposal done by the end of the month.

I've decided I hate the first part of the writing process--the part where you have to go from a blank page to a draft. I don't mind it once I get going and I like running data and discussing the results but it's that first part where you have to get the muddled mess in your head down on paper in a way that makes some sense that really frustrates me.

We're having company tonight so today I'm cleaning house and trying to catch up on all the things that have gone off to the side this week while I was trying to get the paper done. Hopefully though I'll be able to get something done on my next paper.

[daekini]

I'm so glad to hear that this can be done, I have 2 little ones, ages 2 and 4, and I'm visiting the chair of an environmental science/infrastructure management department on Friday... considering starting on my PhD at... 36??? am I insane?????

[dogmom327]

Welcome daekini! Yes, you are insane...but then so are the rest of us so we like to think it's okay

You are much braver than I to be starting the process with small children, but it can be done. I've seen people do it

[Aletheia]

Hi daekini! Good luck with that conversation and the exciting new chapter you are considering! You can totally do it if you want to do it!

I'm back after a week of particularly bad morning sickness... I can't believe I'm still battling it this much this time. Last pregnancy wasn't nearly so bad.

I'm full of happy thoughts today, though, because last week I got two pieces of really good news. The first is small, but significant-- I was worried about telling the chair of my department I'm expecting, as I had just asked her to do a bunch of red-tape rearranging for me that was going to be a pain in the patootie so that I could teach online again in the fall... which now I won't be doing. But not only was she super understanding... she's pregnant and due a week before me! Tra lala. It helps to have people of power in the same boat as you, yes?

But, it gets better. She had already done said red-tape rearranging, and the full extent of that request had been to let my on-line teaching responsibilities "count" as the teaching responsibilities I needed to fulfill (residentially) to earn the remaining two years of my stipend, which I thought I had forfeited by moving away from the university. She found a way to make it happen! So now I get
a) a paycheck
b) off the hook of having to pay tuition to enroll, which was going to be out-of-state tuition
c) full-time enrollment that will stop the need to pay back my student loans!

So whereas when I became pregnant with #2 things looked oh-so-dire in the completing the degree area of my life, now it looks more than possible. I'm so excited! (And yes, she said I don't have to re-enroll in fall, but can wait until spring. Ahh, sweet flexibility.)

So anyway...

Today's Goal: Finish Lesson 6, begin reading Freud. Don't fall asleep. (Alas, the last goal will be the hardest.)

[dogmom327]

Alethia, I hope you feel better soon. I had the all day "morning sickness" with Ian as well and so I completely understand your pain. It's actually made me nervous about trying for another one anytime soon.

That's such good news on your stipend! It must be such a relief. I unfortunately got the opposite news last week. This is the first year my school has funded 5th year students (half stipend) and I was all set for it and then they discovered a university policy against funding non-resident students. So as of July, I have no income although I am still enrolled so no student loan issues (thank goodness!). So we are working out our finances. It's amazing how much of a difference a small stipend can make! I'm thinking about looking for an online teaching job this fall--but we'll see. Hopefully DH gets a raise and a decent bonus. We should know soon.

All of this should be motivating me to get my proposal done so I can get the dissertation done and get a job but it seems to have had the opposite effect. Thankfully, I'm working on a deadline for the end of the month (to have my proposal off to my committee) so I can defend it the last week of the semester.

Today's goal: Work on the final paper for my proposal. I currently have a 2 page summary written (with minimal theoretical discussion). I need to come up with a solid 5-8 pages (single spaced) by this weekend. Fun, fun, fun.

[Aletheia]

Hi Julie-

Ack! I'm sorry to hear about your funding lapse. That is really crappy. And no, it makes sense that that sort of news wouldn't be highly motivating. But you can do it! Onward to the finish line!

I'm doing well on my daily goal today-- just have to start freud this evening.
And email my IT person.

[snowyowl]

Just popping in to say that I finally got my exam results back and I passed my second comp. Two down, one more to go. If all goes well, I'll be ABD by the end of the summer!

[Aletheia]

Wow! Congrats, snowyowl! I'm so envious of those three little letters.

I haven't posted here for a while as we had company (in-laws) *and* my nanny has been out of commission for a week with a badly sprained ankle. All my spare time has been spent trying to keep up with my timeline for my course development. I'm behind, but not drastically.

And that's sort of a lie. I'm also spending a lot of time getting our veggie garden up and running. It's so exciting!

But today I finished 1 lecture and began another... tomorrow I hope to finish that one and start another one. Progress!

How are other folks doing?

[DariusMom]

Name: DariusMom
Age: 37
Children and birthdays: DS, 5 -- 8 Dec, 2002
Academic Area: History
Stage of Degree: ABD. Hoping/Praying to be finished this summer!
Goal for 2008: Phinishing!!!!
Geographical Location: (if you are comfortable sharing): Netherlands

Glad I stumbled across you all! I'm mostly lurking the working and student mama forum, and get a lot of support from a Yahoo! ABD moms group. But I need all the help I can get.

goal by the end of the week (Sunday midnight!) finish my chapter!

[Inanna_Mama]

Name: Inanna
Age: 37 ( how's this for a crazy, late bloomer??)
Children and birthdays: DS (Nov 2006)
Academic Area: Women, Agriculture and the Right to Food
Stage of Degree: Planning to *start* my Master's coursework in fall of 2009 or 2010 (I'd like time with a 2nd babe before starting - if I can talk DH, who will be the SAHD while I'm in school, into it)
Goal for 2008: Research, write and present conference paper in June; start applying for scholarships by November
Geographical Location: (if you are comfortable sharing): CO for now, but grad school planned for Stuttgart, Germany

I really love this thread. We can really be a help to each other with the accountability posts. I'm already so grateful for the recommendation (sorry I can't remember who posted it) to just try to get 15 minutes of work done each day.

Right now I'm in Day 2 of trying to get thru a really meaty article during DS's short 1 1/4 hour naptime. The little insomniac doesn't go to bed until around 8 at night and usually by then I'm too exhausted to think (DS is a spirited, high-needs baby who leaves me completely depleted at the end of each day), so naptime is my only hope to pull off this paper.

Looking forward to sharing support, tips and listening ears with you all!

[nabigus]

I'll go back and read the thread in a writing lull, just subbing for right now. Great to find y'all.

Name: (screen or real): nabigus
Age: 32
Children and birthdays: ds, 8/05
Academic Area: sociology
Stage of Degree: ABD, writing!
Goal for 2008: uh, get a job. maybe even a good one.
Geographical Location: (if you are comfortable sharing): NY

[Inanna_Mama]

Hi ya, Nabigus!

Well, my attempts to get 15 minutes of work in/week have failed. Had a house full of guests last week and have been in recovery mode so far this week.

I'm hoping to arrange for some help looking after DS at least twice per week for an hour or two in the near future. But, since he is vehemently opposed to being separated from me (even if it means staying with his papa), it's not looking good.

So, I'm renewing efforts tomorrow to start the 15 min/day routine. Anyone with me?