As one would expect, a certain beautiful little girl has taken up my every waking hour for two and a half weeks now. In fact, even as I type this Maddie lies sleeping against my chest.  However, a few other things worthy of note have happened as of late as well:

-I received notification from the OU that I passed my first year uni course.  I have been waiting for this letter to come through the post for two months!  Last September I embarked on a general science course that would last me an entire year and take me through a range of subjects: Biology, Chemistry, Historical Geology, Quantum Physics and the universe itself.  I battled through chemical equations at the same time that I battled with morning sickness (better known as all day sickness really).  I reached the end of the course and spent over 50 hours perfecting my 23 page end of course assignment.  No matter how well you did in the course itsself, if you failed the end of year assignment you failed the year, and everything would be for nothing.

Luckily, this was not the case for me.  Whilst they don’t provide any specific feedback, I know two things:  1. I passed the assignment and the course and 2. the end of year was divided into 5 sections, 3 of which I scored in the 80-100% range, and the other two in the 60-79% range, which is fantastic.

-We may have another property.   I say may because, due to the previous two times the process has fallen through for us, I’ve learned that nothing is certain until the keys are in hand.  But the offer was accepted, and everything is proceeding with the property sale quite quickly.  I am trying not to get too excited until everything is locked into place by exchange of contracts, but I must say we LOVE this place.  I chose to have the positive outlook after the last one fell through that it was for the best and we would find something better (after a brief tear shed over it, of course) and it was exactly the case.  We found something we love so much more.  It ticks all the boxes, and is in a fantastic school district for Maddie.

We viewed the property the morning before my induction, picking a property and birthing a baby in the same 48 hour period? I think so.

- Mom went home last Friday after being here for three weeks.  It was so hard for her to go, and we miss her so much.  I am so grateful for all the help and support she gave us whilst here, and glad she got to be here for the birth.  I don’t know what I would’ve done in the first two weeks of Maddie’s life, never having raised a baby or even held one for an extended period of time, had it not been for her guidance.

And because the blog entry wouldn’t be complete without a picture of the cutie, I give you the level 1 noob:

In the wee hours of the morning, at 2am, I printed off my end of year assignment, put it in a display folder, and set it aside with a sigh of relief… finished and ready to be posted.  I had spent well over 40 hours on this 22 page behemoth, which contained the full spectrum of my course: biology, physics, chemistry, geosciences etc.  I worked on it for several hours a week over the last month, and it felt almost anticlimactic to have it finished and in hand.

Later that afternoon I walked unceremoniously into the post office, placed what felt like, literally, a second child into an envelope, and handed it off for posting.  Out of my hands and into those of fate.  It felt as though a burden was lifted and, when I got home, I finished the last little bit remaining this year for school: a 25 question test.  I passed the test, as I was informed immediately after submitting the answers online, and now all I needed to do was wait for the last assignment grade… the grade that could make or break me. For if I fail the final assignment, the rest of the year’s work is moot… I will have failed the course.  But I am confident this will not be the case: I worked too hard and too long on this to fail.

I’ve also begun my maternity leave… off of work for the next 10 months.  I don’t think it’s hit quite yet, but probably will tomorrow when I don’t have to be at work and I won’t have school work to finish…. what on Earth will I do with myself?!

- What’s up this week?  My blood pressure (hahahaha oh I slay me).  I’m now being monitored weekly from here until D-Day ever since, two weeks ago, it was found my blood pressure was on the rise.  My blood pressure has always been smack dab on FREAKING PERFECT at 110/70 all my life and really, most of my pregnancy as well.  Now it’s at 136/89 and I am not pleased.  The doctor is not worried yet as I have no other signs of  pre-eclampsia, but I tend to worry about most things.  I am (crazy as this sounds) looking forward to labor and I really don’t want this interfering with my plans… I don’t want a C-section above all else!

-Due to the above, I may need to go on maternity leave earlier than expected.  Currently, I am scheduled to leave work June 15th.  I hate the idea of spending some of my leave (39 weeks paid) before the baby is born, but I would rather do that then blow a vein in my head over stress.

- This month marks 7 months since sending my visa application off.  I still have nothing back, our passports (yep, Mark’s included) are effectively held hostage by the Home Office.  Today we posted a letter of formal complaint about the timeframes, especially given that the indefinite leave processing time is 14 weeks.  Failing this, we will go to the local MP about it.

-I am proud to say I am 2/5 of the way finished with the final course assignment, due June 3rd.  Out of the 5 sections, I’ve completed Biology and Geosciences… leaving Chemistry, Quantum Physics, and a section on the universe to go.  Once this course is completed, I will have roughly 1/7 of my required credit hours for my bachelors.

-Everything is proceeding with the property sale and we should be looking to move in mid June. I wonder if we will actually pack this time or wing it as we did last time ie. arm-fulls and car loads. The idea of packing and unpacking is so unappealing, not to mention exhausting.  I am hoping we will have time to paint the walls in the new place and add our touches before Little Doodle dominates our lives.  The nursery will be the very first thing getting done, and I have ordered some very cute things that fit in with the jungle theme we are going with.  I cannot wait to get in there and get everything perfect for when Little Doodle is born. Yeah, I’ve become one of THOSE women.

-My birthday is at the end of the month (May 25)  and I will be 25 years old.  I am not a big celebrator of my own birthday, not due to some inherent belief that my chronological age has any real impact on my life, merely because I don’t really enjoy being the center of attention.  The one thought that has occurred to me this year is I never thought I would be having my first baby so young, but I certainly have no regrets.

- Last scan on May 28th…. last chance for Little Doodle to show us the goods!

-60 more days!!!

My first year with the OU is about to come to an end.  Overall, I have really enjoyed this year’s course as the changing subject matter has kept me constantly engaged.  We’ve covered everything from global warming and climate, to the history of the Earth, to physics, to chemistry, to biology, to geology, to quantum physics and now wrapping up the course is life in the universe.  Even though I will continue with science as a biology major, I have thoroughly enjoyed both the geosciences and quantum physics I have gotten to learn about this year.

I am really impressed with the Open University as well.  The support is always there when I need it, the materials are provided, and everything is laid out in a very clear and concise manner.  I will say one thing though:  the speed and difficulty of the course, even for a year one course, is more than anything I had experienced in the American university system.  When I attended McNeese State University, I would show up for class, take notes, study a few days before the exams, and get an A or B.  Typically, three exams per class per semester, and I continually made the Dean’s list for my grades.  Here, the grading scheme is significantly harder, with tests as well as tutor marked assignments at the end of each unit, the average time spent per assignment being 20-25 hours.  I probably invested an average 15 hours a week in reading and comprehending the material in line with the syllabus, with the tutor marked assignments occurring once a month.

And now we’ve come to the big finale: the end of course assignment.  This baby is 17 pages of questions regarding the entire scope of the course.  I started today, with a hot cup of tea for assistance, and dove into what I am sure will take me the entire month to do.  I’ve got until June 3rd to complete it.

I feel really empowered by the experience of this year back in academia.  After all, I completed this huge amount of work for this course all the while working a full time job and being pregnant.  It hasn’t always been manageable either, as I was left with no choice but to turn in the second tutor assignment half completed due to feeling so unwell with my first trimester that I couldn’t find the time to complete it back in December.  But overall, I’ve gotten really good grades on my assignments and tests once I learned the ropes and hit the steep learning curve regarding what was expected of me.  Oddly, my best grade still stands as the chemistry unit… and I really don’t like chemistry!

Once I settle into my new life as a mother to Little Doodle, I will be enrolling in the next course starting for October or November. From here on out everything will be biology-centric and I am looking forward to some of the fun and interesting classes I will be taking.  Mark’s math course is about to wrap up here in June as well, he has also done very well for himself.  One day, I hope we can inspire the same love for learning in Little Doodle.

So I’ve been playing around with the degree planner on the OU website, trying to plot out the courses I will take for my Biology degree. I think I’ve got a fairly solid build going now, and a good idea of where I will be headed in the years to come.

I’ve had to do some thinking as of late about which area of science I would enjoy more. I was considering Geosciences as an alternative to Biology, but the degree application isn’t practical. It’s not that I don’t love Biology, but I find Geosciences to be of equal interest.

In the UK, the education system is a bit different. Bachelor degrees take 3 years to complete, and masters take 1. All of your courses are core, degree focused courses with no requirement for basic classes or humanities. Due to my attendance being part time, and will continue part time after Little Doodle is born, it will take me longer than the typical 4 years to reach my masters.

Below are the courses I have mapped out:

Completed and current courses
Exploring science (S104) 60

Intended courses

Level 1
Fossils and the history of life (S193) 10
Life in the oceans: exploring our blue planet (S180) 10

Level 2
Biological psychology: exploring the brain (SD226) 30
Exploring psychology (DSE212) 60
Human biology (SK277) 30
Investigative biology (SXR270) 10
Our dynamic planet: Earth and life (S279) 30

Level 3
Evolution (S366) 30
Infectious disease (S320) 30
Molecular and cell biology (S377) 30
Oceanography (S330) 30

Total points in this qualification plan 360

These are for the Bachelors degree in Biology, my masters will be in teaching.