New Blog

Greg and I just announced our expectation of Baby P in October 2011. We are so excited. Check out the new family blog, Acadian Nest for updates on Baby P!

Trouble

Trouble with a capital "T" and that ryhmes with... well actually it does not rhyme with it--dogs and cars...
Yesterday I hit a pot-hole and messed up the front passenger-side tire on my car. That meant a second trip to the dealership this week. Again my entire Friday afternoon got rearranged. They are really getting friendly with me at the dealership. I'm praying right now my tire is covered by warranty so it costs around $150 rather than $400.
So I have officially been unemployed for a little over a month. I'm not enjoying it. I like having free time, but I hate not having the money to do things. The one upside to being unemployed is I have plenty of time to spend with my new dog Wylie.
Believe me, he needs the attention. I'm also beginning to understand why I never had a boy dog before. Wylie likes to do boy stuff--chew up the blue New York Times newspaper wrapper, mark the house (only in one place, the same every time), and growl at the postal delivery woman. I've tried several cleaners to get the smell out without much luck. I was using Kids and Pets, but I have not been able to find it in any stores recently. I'm about to break down and order a case online.
Wylie has brought joy to Greg and I though. He is sweet, funny and loves his squeaky toys.
I am hoping I'll get a new job soon. It is really hard not being able to contribute to our income. It is hard to go far on one income in Washington, DC.

Catch-Up

Its February. This is yet another post that will be playing "catch-up" with my super busy life. So here goes... Honestly, after wrapping up my MA Thesis at Georgetown and officially graduating on December 31 there is not too much going on here. This is why I have no reason to not blog. Also my mentees from the Washington Journalism Center are so good at blogging that I feel a bit like a slacker.

In January Greg and I headed to Colorado to ski with my family at Keystone Resort. My sisters and I spent an entire day ice skating on a six acre pond at the Keystone Lodge, we went night skiing and Greg, Catelyn and I tried a double black diamond with moguls (much to the pain of my shins). This was a great trip with my family.

Then Greg and I came back to Washington, DC to welcome a new class of WJC students. This group is extremely enthusiastic, polite and friendly. I love the fact they love the city and have already started to explore areas most groups do not explore.

I started volunteering with a journalism literacy program through The Fishing School here in DC. The building used to be across the street from our house, but they were adopted by ABC's EXTREME MAKEOVER HOME EDITION a little over a year ago and moved to a larger building in the Deanwood Neighborhood. The Journalism program reaches out to sixth grade students at a DC public school. When I started volunteering there I had a much different idea of the DC public school system. I'm still not sure what I think of it now.

I guess the one big thing in Greg and My life that I have not mentioned is the new edition we welcomed to our home the third week of January, our new dog--Wylie. His name was Freckles before but with his new life he got a new name.

See a Video of Wylie Here

Wylie came from the Oldies But Goodies Cocker Rescue. He is red and white and loves his stuffed toys. He weighs around 21 pounds and is 2 years old. Wylie was in and out of foster care and kennels all through the Christmas season. Just before Christmas his owners took him to the vet and asked them to euthanize him because their child was allergic to him. Now he lives with Greg and I in our little blue house. And yes, we named him after our street.

In other news I am still looking for a job. I've been attending networking events and applying to 10 or more jobs a week. Greg and I started taking French classes on Tuesday Nights (he's in the more advanced class), we joined our church praise band, and tonight is the first night of our Mosaic Capital East Face to Face discussion group.

I also scheduled a trip to Texas for the end of February to see family, friends and Baylor. I guess we are pretty busy. But then it is all part of my life's journey.

Surprises

I'm not easily surprised. However, yesterday I came down stairs to find my youngest sister lying on the couch. She surprised me by coming to visit. She spent 17 hours flying from Texas to Baltimore just to get here in time for my master's thesis presentation. This was a great gift, and surprised me for the reason it was unexpected.
This semester has changed me though. I feel like the more I learn about myself the more I surprise myself. The process of writing a thesis yielded an investigation into my passions, desires and my soul. I started a job at the US Institute of Peace which is now over. I wrote a thesis which is all but submitted to my graduate school program. I pulled back from activities that I've been dedicated to since I came to D.C. I joined the Capital City Bike Share. I stopped logging on to Facebook everyday. I found a new spiritual community...or at least I'm trying one out. I planned, changed my mind about a lot of those plans. I changed my hair color to brunette, I lost 15 lbs. I made a lot of great outfits. I ate at every new restaurant that opened on H Street. I reflected.
While I did not blog about most of these things, they lead me to where I am today. I'm actually surprised although I saw what was happening every edge of the way. Looking back I'm not sure when the change happened, but it did.
I know next year (2011) will be one of new surprises. In 10 years I married my best friend, went to college twice, got two degrees, had several great jobs that are molding my career, broadened my understanding of the world, met wonderful people, and met myself in surprising ways.

Highs and Lows

For those of you who might be reading this post--today I think my brain is screwed in strait. This thesis writing thing eats me up. I wish I could continue to focus all of my energy on my Thesis and still be a functioning adult. Somehow, at least recently, that has not be possible. I'm hoping in the next few weeks I can learn to balance my life a little more.

That in mind I wanted to see if any of you can help me with my survey, its for journalists who covered the Haiti earthquake mind you: look here to link to the page with more information
or Click here to take survey

In the grips of it

Me in Santa Monica, CA this summer

As I write my thesis, and start a new job, my life appears to be falling into place career wise.
Greg and I have spent a lot of time talking about more graduate school, Ph. D for both us down the line. He sooner than I. We are both realizing we are not 24 anymore. Greg catches up to me on Sept. 24, we'll both be 27. I started trying to work out his birthday details yesterday, but I still have a long way to go. I've lost eight pounds, but the Wii Fit is still not satisfied, and neither is my Weight Watcher's online account.

My position at the US Institute of Peace appears to be working out well so far. I love the women in my department--all very intelligent and hard working; I love the organization's cause. With my thesis I am fully immersed in the coverage of the 2010 Haiti Earthquake, learning everything I can about natural disasters, journalistic communities and Haiti. Work at USIP is complimenting this process well as there have been several events on Haiti thus far.

I'm thinking a lot about the future of our family and what our lives will look at in May 2011, as we celebrate our fifth anniversary. This summer was really hard on both of us. I think we both aged a couple of years over the summer as well. Wednesday's ASP/WJC picnic will be hard without Mia to tag along with us.

Painstaking Summer

As many of you know this summer has been very difficult. It has been one full of sadness, as well as one that is very busy.
In May, my grandmother passed away from Alzheimer's. I wrapped up my semester at Georgetown. Greg graduated from Georgetown and his and my families were in town. Mia participated in a cancer drug study, in which her tumor waxed and weened a bit but in the end the drug did not help. The vet told us trying Chemo would most likely kill her anyhow, so we decided to give her a few more months at home with us. We took her on her last road-trip to Birmingham, AL to see my sister-in-law. She loved it, although the trip was very difficult for her. Greg and I also decided to start working out regularly at this point. We purchased the Wii Fit and began weighing ourselves daily and watching more closely what we were eating.
During this time I was working on getting a contract job and also decided to write a Thesis for my final semester at Georgetown. I know what you are thinking--this woman is crazy.
June began with us traveling back to Washington, DC and spending time here with Mia. Taking daily walks and playing ball. We left the final weekend for a trip to Houston to see some dear friends of mine from Baylor and Washington, DC get married. We also got to stay with my ZTA sister Katie and see several friends.
In July, we traveled to LA for another wedding, this was the furthest West I have ever been. We enjoyed the beauty of the mountains and ocean side by side. Then I came home and traveled to New Orleans for the ZTA convention and when I landed there got a call from Greg that his grandfather had passed. I tried my best to enjoy the time I had in New Orleans--and came home a little earlier than expected from my trip.
This was yet another hard thing for us to face, as it had been two years since we had last seen his grandfather. This funeral took us on another trip, to Canada. His kind face and demeanor will be missed as well as his laugh. It was nice to meet a lot of Greg's family (many of which I had never expected to meet). Since we had visited Grand Falls, NB last summer, it was nice to go back.
When we returned Mia was having a difficult time breathing. She was having a hard time sleeping because the lymph-nodes in her throat had grown to the point they were keeping her from breathing. Earlier this week we had to put her to sleep. That was the hardest decision I have had to make as an adult.


Mia was such a part of our lives. She was always happy and loving, and all she wanted to was to play ball. Everyone loved her. She will be missed.
To say this summer has been hard would be an understatement. Grief has overcome me, and my body is barely hanging on right now.