ooohhh...it's going to be many years before I'm done

knezdad and I have talked many hours about my going back to school...I spent all last summer studying for the GREs again (but did better this time than when I took them 18 years ago). Last Wednesday I receive my acceptance to my PhD program. Well, "received" is not exactly the right word. I checked the website on my PDA after teaching a class...and saw the work accepted instead of applied, which it has said since I sent in my application in July. Now I wait for the letter in the mail. More anticlimactic than when I was accepted to my M.S. program and waited for the mailman to come...

I am a mom of two elementary aged children, have a great husband, work full time as an educational consultant, teach an adjunct course at a state college one night a week (65 miles south of home). The PhD program is 65 miles west of home. While work is helping with the costs, that gravy train might end at any time (there's no guarantee of financial help for all semesters). I'm starting this very part-time (one course a semester).

I read the above paragraph, and think, "who the heck is this person?" When it's written down, it doesn't sound like my life at all. My life is just...my life.

BTW - knezdad is awesome...two years ago, we made a decision to remove our children from daycare (one was not doing well at all). He quit his very stressful job to become a stay-at-home-dad (I was working part-time and I returned to my job full-time). The company recognized his value, so he became an assistant to the guy who replaced him. Now he has a job where he can work around the kids' bus schedules, so he's always home when they are home. He works weekends, when I'm home with the kids. I couldn't do this PhD program without him and his schedule...I am very aware how lucky I am. Last week we celebrated 21 years of being together (we met as undergrads). We really work as a team.

Why a blog? Just to document why I'm doing this. (why am I doing this? oh right, academia...). I want to keep things in perspective for me. I'll post the trials and tribulation of starting a PhD program at 40, and the wonderful experiences I have as a mom. I don't expect anyone to actually read this. There is so little information out there for older students will kids returning to school, if it can help one other person, fabulous.