Feed the kid!! But spare the mess.

SURFACE AREA!!! and a catch bin. Seriously this place mat is so much better than I could ever explain, which is a sad state of affairs that I'm raving about a place mat, but here we are. Silicone for easy wipe up and can throw it in the dishwasher. We bought 3 so we can just put them in the dishwasher each night.

 Place Mat by Baby Mumbo

https://amzn.to/2mEs153

Just  quick pre-concert picnic.

Making life easy with the

hiccapop  Travel Booster Seat with Tray for Baby 

https://amzn.to/2LHhvEp

And keeping it super cute and spill free with the

Munchkin Miracle 360 WildLove Sippy Cup, 9 Ounce, 2 Pack, Bee/Lemur

https://amzn.to/30iAc9q

we switch out the handles with the trainer handles from the smaller set when we want more water in one go, but still want handles 

Munchkin Miracle 360 Trainer Cup, Pink/Orange, 7 Ounce, 2 Count

https://amzn.to/2Oeq4YW

Best high chair ever- also great for baby naps

This thing is fantastic! from when she was little bitty and first starting to sit up it worked like a bumbo, and then we've progressed to just using it at the table. Obviously comfy ;-)

Ingenuity Baby Base 2-in-1 Seat - Booster Feeding Seat

https://amzn.to/2V4D19a

We usually just put her at the table to eat but the stored away little tray works like a charm. When ti grimy we just disassemble and pop it in the dishwasher without heat dry. SO EASY to keep clean, which is everything I need right now.

#foodcoma
#dishwashersafe
#babiesaremessy
#gamechanger
#blw

Something new to talk about

We added another mouth to feed, body to cloth, and brain to entertain around these parts last year.

#newmom
#baby
#alltheclothes
#outgrowseverything
#she'sexpensive
#littlefashionista

Going to keep a list of some of her favorite things and some of my favorite things to TRY to keep up with the tiny tornado that she is

Slim fast at Christmas time!?

I'm mostly sure that starting a voxbox based on weight loss at Christmas time wasn't the best possible choice, but I gave it a go. Needless to say it fell by the wayside shortly after. That being said, the snacks were memorable enough for me to go grab some in January. I remember my mother drinking the little cans of slim fast when I was a kid..I also remember trying them and wondering why she tortured herself. I'm not a finicky Easter but anything that tastes like protein powder is a turnoff for me. This new stuff, very different than the early nineties. That being said the shakes are still a bit too much in the protein taste department for me to drink them straight, but incorporate some coffee or espresso and you've got breakfast. The new snacks are indeed super YUM. I am glad I got these in my voxbox as I never would have picked them up myself.

Well...I joined Influenster...And so far it Rocks

I'm starting out with the Spice VoxBox. Influenster is a sampling program where you get to test products for free, Therefor all of the products below I got for free and this is just my personal opinion. This will be a quick rundown to get my feet wet. I was shocked at the number an size of the products that were included to test.

If you happen upon this blog and want to give this a whirl yourself, use my referral link! 

www.influenster.com/r/1255709

It came in a fairly large unassuming box with a splashy sticker. 

The contents were as follows-

Full sized SoapBox Coconut Shampoo and Conditioner

At first I wasn't too thrilled with this then I realized they are sulfate and paraben free.  I have the worlds most sensitive scalp and this was awesome news! I have tried the shampoo and conditioner twice now and adore it.  Unlike most other "oil" containing hair products these didn't weight down my super fine hair. The shampoo is a nice consistency. Clear with no frills, lathers great despite being sulfate free. The conditioner is nice and thick. It smells as you'd expect something with coconut in it to smell, slightly beachy. Doesn't leave a strong smell after rinsing though. My hair is soft and manageable afterwards. The company also has a great mission and donates to help provide clean water to those in need with every purchase. I will be purchasing again. 

Next up was Sinful Colors Sinfulshine one color bottle and one topcoat bottle 

I really wanted to love the @sinfulcolors Sinfulshine, but it fell short with a goopy consistency that took forever to dry and on night two it began peeling off in the middle of shampooing my hair. Huge flakes were literally falling off. With nearly zero effort my fingernails were clean by gently rubbing them in the warm shower. I'm glad I got to test SinfulShine® for free through @influenster, but in my own opinion it just saved me from being disappointed with my own money. I love Sally Hansen Miracle Gel and was really hoping for a less expensive option, oh well. 

And then there was YOGI TEA!

I'm a big tea drinker and this really hit the spot, I got the Vanilla Spice and the Ginger Orange. Both were awesome. Mild but very flavorful.  Sweet without the addition of sweetener.  The cute little sayings on the tea tags are a bit cliche, but it's more entertaining than nothing. I'll be searching for these in the grocery.

And a snack for work...Veggie Stix by Good Health Snacks

A full sized bag, and I downed these bad boys in two settings. Not greasy, great flavor, both a little salty and a little sweet. And light on the calories...of course they are mostly air.

Speaking of mostly air...A set of Killer Kushionz by Foot Petals

I added these to my favorite pair of simple flats which are super cheapies and have no cushion of their own.  I have (very) little feet and the proportions are  a bit off, I could cut them down to size so that the part for the ball of my foot was actually at the ball of my foot, but for the time being I haven't peeled off the sticker to put them in permanently, just giving them a test run and they do add some much needed oomph.  So far they aren't life changing but I foresee less soreness at the end of the day in these particular shoes.

Sweet..Some "Not your Mother's" Whip it up

The small can to the right is the tester, good size, and as you can tell I'm already a Not your mother's convert. Love their VERY well priced top of the line products.  This isn't one I would have tried on my own given my fine hair but I'm glad they sent it, really helped maintain curl in my super fine unruly hair. 

And finally, to end on a thud, they also included Boot Botanics Day Cream

It's a good sized sample, possibly full sized.  I didn't grab a pic and have tucked it away until later. I have SUPER sensitive skin and am a bit hesitant to try.  Now that I'm back from vacation and won't also be using heavy sunscreen I'm thinking of giving it a whirl.

Turkey Final Round (Istanbul)

Yes, It's been nearly five months since my trip and I'm just now getting to the last post.  Honestly, there are multiple excuses....I'm busy, I'm a resident, I have a kitchen renovation under foot, but the honest truth is...This post is different.  It comes after a change. Distance has won, and that's that.

Istanbul is an amazing city full of wonderful sites, sounds and people.  I am sure that some day I will go back and experience more of them, but for this trip it was a time to wind down and spend a couple of days with friends.  A little smattering of being touristy never hurt anyone though.

We spent a lovey first night just relaxing and eating dinner. (This was the night before the discovery of mashed potato pizza...can't recall the Turkish name, but trust me, I will be making this again!)

The next morning started with a bus ride and a ferry across the Marmara Sea for some touristing... A bustling waterway and amazing public transit system.  Speaking of public transit this is the
Haydarpaşa Terminal from the ferry.

Not every day you find a local that is both local to the vacation spot and your state, but timing worked perfectly that she was around!

Everything here seems to be old, detailed and beautiful. ( Haydarpaşa Terminal )

Another view of Istanbul from the ferry, including Galata Tower. I could have taken a million photos, but somehow after this whole trip managed to make it onto the ferry with a nearly full memory card. 

Off the ferry and on to shopping, a little time in the Spice Bazaar.  Another place you could spend all day in. Beautiful sites, sounds and color!  lots of colors...and lots and lots and lots of people in not a lot of space.  If you are the least bit claustrophobic or agoraphobic I recommend against it.

 I hope you aren't though, because I've never seen anything like it.

A quick walk through the Hippodrome of Constantinople... Let me repeat, colorful , lively, and beautiful historic detail. 

On to the Beautiful Blue Mosque.  Avery deep place with overwhelming tradition. You can feel the history and religion. Also the quietest "tourist" stop I've ever experienced.   

The last photo of the two of us ever taken. 

A touristy shot with a beautiful Turkish girl.

Lots of yummy smelling food carts.

If you visit make sure you check the opened days for each spot.  Much to my chagrin Ayasofya was closed the day we visited. Still beautiful from the outside though. 

Lots of bustling full streets and packed public transit.  The safety precautions, as I'm sure this photo demonstrates are far and few between. None of the "Don't lick paint or run with scissors" signs we have here in the states.

Traffic, traffic and more traffic.

Last photo, complicated detailed and historic. Too many things to explain and things that will go untold.  In the end, it's an end.

After these photos- I got on a plane after giving a kiss goodbye, not knowing it would be the last. 

It's plumcot juice

These are from a long time ago, but no need to leave them hanging around on my phone.......

Tonight has been quite a doozey. Maybe it's the full moon? Maybe it's the inordinate amount of fruit I've consumed? Maybe it's the alignment of Pluto with whatever the heck it's currently aligned with.....on a aside note, if you have two points in space aren't they always aligned along some axis?

As I meandered through the back hallways of radiology badge free, slightly disheveled and covered in random fruit juice...
Security, "Miss, can I speak to you over here for a moment?"
Me, "uh, sure...."
Security," A have reports of someone by your description attempting to open multiple doors."
Me, "I just want a candy bar!"
Surprised look on Security's face.
Me, "I mean, my attending said he would leave his office door unlocked in case I wanted chocolate later on in my call shift, and he is new. I don't know which office is his."
Security (chuckling), "OK, enjoy your morning."

CT of the head:
Indication: punched wall

Unnamed Resident, "You have Memorial food and Big Bang Theory! I'm so jealous. Can I watch while you help me with a chest xray?"
No worries, I sent her away with a kiwi and a package of hummus when her pager went off and she couldn't stay to watch Big Bang Theory in between me reading scans.

Floor nurse, "oh, I thought you were someone else."
Me, "Who did you think I was?"
FN, "The Vascular guy I talked to earlier, you both have that sweet southern accent."
Me, "Did you say Vascular GUY?"
FN, "Yeah, the one with the southern accent, why?"
Me, "No, reason."
I wish I could say the Vascular guy sounded like a chick when I spoke to him later, but he sounded very masculine to me. 

Is that a fish in his gallbladder?

A, "Your socks don't match."
B, "They coordinate, they are my patriotic socks."
A, "You can't wear one blue sock and another red and white sock."
B, "Actually I can, I'm doing it right now."
The grammatical humor was lost on A.

It's on the bottom of page 2 of 1.

Tech, "Sometimes I think you Radiologists just make up words in your reports to see if people are paying attention."
(We don't, but that's a fantastic idea.)

Overheard half of phone conversation in hallway," It's only a flesh wound."......"As you wish."....."It's not a tumor."
You have to appreciate a conversation that can be carried entirely in obscure movie quotes.

Every healthcare professional should watch the Radiology vs. ER video. One of those adorable little animated bear cartoons that some creative person typed in the dialog for. That pretty much sums up my call night.

Turkey Round 8 (Cappadocia/Kapadokya, Balloons and Derinkuyu Underground City)

After a very brief night's sleep and a bit of nursing for a very injured foot and company we were off for a WONDERFUL day. And by off for a wonderful day I mean onto a little shuttle where I realized that of all things to leave behind after the night before's skin tearing drama I LEFT MY CAMERA~~~tragic! But MA went back to the hotel and got it for me, because hes awesome, even though this meant he missed breakfast. 

My forgetfulness was quickly forgiven once we were amongst all the balloons and the sunrise though. 

Not my best hair day, but who the heck cares when there's a balloon ride to be had! (and not bad for getting up at 3:15)

Sunrise, with a moon, and a balloon...just sayin.

And by 'a balloon' I meant dozens of them.

While all the colorful balloons were a distraction the landscape was breathtaking.

I spent the majority of time so distracted by the view around me I occasionally forgot and put my foot down or dinged an injured elbow, but all was well once I peaked out over the landscape again.

All the cave homes seemed so tiny, and it was a great way to appreciate how many of them there were. Along every valley there were hundreds.

And the balloons, from flags to patterns to beer they were so fun to watch rising and falling through the sky.

All the little things below were hard to stare at because it could make a girl a little motion sick.

Look that's us!

In the process of landing I'm pretty sure I saw Pebbles and BamBam ;-)

They might have gone in there.

Captain we're starting to deflate!!!

Back to the hotel with all of the HUGE perfect roses. 

Injured foot up.

Following a brief nap we were off again to Derinkuyu Underground City. An absolutely fascinating place. stories and stories going deeper and deeper into the ground of carved rooms, tunnels and storage spaces. All in the name of Christianity.

The system of rooms and tunnels went for what seemed like forever. I can't imagine being down here before electricity...and plumbing.

A little church built right in.

A 'tunnel'...not sure what was so special about this particular one as opposed to the dozen we had already passed through that they felt the urge to label it, but sure enough...a tunnel....

The ventilation shaft. This picture does it no justice. It went on forever, and echo sounded miles away.

I am not a tall person. Honestly I'm more vertically challenged than most. Ok, I'm short. I spent a good portion of the time nearly crawling in some of these tunnels. 

A winery. Not exactly sure what went on here, but there was no shortage of wineries around. I am sure I would have needed more than a few bottles to make it though any amount of time in these rooms no matter who my company was...especially unbathed, light deprived and hiding from hostile armies.

Off travelling again, past Salt lake. A misadventure in itself. I was hot, tired and maimed when MA decided to go for a bit of off road exploring. It ended in silence and distant pictures of the lake followed by a nap.

We stopped in at MA's alma mater. Middle East Technical University. There was a little group of kittens that people had provided with food, water and their own pizza boxes. Some were a little more brave than others. 

We had long conversations about the surrounding hoards of nerds. Their interactions with one another. The 'mating habits' of nerds kept us amused for a long time. (No, we aren't horrible people, we are just grown up nerds making a few observations.) 

Case in point of my nerd-ness. I don't speak Turkish but I was all over what building this was. Amazing that all Bio/micro/chem buildings seem to have the same aura.

The photo above reminds me that I am lucky to be alive. I survived CRAZY Turkish drivers. Edit- PSYCHOTIC Turkish drivers. They were crazy everywhere, but in Ankara they took the cake. I should be given a medal for surviving these people and a tunnel simultaneously without vomiting.