Breathing out, for a few weeks

My first study block in my graphic design course is now finished. I can sit back and do entirely as I please (and by that I mean fold washing) for the next four weeks, before the next block of study kicks off. I'm pleased to be at this point. I've made it through 20 weeks of the course and completed all submission requirements. We have, as a family, juggled things here and there, and there has been a few occasions when I've had to lock myself away in a room and really focus on getting things done. So there have been some hard moments. There have also been early mornings (that was my initial way of getting through my work), late nights (which I tend to just slide into) and bits and pieces in between. 

Twenty five weeks ago, I was tossing up whether or not to enrol. It looked good to me, the subjects included were all things I was excited to learn, it was online and part time, and therefore a real possibility. But the commitment recommended was 10 hours per week, and I wondered where on earth I was going to find those 10 hours a week, when life was already pretty full. But somehow we have done it, and I say 'we' because I could not have done it without the support of my husband, stepping in as necessary to give me some serious child-free study time. I have always maintained that I don't want to be studying when my son is up and about; when he's up, he deserves my attention and loses more than enough of it to other household jobs and things that need to be done. 

Anyway, I decided to just enrol and see how I went. If it looked like it would be too much, I was going to pull out of the course before the census date. And it was touch and go on more than one occasion. But then the census date came and went, and I started to settle into a routine with the workload and started to gain confidence in myself that I could get this stuff done. And now it's 20 weeks later, and somehow I've got through my two subjects, and moved house in between, and come out the other side knowing so much more - so very, very much more - than I could have imagined. And my skills and confidence in myself are so much more now, as I've been pushed to do more, be more, stretch myself creatively. I wanted to be stretched creatively, and the things I've achieved, I would have never even considered to attempt without having it as a requirement for my course. So I'm happy. 

And now a month or so to breathe, and then I'll be back into my next two subjects. And I'll keep taking it as it comes. And most importantly, I'm enjoying it oh so much. Looking at where I am now, it's hard to imagine back to the days when I studied sensible things like accounting and economics. But I'm glad I finally found a creative path, even if it is later than I would have otherwise liked. I guess everything happens in it's own time. 

Here are some snippets of the work I have done over the past 20 weeks. I'm happy with these things. I  could never have even shared anything like this before but now I feel like, well, this is me, I'm not perfect, these are not perfect, but they are light years from where I was before, and it's part of the journey. The start, in fact.

original work

original work

original work

image credit here, although this isn't the original source and doesn't credit the original source, but the original image is really cool

background credit here, portrait image here (see?)

original work, our cat peppie