Emerging from the Holidays....Slowly

Okay, so....wow....it has been a month. Does it seem as though I am often starting these posts by apologizing? Hey- I warned you all that I would post only when I had something to tell you. Even though I live in an amazing country with a rich and ancient history - I am still pretty darn boring. So unless you wanted a recap of the latest PTSA meeting or some really amusing stories about the Medical Group Christmas party, I thought it was best not to blog at all. I promised myself when I started this, I would never turn into one of those people that blogged constantly about nothing. "Today the kids and I went to the grocery store" "Today I flossed my teeth" "Today I read all the suicide notes from the people who read my blog and died of boredom".

The one big thing that did happen was Michael's parents came to visit. The reason I didn't blog during those two weeks is because we spent most of the time trying to kill them off by hiking them to death. =) Also, Michael wants to fill everyone in on the details of the amazing epic journey they took across this country. I am not being sarcastic. It was amazing and epic and it involved a WHOLE lot of really seedy Turkish hotels. I graciously offered to stay at home with Hayden so they could have the joy of uphill hikes and no hot water all to themselves.

I do have a few pictures of the couple of days we were all together. This one was taken in the Adana Mosque. The tiles and designs inside are really amazing. I am ashamed to admit I have been here for a year and a half, and this is the first time I've been inside. Although in my defense, I don't often carry around a head scarf - so going inside takes some forethought. We planned for it this time, and I realized yet another reason I am happy to be a Christian - no head scarves. I don't wear hats for a reason. See below.

Here is the outside of the Adana Mosque. For those of you that received my very late New Year's letter, you will recognize it. For those of you who didn't receive it, blame it soley on yourselves for not giving me a current address. That and the fact that I lose interest halfway through the alphabet. I have selective ADD where effort and organization are involved. So if your last name begins with any letter after "P" your odds of recieving a newsletter weren't good. Don't feel bad, it really wasn't great reading. Believe me, I wrote it.

Here is a typical Turkish meal. By "typical" I mean "every single resturant, residence, hotel, and hostel in the country is serving this exact same meal between the hours of 5 and 7 pm each night." The food is very good, but 18 months of it is getting old.

While my husband, in-laws, and older children where off on the Great Crusade, I took a picture that pretty much summed up my week. Hayden discovered the joys of hide and seek, and I often found him giggling in the strangest places. Like my linen closet. A couple of times he really gave me a start. This being one of those times. Also, note his closed eyes. Apparently he is not fully hidden unless his eyes are closed. As if the snickering and the repeated cries of "You no see me" don't give him away. The kid is a hoot.

As I said before, I will let Michael fill you in completely on the day by day of his trip once he catches up on the mountain of work that was waiting for him when he got back. I cannot begin to name all the people that came up to me while he was gone and demanded to know the exact minute of his return. There were even a few that looked at me and said, "Oh well - since you're his wife, maybe you'd know about...." Um.....what? Oh, yeah, because a marriage licence is the same as a medical degree. Hey - I guess I should take it as a complement - until I get sued for malpractice, right?

Anyway, Michael will post hopefully sometime this week. Be prepared for some awesome pictures!