WELCOME BACK, READERS OF SIT, STAY, & BLOG! 🙂
If you’re new, have no fear! It’s been so long since my last post that I, too, almost feel new! When I logged into my blog site, it was ironic that my last [unfinished] draft was entitled, “What It Means To: Start a New Semester.” Since you’ve heard from me, I’ve been through roughly 16 tiresome, yet eventful and fulfilling weeks that comprised my fifth semester in graduate school! Truth be told, I’ve gotten a lot of questions in the past few weeks like “When are you going to post on your blog again?” or received comments like “Hey, it’s been a while since you’ve posted.” To that I attest: Guilty as charged! I admit I neglected my passion for Sit, Stay, & Blog for far longer than I anticipated, but I am fully satisfied with my decision to take a break from blogging and focus on my studies and my need for self-care. I utilized my time away to read other peoples’ blogs, gain ideas for future blog posts, and develop strategies to network with others to create meaningful content for my readers. Doing so allowed me to fine-tune my vision for Sit, Stay, & Blog and the type of content I want to create.
With all of that in mind, I wanted to create this casual blog post to bring my readers up-to-date with what I’ve been up to for the last 16 weeks and where I envision myself and Sit, Stay, & Blog to be in the upcoming months! Enjoy! 🙂
With regard to my graduate student life, I have been incredibly busy fulfilling my semester duties, working to advance my career, and becoming immersed in real-world clinical work. As such, I have:
- Presented research at 2 Statewide Conferences and 1 National Conference
- Attended and presented at the 2018 American Counseling Association Conference in Atlanta, Georgia
- Received the 2018 Mary Lou Ramsey Graduate Student Award
- Spoken about about Animal-Assisted Therapy at my University’s induction ceremony for Chi Sigma Iota: The International Honor Society in Counseling
- Written 20 academic papers
- That’s 132 pages and 29,168 words total!
- Completed 365 out of 600 required clinical internship hours
- Completed 9 credits toward my 60-credit master’s degree
- Registered for two required licensure exams
- Started both of my summer courses
Life for me doesn’t stop as a graduate student! I’ve also maintained my status as a volunteer at Susquehanna Service Dogs through:
- Working to generate continued interest in a Campus Puppy Raising Club at my undergraduate institution
- Creating and writing up a formal club proposal and club constitution to be submitted to my undergraduate university
- Being granted “unofficial club status” at my undergraduate institution which will (fingers crossed) be designated as “official” in Fall 2018.
- Working with fellow club members to raise over $1,000 for Susquehanna Service Dogs
- Participating in the 2018 Highmark Walk for a Healthy Community
- Creating a Campus Puppy Raising Program guide to be distributed to university personnel for their review and reference when considering college student puppy raising
Of course, I would be a hypocrite if I neglected to incorporate some self-care activities, especially considering the content of my last blog post! As such, I have:
- Read 4 books
- Blackout Girl: Growing Up and Drying Out in America – Jennifer Storm
- Leave the Light On: A Memoir of Recovery and Self-Discovery – Jennifer Storm
- Picking Up the Pieces Without Picking Up – Jennifer Storm
- Weekends with Daisy – Sharron Kahn Luttrell
- Finished four seasons of Friends (I’m now contemplating my judgment for not introducing this show into my life sooner!)
- Took Pinella on countless walks and enjoyed Friday afternoon naps together
- Visited family back home and spent time snuggling up with my precious childhood puppy, Maggie (see adorable photos of Maggie below!)
- Trained for a 10K
- Completed my first 2 5Ks of 2018 with Pinella and Alex
In addition to my (hopefully) weekly blog post schedule, here’s what else I’ll be up to throughout the remainder of the year:
- Apply for and work through my Animal-Assisted Psychotherapy Certification
- Complete the remainder of my internship hours
- Work on a journal publication for the research I have presented
- Muddle through my thoughts about how to start my book-writing journey
- Start a new research project
- Conquer upcoming 5Ks and continue my training to (hopefully) prep for an October half-marathon
- Take my Comprehensive Examination and the National Counselor Examination for Licensure and Certification
- Complete the remaining 5 courses required to graduate with my MASTER’S DEGREE!
My upcoming visions for Sit, Stay, & Blog:
- Book reviews
- More “What It Means To” content
- Featured segments of fellow service dog raisers
- Guest pet blogs and appearances
- Dog blogs galore!
Although this blog post wasn’t very rich in content, I hope you’ve gained a better understanding of what I’ve been up to and where I am headed in the next few months! My visions for Sit, Stay, & Blog include weekly posts and varying types of new content. If I fall behind on blog posts, refer to the section above regarding “what else I’ll be up to throughout the remainder of the year” and blame it on that! 😉
Thanks for reading! If you haven’t already, don’t forget to Like and Follow Sit, Stay, and Blog on Facebook and Twitter to stay up-to-date on all of my upcoming posts! 🙂
-T.
Sit, Stay, Blog 
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