At the end of this year, I will finish my MBA. It’s a been a very LONG 4 years of tough work and trying to balance my life with working full-time, being in school part-time, and 2 young kids. But I will be done. And in essence, so will my family.
My husband always supported my wanting to go back to school, so when our son was 2, we decided it was time that I could go back as he was old enough that my husband would be ok. So I wrote the GMAT, applied to grad school, and got accepted! Yay, right?
Well, 2 weeks after accepting and paying my deposit, guess what? I found out I was pregnant with #2….noooooo!!!! Why is this happening now? How will I manage? It’s just bad timing…..
But as always, my ever-so-practical husband brought me back to my senses. It was ok, we would manage. We would figure it out. And we did….most days.
I completed the first semester (big pregnant belly and all). Then I took 2 semesters off until my daughter was 6 months old (and I was ok with introducing one hubby led bottle feed). But it was tough. And it got tougher when I went back to work once maternity leave was over.
Has doing an MBA taken a toll on us? Yes. There were many times I could not participate in family events, could not spend time with my kiddies, or was too tired to be intimate with hubby. Where weekends once upon a time used to mean doing fun things, they now revolved around school work and group meetings. To try to spend some “quality family time” I would work into the wee hours of the night so that I would be free in the daytime – extremely tired but free…Some days I didn’t think we would make it.
My friends called me superwoman, but I just call myself crazywoman. There are days when I’ve wanted to quit. There are days that I think of what a horrible mom I am for spending less time with my family. There are days when I question what this piece of paper will really ever do for me. There are days that I feel guilty about not being the “perfect” mother, wife, daughter, sister, friend….and everything else in between.
Was it impossible? No. Would I do it over again? Maybe not. But it was my choice and being the anal over-achiever I am, I keep going and do not quit. After all, you appreciate things more if you struggle a bit along the way.
Doing my MBA has had a positive effect on my family too. My kiddies realize the importance of studying and working hard. My son often tells me that when he gets into grade 1, he will also have to work hard and never sleep, just like mom. My daughter tells me that she likes to do homework.
My mom tells me that I have made her proud by being the first “child” in our family to get a post-grad degree. And the hubby, as proud as I know he is of me, I’m sure all he’s thinking is “I can’t wait until she’s done, maybe now I’ll get some…”
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