Highlights of 2010

January: We celebrated the start of a new year with a group of friends from the island that all started rotations in Bakersfield. We were so fortunate to get a clinical position at the same hospital as some great friends.February: We got a visit from some very special people from Missouri. We tried to explore all that Bakersfield and Los Angeles had to offer. It was so much fun showing my niece, Ana, and my mom a great time in California. We had a baby shower for Thane and Desiree's newest addition, Brooke. We cooked yummy food, played great baby shower games and watched them open some of the cutest outfits for Brooke. March: We took a weekend drive to the coast to see Morro Bay's amazing views and the elephant seals at San Simeon. The flowers were in full bloom and the views were amazing. It was probably one of the best weekend getaways we've had since we've been here.I made a quick trip to Michigan for a little girl time with Melinda and Alissa. The trip was short but so much fun...these girls are definitely life long friends. We dyed our family's Easter...gotta love Jason for putting up with all my crazy holiday traditions. April: We found out the nasty culprit behind Muzzy's seizures was in part due to liver disease. We had to switch him over to a special formula L/D food. It took a little bit for him to eat his food instead of throwing his food in the floor. Brooke, Desiree and Thane's little girl, was born and we went to visit her as soon as she was out of the hospital. So tiny! I helped organize and put on one of our organization's annual fundraisers. The amount of work it took to get ready for the Gala was insane but we raised over $75,000 for our non-profit so it was definitely worth it! We celebrated our second wedding anniversary at Disneyland. We had so much fun...you would have thought we were young children again.May: Jason was doing his surgery rotation so I saw very little of him. His hours were extreme and when I did see him, he was usually asleep on the couch. He looks so cute in his scrubs! I went to a Sugarland concert with Desiree (Jason was on call the night of the concert). I realized how much I prefer an outdoor concert versus an indoor one. Still a great concert!I flew home, as a surprise, for my niece and nephew's joint birthday party. My mom knew I was coming but everyone else had no idea. It was so hard to keep a secret but it was so worth it once I saw their faces! I was able to go and watch the end of the fifth stage of the Tour of California through Bakersfield. It was probably the last year the race would go through Bakersfield and I'm so glad that I got to be a part of history. It was so exciting to watch all the bikes rush through the last bit of the race. June: My 26th birthday was celebrated multiple times...I have such great friends, co-workers and family members. We were able to celebrate Father's Day with Jason's dad in Ventura. It's been 20+ years since Jason spent Father's Day with his dad so it was a very special day.July: The office closes down every July so I worked from home the whole month. Along with massive amounts of paperwork, I worked at a reading camp for kids that need a little extra help with their reading. We went river rafting down the Kern River with our group of friends...we had so much fun riding the rapids!Fourth of July was spent in Bakersfield. We sat outside in the grass by our apartment and watched the city's large display of fireworks plus we shot off a few confetti poppers.I was able to go back to Missouri for a family reunion on my mom's side. She had no idea I was coming...I walked into her work with a baseball hat and sunglasses on and she about flipped out. Her face was pricessless...I love surprising her! It was so nice to see family from all over the country...it had been at least 15 years since I've seen of them. August: We drove to Las Vegas to visit our friends, Joe and Sarah. We had such a fun time walking the strip, seeing all the sights and watching all the crazy people. We went to our first roller derby match with the Bakersfield Diamond Divas...very interesting match! We went to Saj's birthday--our next door neighbor that considers me his "best friend". It was our first Indian birthday party. September: We traveled to the great city of San Francisco to spend the weekend with Laura and Steve. We covered the whole city in a few short days...such an adventure. We showed our support and participated in an annual obesity walk. We also got to see Andrew, Holly and Lance for a short weekend. We took advantage of everyone being together and took some family photos.

October: I celebrated a year with the organization...I've made some great memories! This month was filled with everything Fall and Halloween. We went to the pumpkin patch to get the perfect pumpkins, had a costume party, carved our pumpkins and passed out candy to all the trick-or-treaters. November: Jason celebrated his 27th birthday with his favorite dinner and a Lord of the Rings marathon...he's so spoiled! Our besties, Andy and Alissa ,came from Michigan to spend a few days with us! We had such a great time with our best friends...we explored just about everything we could reach within a days drive. We spent Thanksgiving with the in-laws in Ventura. Nothing better than great food with great company.

December: We spent most nights cuddled up on the couch watching Christmas movies and enjoying the Christmas tree. Our tree was beautiful this year. Jason's grandmother passed away after a long battle with Alzheimers Disease so I made a trip out to Pennsylvania for the funeral. We spent Christmas with the in-laws in Ventura. This was our last holiday in California so it was a little bittersweet. Alexis Anne Conway was born on Christmas Eve. We were so excited when we got the text that said she was born...she is such a cutie. My mom came in from Missouri to spend a few days with us. I was so glad to see her...I was missing my mama!

I'd say that our year was packed with so many great memories! I had so much fun going through all my picture albums from this year. I think it's safe to say that the Conways have left their mark in California this year!