by NIKKI ROBERTI
Lifestyles Reporter

Editor’s note: This is the first in a three-part series highlighting the lives of non-traditional students who are married or have children. Complete versions are available online. 

The morning sometimes starts with a song, Casey D. Mims said as she described how she sings “You are my sunshine” to her 7-month-old daughter

Nova when getting ready in the morning before taking her to daycare and heading off to classes and work.

While the common song’s lyrics go, “You make me happy when skies are grey,” one could say the song might as well have been written about the two of them.

“Waking up knowing that she’s there, it makes every day worth getting out of bed,” Mims said. “Even if I’ve had a bad day, I’ll come home and she’ll make it all better.”

When senior forensic chemistry major, Mims found out she was pregnant, she was about to start her senior year.

“When I found out I was pregnant, it was even more of a reason to get my degree. I had someone to support now. It wasn’t just me anymore. That was a real motivator to finish school,” she said. “I was a little scared of everything – of being pregnant and being in college and not being prepared for it all. But it really worked out. I worked really hard to save up money to bring her up here.”

Mims said one struggle for her while being pregnant and in school was how she had morning sickness until she was seven months pregnant.

It made attending classes difficult because she would have to leave and come back in the middle of them.

It was miserable, she said.

But morning sickness wouldn’t stop Mims from being able to achieve her dream of obtaining a degree while being able to take care of her baby.

Mims worked to save money for her daughter so she would be able to have a bank account with money specifically for the baby.

This past summer, Mims worked as a waitress at Table on the Green in her hometown, Aberden at night when her boyfriend and father of Nova, Zeke R. Laubscher, could watch her once she was born in March.

Mims worked up until three days before she gave birth.

“When I first found out I was going to have her, I was worried. “‘Am I going to have enough money? ‘Would she have the things she needs?’” she said. “My parents don’t have the money to give me. I knew it was going to be me and him doing everything for her.”

Mims didn’t know if she was going to be able to bring Nova up with her to Appalachian State University once the fall semester began.

She didn’t know if she could handle doing both she said, and if it meant she wasn’t able to finish her degree, she was prepared to leave Nova with her parents back home even though she didn’t want to.

However, all her hard work paid off – literally.

And Mims’ savings allowed her to move both her and Nova back to school while living in single parent housing at Mountaineer Apartments.

Even though Mims is still dating Laubscher, since they are not married and he is not a student at Appalachian, they were not allowed to live together due to Mountaineer Apartments’ policy.

So far this semester, Laubscher has only been able to visit his daughter once.

He currently works in Aberden as a cook for Max Breakfast and sends money to Mims every week.

“It’s really hard on him,” Mims said. “He didn’t want to leave [when he visited]. There’s nothing we can really do about it.”

Mims said she’s able to manage school, work and motherhood and enjoys every minute. Although she said she doesn’t have much of a social life, she said she’s still happy and didn’t realize she would love motherhood this much.

“I’ve always believed that things happened for a reason. There’s a reason…that I’ve had her and I knew it would work out whether she came with me or not. I never got discouraged,” she said. “…Sometimes when I get tests some weeks and a lab report, then it gets hard, but for the most part it’s been okay so far.”

Especially when Nova recently had trouble sleeping, she can get frustrated at times.

Mims anticipates next semester to be more difficult since money will be tighter and Nova will be walking, but she also looks forward to it.

“I try to enjoy everyday, even when she’s fussy,” she said. “I know she won’t be this small for long and I want to love every minute of it.”

While Mims was nervous about being able to manage both motherhood and getting a degree, she said a fellow mother gave her hope even before

Nova was born.

The student mother saw Mims when she was pregnant and gave her advice.

Mims said she still remembers what the student told her.

“If she had known it would be so easy, she would have come up right after she had her [baby]. She waited two or three years before she came back,” Mims said. “That really gave me hope I could do it.”

When spotted on campus, Mims and Nova can usually be caught smiling and laughing and enjoying life.

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