Shiny New Bikes

A couple weeks ago, Cody surprised me with a brand new bicycle. When I pulled in the driveway coming home from work, we both had shiny new bikes sitting there, just waiting on us to ride them. I was so excited! We had been talking about getting bikes for a few years, but we didn't have a place to store them. Once Cody got his storage building, we knew we had that problem solved, but bikes aren't cheap so it was something that was just going to have to wait. Cody received a check in the mail from the award he won at graduation, and he was willing to share it with me by buying us both new bikes. How sweet!

We hurried up and ate dinner, took Hershey for a walk, and got ready to ride our bikes through the neighborhood. Uh oh...my bike was too tall. "No problem," Cody said. "We'll just lower the seat." Uh oh...the seat was already down as far as it could go. Apparently, I am too short to ride a full-size 26" adult bike. When I sat on the bike seat, my feet couldn't touch the ground, by about six inches. You know, I have lived with being short my whole life and usually it's not that big of a deal to me. I have to get most of my pants hemmed due to them being about a foot too long, and I have to have Cody get things out of the cabinets on the upper shelves; I expect all that and I am used to it. But I didn't expect not to be able to ride the bike. It was so sad, because I was so excited about having a bike and going riding.

Well, we returned that bike to Wal-Mart, and went out in search of a 24" bike. It seems that this size of bike is rare, but it is even more rare when you are looking for something that doesn't look kid-ish. We had no luck in finding a bike that I would be happy to ride in any of the stores we looked at, but we did find one online at www.walmart.com. It was a great deal--you got free shipping and a $20 gift card. Plus, it's a pretty purple color! It only took about a week for my bike to arrive. Cody put it together for me as soon as it came so we could ride that night when I got home from work. Luckily, this bike fit perfectly. (But I couldn't be any shorter...the bike seat is down as far as it will go on this one!)

Most nights after dinner and Hershey's walk, we'll go riding through the neighborhood. It is a great way to relax and get exercise after a long day.

Cody's Bike


My Bike

Congratulations, Dr. Cody!

Well, it's official! After 4 years of hard work, Cody graduated med school on May 7 and 8th, and he is now Dr. Cody Wingler. I am so proud of him!

Graduation week was full of ceremonies and celebrations. Cody's parents came into town on Wednesday. Cody's mom and I baked the cake for his graduation party, which we decorated on Thursday morning. Thursday was also the awards ceremony, which my parents were in town to attend. Cody won the Edgar J. Beddingfield Family Medicine award for exemplifying qualities like those of the man for whom the award is named.

Cody officially received the title of MD on Friday morning during the ECU Convocation. This ceremony included all undergrads and graduate students for ECU, so it was held outdoors at the ECU football stadium. It was pretty warm that day, but our family was lucky enough to sit in a box in the shade on Club Level. We were even able to hang our sign (it said, "Congratulations, Dr. Cody!") around the box. Unfortunately, the students are not recognized individually--each college/division stands to be recognized as a group. (In a way, this was kind of nice because it would have taken forever to have all the names of the undergrads called out individually, but for 4 years of hard work, it kind of stinks not to have any more recognition than that.)

Saturday was the Brody School of Medicine Commencement ceremony. We had our family over to our house for a country style breakfast before we left to go to the graduation. Cody had lots of people cheering for him: his parents, my parents, some friends of Cody's family, my sister and her husband, his nephew, and of course, me! This ceremony was specifically for the medical students, so it was more personalized. Each graduate's name was called, and they went up to the front of the stage to be hooded. How special that moment was!

Saturday evening, we had a party at the house with all of our close friends and family. Cody requested that the food was catered from Moe's (which was very good, but we had enough leftovers for days). The party had a slight medical theme--a cake decorated like the Operation board game, party favors were prescription bottles with M&Ms, and signs around the house relating that area to an area in a doctor's office. All week before the party, there had been up to a 60% chance of rain for Saturday, but the weather turned out beautiful! It was a little warm, but once the sun went down, it felt really nice outside.

It was a busy and long week, but we are all so proud of Cody! He is going to make a great doctor!

Our Hiking Trip

A few weekends ago, Cody and I went to Goose Creek State Park, about 6 miles outside of Bath, NC. It was about a 45 minute drive, but it was well worth it. They have several hiking trails of various lengths, many of which run along the Pamlico River and Goose Creek. The trails are nothing like mountain trails, but still fun to walk through. Cody and I hiked on two different trails. The first one took us to a beach area along the riverfront where we had a picnic lunch and by a cemetary from the 1800's (probably a result of the yellow fever outbreak along the Pamlico River during this time). The next trail took us through a wetlands area. While we were at the park, we saw many animals--red headed woodpecker, cardinals, lizards, and deer. We had a really great time and plan to go back soon.

After we were finished at the park, we decided to go to Bath, since it was only 6 miles away. Bath is the oldest town in NC. It is a very charming, but small town. We drove through the streets and stopped at Bonner's Point to take pictures along the waterfront, where there were chairs set up for a wedding that had either just taken place or would happen soon. We also walked through the church yard of the oldest church in NC. The church was open to visitors, so we were able to walk inside.

On our way back home, we stopped in the town of Washington to walk along the waterfront near the downtown area. They have a nice boardwalk that is about 3/4 mile long. We also stopped in some of the shops that were downtown to browse and to get ice cream.

We had a wonderful date together! It was so nice to get away for a while and just spend the day together.

Celebration Banquets

Graduation time is nearing, so lots of congratulations and farewells are in order. Cody and some of his classmates were the guests of honor at two banquets recently. Two weeks ago, we attended the Christian Medical and Dental Association (CMDA) Senior Banquet. This group provides several ways for students to learn how to integrate their Christian values into their career as a doctor. Cody attended devotional lunch sessions and "Ground Rounds", a small group meeting at Starbucks once a month where medical ethics are discussed with a Christian point of view. They served dinner and had a guest speaker, and then gave each graduating student a Doctor's Bible engraved with their name and a book. They concluded the banquet by having the almost-doctors-to-be and the practicing doctors recite the Christian Doctor's Oath.

This past week, we went to the Family Medicine Interest Group (FMIG) Banquet. Cody was involved with this group throughout his four years as a medical student: M1 representative, President, and founder of the FMIG Journal Club. Once again, we were served dinner at the banquet and we listened to a guest speaker. The FMIG advisor, Dr. Schmidt, spoke about each graduate and gave them a personalized paperweight. (Cody will probably get me for sharing this, but being a proud wife, I have to share what Dr. Schmidt said about Cody!) Dr. Schmidt started off by saying that she would have saved Cody for last, even if he hadn't of already been last by default (she called the graduates in alphabetical order, according to their last name). She noted that Cody knew from the time he entered medical school that he wanted to be a family doctor, that he understood what Family Medicine was about, and that he was the biggest proponent for Family Medicine. She said if she knew how to sew, she would have made him a cape, as she jokes that he is the Superhero of Family Medicine! I was so proud of him!

Cody and Mel


Kelley and Phil


The Guys


All of the Graduates


Kelley, Phil, Josh, Becky, Mel, and Cody

Happy and Healthy Again

After being sick for about a week, Hershey is finally feeling much better! Last Sunday (on our way back home from visiting family for Easter), Hershey starting having diarrhea. We have no idea what caused it; there is no telling what he could have gotten into when we were at my mom and dad's or Cody's mom and dad's, or if he just got a doggie bug. When we got home on Sunday, we starting feeding Hershey boiled chicken and rice instead of his regular dog food, hoping that it would help his tummy feel better. Unfortunately, this didn't really seem to help.

After waking up in the middle of the night to Hershey's panting (because he didn't feel good) and cleaning up diarrhea on the carpet, Cody took him to the vet first thing on Tuesday morning. They gave him three different medicines--one antibiotic to get the bad bacteria out of his belly, one to help stop the diarrhea, and one probiotic to replenish the good bacteria in his tummy. Per doctor's orders, we continued feeding him a special diet of rice, cottage cheese, and boiled chicken, which he loved!

By Thursday, you could tell he was feeling better because his eyes weren't as droopy and his ears were perked up a little, but he still wasn't back to his usual self. However, today, he seems to be back to his playful little self, with a happy little swinging tail. He enjoyed taking a walk with Mommy and Daddy, playing out in the yard while Mommy and Daddy were planting the garden, and playing with the water hose with Daddy. We gave his dog food back to him today, so hopefully this will settle okay with his tummy. We are so glad that our little boy is feeling better!

And the Match Day Results Are In....

Cody matched at Brody!!!!

Today was Match Day for many residency programs across the nation. All the results were released at 12 noon today. Cody's parents and my parents came to Greenville to attend the Match Day ceremony. All the M4s, their families, current residents and attendings, as well as many of the M1s, M2s, and M3s attended--the auditorium at Brody was packed. (I had to sit on Cody's lap due to not being able to find enough seats for all of us in one spot.)

Each M4 created a PowerPoint slide, along with music to show when they walked across the stage to get their Match Day envelope. The PowerPoint slideshow is randomized, so you don't know when your name will be called. It is so exciting to see each person receive their envelope--some choose to rip it open as soon as they receive it, others choose to take it back to their seat and open it with their family. Upon opening the envelope, some students let out screams of excitement, some had faces of disappointment. If you are the lucky one to have your name called last, you receive the cash pot, collected from donations from the audience prior to the ceremony. Unfortunately, Cody didn't have his name called last--he was somewhere in the middle--but he did get his first choice of residency programs, so that's all we could ask for!

Cody's PowerPoint Slide (His song was "Good Lovin" by the Rascals--listen along with the slideshow at the bottom.)


The Brody Medical and Health Sciences Foundation held a reception following the ceremony. Cake, nuts, and punch were served. It was a great chance to talk with fellow students about where they matched and spend a few last moments with friends before everyone goes their separate ways.

Cody and I are so excited to remain here in Greenville for a few more years and are ready to start this new chapter in our lives!! Congratulations, Cody! I am so proud of you!

Oakmont Basketball

This makes the third year Cody has played church league basketball. The games usually start in January and end in March, with each team playing about 2 games a week. This year, Cody's team had a pretty good season. Unfortunately, they lost in the semi-finals of the playoffs to the number one ranked team. However, I am very proud of my baby (and the rest of the team, too)!

The team strategizing during a time out...they're so serious


Cody looking for an open man