Since starting my job at The News-Herald in May, I have written many stories about topics ranging from murders to children planting trees at school. 

At least once a month, I wrote a big story (or at least big to me). This is my reflection on what I did month by month.

2011 has been an eventful year for me. I turned 21 in February. I graduated with my bachelor's degree in May (one year early might I add!) and I was also hired at The News-Herald in May.

Since then, here are what I consider my biggest story of each month (I linked to every story):

May:

My first big story was about bomb threats in Trenton. In April, a bomb threat phone call to the high school was made, a bomb-device was found in the teachers' parking lot and there was a minor explosion in a local store parking lot. Police, along with the ATF, arrested 41-year-old John Kennedy for all of the attempts. He is scheduled to appear in Federal court in late February.

June:

I worked a weekend at the annual Cruisin' Downriver event. I was still getting to know the Downriver communities. Our intern and another staff writer went as well as we teamed up to get videos and walk around the entire event. It was a huge eye-opener into what living Downriver is all about. I wrote a column about my experience.

July: 

Six years ago, a tour boat with 14 people from the Trenton Travelers group capsized in New York. Three Trenton residents died in the incident. Although it happened years ago, it opened up a lot of emotion from the community when it was published. It was also a story I had to work several days at because researching a database from six years ago isn't always convenient.

August:

The biggest story I have covered happened in August. Body parts were found in a suitcase along the Frank and Poet Drain in Gibraltar. The crimes I had previously covered had happened before I started working here. This one I was there for. I spent an entire day at the scene with the search teams, police and firefighters while they searched for the rest of the body parts and/or any evidence as to what happened. They ended up arresting 52-year-old James Bommer, who admitted to dismembering the woman's body. Bommer is due in County court in February.

I also got to have an amazing experience in with the ATF in August. They had a media day, where many of us were invited to learn about how they operate. We got to shoot Colt M4s, learn about bombs, go through simulated scenarios and other events. It was by fun the coolest thing I have ever done in my journalist career and I will never forget it.

September: 

I spent all day every day for two weeks working on a story reflecting on how The News-Herald Newspapers covered the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. We laid the bindings of the newspaper out on a table and I didn't even sit at my desk those two weeks because I was reading every single article. It was entrancing to see how many people from Downriver worked in the Twin Towers or knew someone who worked in the Twin Towers. It was my favorite story of September, easily.

October: 

A one-year follow up story I did in October had a ton of response from the community. Jennifer Petkov had taunted a young girl one year prior by posting pictures of her with a skull and crossbones, and of her mother hugging the Grim Reaper, on Facebook and admitted to it on camera. Petkov and the girl's grandmother live across the street from each other and have ongoing disputes. I did a followup about the taunting never halting and a timeline of what all has happened between the families since 2008.

November: 

Two men were arrested in Nov. in a murder that happened in Nov. 2010. Flat Rock police arrested the men in late October, the preliminary examinations were in November. Four witnesses testified, including the mother of one of the defendants' child, who is also the woman who found 24-year-old Jesus Cabrera's body in her apartment. He was killed by a single gunshot to the arm. The trial was bound over. The prelims got out of hand in the courtroom and emotions ran wild.

December:

On Christmas morning, two cousins from Detroit broke into a store in Trenton, stole over 200 packs of cigarettes, led police on a high-speed chase, crashed their car in Detroit and then assaulted an officer. I got this report last week and the details were insane. Both men (ages 20 and 22) were arraigned and will be in court Jan. 3 and Jan. 10, since they have felonies in multiple cities. It's been a crazy crime story for this month.

Happy New Year!