Keeping my fingers crossed!

A few days from now I'm going to be granted the opportunity I've been waiting on for the last year! I'm going to be interviewing for a permanent position at the library. I'm super excited and super nervous... what am I going to wear? How am I going to answer that sticky "what is your greatest weakness" question? Gosh!

So this is me asking for prayers, crossed fingers, great tips, etc. Anything that will make Monday go smoothly! I know I've got some stiff competition, so I'm going to need all the help I can get. Anyway, here's hoping. :)

Something to Write Home About...

Let me just begin by saying that I am a very lucky woman who is married to a great man. I am always proud of him, but today I cannot find the words to say it adequately.

Most of you know my husband is a medical student and recently has been taking his licensing exams. Well a few weeks ago he took one that was very important to our future, and this morning we found out that not only did he pass it, but that he totally rocked it!!!! :)

So that was this mornings, good news.

Now the not so good news...

I had another phone call this morning. This one was from my brother. He called to tell my that my grandfather passes away last night. I know that he is in a much happier place today. He has had alzheimer's that has progressed so much over the past few years, that it has made things hard... He will be greatly missed and never ever forgotten. Services for this wonderful man will be held this weekend in Van, Texas.

Granddaddy feeds Rachel ice cream... Yum!

Holy Cow It's An Update!

Alright, I really fell of the blogging bandwagon... Well, here's a quick update for those who are curious. Basically, nothing really new has happened. Still doing the same stuff. Cody's studying, I'm hanging out, we get together with friends whenever we can find a good excuse. Here's a few highlights from the last 10 months or so... :)

Mom came to visit in November and we took a trip to Sequoia National Park. It was a super fun trip, and I even got to see bears, oh my! Though for the record, Cody said that would never happen. Ha!

We had a great time exploring the park and seeing the huge Sequoias! If you ever get the opportunity, I highly recommend it.

Somewhere along the way we got hooked on going to hockey games. I know, crazy! Bakersfield has a semi-professional team, the Condors, and I think we made it to seven or eight games last season. I can't wait for the new season to start. Wonder if I can talk Cody into season tickets?

We also had the great fortune of going back to Texas for Christmas. It wasn't exactly a white Christmas, but it was definitely snowing on Christmas Eve. Our dog, Bo, absolutely loved the cold weather. Here's a few pics from our time with the family.

Eric, Anna, Rachel and Cody

Us and our baby - who's almost as big as me!

Mom, Cody, Jenni, Troy and Bella

Baby sister got engaged!!!

After Christmas, not much happened. We came back to Bakersfield and went through the motions of everyday life. Cody has not completed much of his core clinical rotations including Family Medicine, Surgery, and Ob/Gyn. For me, OB was the absolute worst. Cody was always gone, and when he was home he was absolutely exhausted. So so so grateful that's over with. Now, we are just days away from Cody taking his Step 2 of the USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Exam), and we'll be that much closer to calling him Dr. Cody. Or if you are Holdyn, Dr. Cokey!

I should point out that in May we made a special trip back to Texas for my sister's wedding. It was absolutely the best feeling in the world to stand beside her as she said her vows to one very lucky guy. Honestly, I couldn't have asked for a better person to walk with my sister through this life. He is an amazing person, and I know my father would be proud. Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Troy Roberts!

So, now you are all caught up! I'll try to be back in the near future with more! I head to Texas next week for Robin's wedding and Cody will be headed to New York for a pediatric rotation, so I should have lots of material. Ashley, if you are reading this, please remind me to post an update when I get back! :)

My fantastic job!

Yep! I know! I'm once again way over due on a post...

What can I say?

I GOT A JOB!

Many of my friends have asked what I've been up to in the last few months. Well, the truth is not much unless you count working like a dog. I got a gig at the local library here in Bakersfield as a Reference Librarian (basically I answer lots of questions all day long) and I am LOVING it! I have been so blessed to have gotten settled into Bakersfield and to have found a job almost immediately when so many are without. In fact, in the last few months the library had laid off almost thirty people and cut their hours so drastically that some branches are only open one day a week!

Beale Memorial Library, Bakersifield, CA

In the last few weeks, I have discovered just how much more of a blessing it is to be working at the library beyond just being employed. I absolutely love the people I work with, and I have been given responsibilities that make me feel like the time I spend at work is worthwhile. How many people can say that?

Berta and I dressed up for Halloween

Anyway, my job is just one of the many reasons I'm thankful this holiday season. Happy Turkey Day everyone!

Hollywood here I come!

So a while back Cody and I had a date night (this was while he was in Las Angeles for a psychiatric rotation). Ashley and I had gone down to visit our guys, and Cody decided that we needed a night out on the town. First he took me to see something that I never thought I would see in this lifetime. I saw the real Hollywood sign, yep, the one in all the moves!

It was a really neat drive, through a very pricey neighborhood (to say the least). I was a little disappointed that you couldn't get right up to it, but I suppose that's probably best considering the level of graffiti in Las Angeles.

After seeing the sign we were pretty hungry so we decided to find the Hard Rock Cafe. Turns out the one in L.A. is just outside Universal Studios theme park. We walked around for a while looking at the neat shops and restaurants. (Anna, there was a sock store that you would have loved!) We got one of the other tourists to take our picture in front of a fantastic fountain. Little did we know he was a professional photographer.

We did end up eating at the Hard Rock Cafe which was something I'd never had the chance to experience. Let me just say how cool the atmosphere is in that place. The full size car, the ceiling that changed colors, and all the great memorabilia had me in awe. So here's to the coolness that is the Hard Rock Cafe!!

Home Sweet Home!

After just a few short days of driving around Bakersfield, Cody and I found the perfect apartment complex. There was just once problem: we had to move in immediately if we wanted the apartment. So the very day we unload the u-haul at Jill's house and turn it in, we find out that we have to load all our stuff back up to move into our new place. (You can imagine how happy my husband was about this.) Haha! Life is great, huh?

Notice the beautiful mountains in the background! I see these out my bedroom window every morning. The picture below taken from the bottom of the stairs leading up to my apartment. We've got some great shade trees, a fountain, swimming pool, and hot tub just out our front door. OH! And the pond with the fountain has koi in it. How cool is that?

Our apartment is on the second floor, so we have great views. Below you can see our balcony and our front door.

Here are a few pictures of the inside of the apartment. We made the second bedroom our office, the better for me to sit and work on my blog. :) Remember, it's a work in progress...

Bakersfield or BUST!

Yeah, so I had this great post planned out about our trip out here, but then I really got to thinking about it. There was nothing really great about our trip. We spent twenty-four hours seeing who could spot the most trains. Oh, and thank God for walkie-talkies. Anyway here's a few highlights...

On the first day, we spent twelve hours in two separate cars and barely made it out of Texas. For the most part I saw only the back of the trailer Cody was pulling... What the heck is a custom hitch anyway?

The second day? Well, we left early in the morning from Albequerque. We loaded the cats and our suitcases back in the car and started out around seven thirty in the morning. For those of you who don't know, I'm NOT a morning person. The cats were not happy to be back in the car, and I was not happy to have them. The finally settled down after a while, but they let me know exactly what they thought about it first. We did get to see several hot air balloons taking off that morning, which was cool, but soon we got back to the boredom that is New Mexico. See below.

Arizona was somewhat better since the landscape began to change. Cody and I both fell in love with Flagstaff. It was an absolutely beautiful town. The mountains and trees were a great change of scenery.

Of course, the cats didn't care where we were. I did learn that they did better with a little air conditioning and that my Louie is WAY more needy that Madison will ever be. In between each new spot that he tried to sleep in he would come and sit in my lap for a few minutes. He eventually decided that no where would make him happy, so he rotated about four or five spots every half hour or so, stopping to visit me in between. Not that I'm really complaining because since we've been in Bakersfield he's been my bestest buddy.

Below is just a snapshot of me being bored. Nothing like the Mojave Desert to make a girl crazy.

We finally reached Bakersfield, California around eight that night. It was great to get to see our friends, Ben and Jill, who so graciously made room for us in their home. God truly blessed us with our friends. I nearly cried when I got there because they had gone over the top to make us feel at home. Dinner was waiting on the stove. We had a bedroom to ourselves, and they had even cleaned out a closet and a dresser for us to put our things away. I cannot say how much these people mean to me, but I hope that one day I will be able to return the kindness in some way.

Now we are here in Bakersfield, and we are happy as can be. The town is more than I had dared hoped it would be. The people here are nice, and I have friends nearby who have helped make it feel like home (Ben, Jill, Ashley, Jason, Laura, and Steve in particular). Thanks guys!