Well, here we are in December and I’ve yet to do a monthly update. As a general practice, I’m always adapting and adjusting anything that feels like it’s not working and that has certainly been the name of the game this fall. With the nausea and exhaustion that pregnancy has brought me there was no way I was getting in monthly updates this term.
Read MoreJuly is here and even though at the start of June I was feeling exhausted and energized, this month I think I’m just feeling exhausted. The end of the school year has come and gone and any energy I had has disappeared. Which brings me to my next point, like last summer, I’ll be pausing updates, picking back up in October, or maybe September depending on how I’m feeling.
Read MoreIt's officially June and I'm simultaneously exhausted and energized. It's the end of the term, which means summer is so close. In this month's newsletter I shared a bit about the weekly rhythm that I've gotten into (see above image), how it's working for me, along with what an actual week looked like. Here are my main takeaways from this schedule...
Read MoreGoodbye April, hello May. Here’s an abbreviated version of the reflection I shared in this month’s newsletter about potentially pausing my tenure clock.
Read MoreHere’s what I worked on during the month of March. If you missed February’s update, I’m moving my reflections to the monthly newsletter, which you can sign up for here!
Read MoreFirst of all, I can. not. believe. that March is here. Which means soon it will be April and then May and then summer (I feel like my life revolves around how far away summer is). If I can make it through February, I can usually trick myself into thinking that spring is right around the corner (even though March is pretty much the same thing… granted flowers are blooming outside right now and it’s been sunny so apparently spring has arrived).
What’s been going on for us this month in the Toddler on the Tenure Track household? Work, preschool, playgrounds, the occasional dinner or brunch with friends, nothing too out of the ordinary. Ellie has been having some serious tantrums lately. We're in a weird "no nap but needs a nap" phase, which makes emotions run high.
Read MoreI’ll be switching from weekly updates to monthly updates. Between no more naps for Ellie (unless we want her staying up until 10:30pm or later), serving as the administrator on my dad’s estate, a steady stream of doctor’s appointments, and just work and general life stuff, weekend time is precious. I’d rather spend the hour (plus) that was previously dedicated to weekly updates on other things! I’ll structure these monthly updates the same way, with a bit of a reflection from the month and also what I’ve been working on in terms of research, teaching, service, and personal life. I don’t set monthly goals, so I won’t structure the update around them… I’ll play around with what feels good. Since I’m not a monthly planner I’m curious to see how taking time to review the past month alters the flow of my work.
Read MoreIn the words of Daniel Tiger… “that was fun but now it’s done.” We had two major endings this week. We ended our two week trip to the east coast and I officially ended my third year on the tenure track (my contract ended last Sunday and grades were due on Tuesday… don’t ask me why they make grades due after our contracts end and after graduation…). With these 2 big events coming to an end, I’ve been thinking a lot about the passage of time. When Ellie was an infant, I sporadically listened to the podcast, The Longest Shortest Time, and I think about the title often because it so accurately describes life with a young kid. In the midst of the year, it felt like time was dragging and that our trip to see family was light years away, and now here I am settling back into daily life and it’s all done.
Read MoreWe are. Still. Traveling. We’re coming up on the two week mark and I think that might be my limit. Or at least my limit of not having a consistent schedule.
Read MoreThis week Mike and I celebrated 8 years of marriage… by flying across the country with a three year old, which is probably the most fun way you could spend an anniversary. It actually wasn’t that bad. Everything went as smoothly as it could go, we didn’t have any major meltdowns, and the airplane snacks/drinks kept Ellie entertained for a really long time.
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