Anatomy of a Writer: What's New?

I realized it's been awhile since I've posted on my blog, so here's an update on what's been happening that past few months!

I just finished the second year of my PhD program and am now officially a third-year. This year was tough as I was finishing my coursework and forming my dissertation committee and preparing for my exams (which are less than two weeks away, so if you don't see me for awhile, you know why!), but I made it. On top of that, the beginning of this past semester was so hard because Cohen's health was declining quickly. I can't believe it's already been four months since her passing. I think of her every day and miss her deeply. It's been a process learning how to move on without her, and some days are better than others.

I went to Portland, OR, back in March for a conference, which was wonderful and exciting (despite the fact that I got sick on the plane and spilled a cup of ginger ale all over the guy sitting next to me). Oregon is a beautiful place! I am also presenting at two conferences coming up at the end of next week in Findlay, OH - should be fun! I've spent the past couple weeks doing some writing, reading, studying, and working on a professional website for when I go on the job market.

The next couple weeks will mostly be devoted to studying for my exams (my exams are June 5, 6, and 7). June will be a pretty busy month for me overall. After my exams are over, Justin and I are headed to Indiana for a wedding and plan to stay the weekend. I'm looking forward to getting out of town and seeing some old friends! The weekend after that, I'm headed back to Indiana for my sister-in-law's baby shower!!! DID I MENTION I'M GOING TO BE AN AUNT!!?? The baby (it's a girl!) is due at the end of August and I couldn't be more excited for my brother and his wife.

The week after the baby shower, Justin and I are taking the youth group to Grand Rapids, MI, for a mission trip for a week. That pretty much wraps up June for us! We are planning a camping trip in July with some good friends of ours from Indiana (who are getting married in August back in Indiana, so we will be headed back that way toward the end of the summer!). And, at some point, I will need to do my oral defense for my prelim exams, but I'm not sure when that will happen yet.

One of the biggest things that has happened in the past six months is that Justin and I adopted a retired racing greyhound from a rescue in Michigan! We got her on December 29, 2016 and she brings so much joy to our house. Her racing name was DS Sapphire and Justin and I changed it to Ruby Soho (from the Rancid song - listen to it here!). She will be three years old in August and she is one of a litter of ten (and all of her siblings are named after gemstones, as well). She is such a sweet girl and loves to snuggle and be close to us. I babysat for a family in grad school who had a greyhound and I loved her and always knew I wanted to adopt one. Plus, greyhounds are great for people with allergies (like me) because they don't have undercoats (but this always makes them more susceptible to the weather, so Ruby always wears a sweater in the winter). She doesn't bark, sheds minimally, and loves to run and play at the dog park. We love her!

After Justin and I adopted Ruby Soho, my friend Sara and her husband decided to adopt her sister (DS Opal, now called Sadie). They love to play together, and Ruby is even going to stay with Sadie while Justin and I are in Grand Rapids in June. Interested in adopting a greyhound? Follow this link to learn more about the organization that Ruby and Sadie were adopted from.

So that's about it for now! Enjoy some adorable pictures of my sweet greyhound! Oh, and it you want to see more of Ruby Soho, you can check out the Instagram account Justin and I created when we adopted her: Ruby Soho Instagram.