MasterMama

The Big Update

I dropped out of my master’s program! (we’ll get to that) It has been about six months since my last update on this blog. There were many days when I thought I should write something but never got around to it. A lot has changed and I have needed to adapt in response. It honestlyContinue reading “The Big Update”

Thank You, Christopher Meloche

This is something new I want to try. I’m going to write a series of thank you letters to people who have had important impacts on my life. I hear this is good for mental health, but, more importantly, I expect this to help me explore the connections I have with people in my life.Continue reading “Thank You, Christopher Meloche”

Finally Successful

I finally had a completely successful day collecting data! I fully charged the batteries before heading out. I didn’t forget my badge at home, so I was able to access the lab. I made it to all three roofs without succumbing to heat exhaustion. I remembered to adjust settings on the equipment for each collarContinue reading “Finally Successful”

Getting Up Again

You might have noticed (from my previous post) that I was having a sad. This is what I call my occasional encounters with acute depression. When I am in that space, it feels like everything is much more difficult than it objectively is, or even impossible, and simultaneously pointless. Why would anyone bother doing somethingContinue reading “Getting Up Again”

A Minor Crisis of Purpose

I just took the midterm for my second summer class yesterday. I just came home from my second vacation also. I’m relieved to finally venture out to see family again. What a privilege to have these people in my life and to be able to visit them! Still, I’m feeling pretty overwhelmed by everything rightContinue reading “A Minor Crisis of Purpose”

I Worry a Lot

I worry that the foster puppy isn’t eating enough. I worry that the feedback I got in the rough draft of my term project wasn’t specific enough to be actionable and I’m going to end up turning in something less than what my professor wanted. I worry that my two youngest kids are incessantly meanContinue reading “I Worry a Lot”

Almost Free

I’ve been having a series of emotional meltdowns recently. I feel like I’ve reached logical end of being overextended for too long. Full-time grad school, part time work, full responsibility for educating my kids, plus parenting overtime has definitely caught up with me. However, unless something awful happens, we’re expecting to be able to startContinue reading “Almost Free”

A First Look

Yesterday, I hustled around downtown looking at green roofs with my advisor. There are three being included in my study. I considered some others, but it seemed like it would potentially be prohibitively difficult to access roofs on residential buildings, and I found one on a courthouse but couldn’t seem to figure out how toContinue reading “A First Look”

My experience with ADHD

I recently overheard my MIL telling my husband that she has heard me say that I have ADHD, but she just doesn’t see it in me. My ex-husband has apparently also told our diagnosed daughter that he doesn’t see ADHD or ASD in her. This seems to be a pretty common experience for people observingContinue reading “My experience with ADHD”

School and More School

Today was the first day of the second semester of my grad school program. That’s a heck of a sentence. I’m taking two masters-level classes, working part time for one of my professors, homeschooling all four of my kids, and trying not to fall apart. With dentist, doctors, and various therapy appointments… I have describedContinue reading “School and More School”