So how to manage study time when you have kids, husband and household chores as well as research work? it's actually not difficult if you have a good companion and help. I might say that for some students cum mothers cum wife, if you have a good support system to help you during your study years, life would not be that difficult. You can easily concentrate more on your study and enjoy with the help that you get.
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| finding times with your loved ones - my family :) |
Me on the other hand, was very fortunate to have a very supportive husband. I might say that we both are a well managed team. We work well especially when it comes to children. But of course, I will be lying if I said that we are jolly good couple all the time. Of course we had our not-so-sweet arguments but usually we ended it up and tried to understand that each of us had some limit too especially during datelines and stress time.
For us, our daily routine starts early in the morning. Me preparing our breakfast and 'bento' (nowadays I am trying my best to cook and pack our lunch to save some money :) and my husband will help me to clean the children. Then we off to our schools (too many schools to list) and I'll be rushing to take my daily shuttle bus trip (my campus is almost 30km away from our home).
Around 6-6.30pm, my husband will pick up the kids, and I will straight away go home after reaching the main campus by shuttle bus, cook dinner, and by the time my husband and kids reach home we had our dinner, have a little rest while watching tv and later help my eldest son with his kumon practice (just recently started). By 9.30pm we will make sure that the children is put to sleep. Usually it's my husband duty to do that because if it is me that I will sleep until the next morning. HAHA that would not be good right? :P
After the kids sleep both of us usually resume with our work and we sleep at around 12 midnight or 1 or 2 am in the morning. If one of us had to stay at our laboratory, that means the other half will have to sacrifice his/her day and take care of the children. Of course we have to give and take. You cannot get everything to your own self and you cannot be selfish. Everybody deserve their chances. We need to understand each other needs.
So far, alhamdulillah, the arrangement are well and both of us are happy with it. Hopefully we can continue with this arrangement until both of us graduates, insyaAllah.
