Tonight Mechanic Jr. has his Meet-n-Greet with the teachers and an opportunity to learn the new math curriculum that they will be learning. I feel guilty because I won't be going- I have class. So while I'm learning about chemistry, my son will be going to open house with his dad, eating yummy ice cream and showing off his recent work. That's one of the very real pitfalls of being a mom and a student- you have to make choices between school and family sometimes. Thankfully since Mechanic Jr. is looping (going from one grade to the next with the same teacher), I already know her and her curriculum, so this was an okay decision for me and my son. But I'm sure that there will be extremely tough ones in the future, particularly when it comes to holidays.

It makes me incredibly grateful that I have a supportive (and flexible) husband, and even extended family nearby. When I think of the friends I've met along the way, the ones who drop out and don't pursue their dreams of med school are those with unsupportive spouses and families. You just have to have the people closest to you be supportive. You just do. If they aren't, well, you have a very, very rough road ahead of you.