Life-Hacks from Med Mommas

OK, I recently joined an online discussion forum for physician mothers and it's like being in a virtual sorority! I LOVE it. We chat about everything from complex medical cases at work to the best dry shampoos on the market. I really can't get enough.

There have been some fantastic threads formed and I'm looking to compile the best contributions so as to have an easy-access reference moving forward. I will start out with the "life-hacks" that have proven to be invaluable. -- And that should say a lot seeing as how most of these women are working way over 40hrs a week and have a family.

Source

Without further ado, I present the can't-live-without life-hacks for medical mommas:

Tech

1. Wemo. A gadget that allows you to control your electronics from anywhere. 
2. Shutterfly iPhone app 
3. Wunderlist "to do" app
4. Audible.com for listening to books while doing other tasks
5. Roku (consolidates TV viewing)
6. Xfinity
7. Amazon Prime (BIG winner)
8. Out of Milk app (for groceries)
9. Baby Monitor app
10. Personal Cap app for budgeting
11. Teamup.com calendar
12. Mint.com for personal finances
13. Google calendars
14. Apple TV

Cooking/Dieting

1. Hamilton Beach 6qt. slow cooker
2. Stash of nuts at the work desk to avoid binging
3. Jura coffee maker
4. Blendtek
5. Vitamix
6. Immersion blender
7. Le Creuset (another big winner)
8. Ina Garten cookbook 
9. Sancerre wine
10. Hello Fresh
11. Cuisinart food processor
12. Henckels professional knives
13. Tiger rice cooker
14. Caphalon grill pan
15. Hamilton mini-personal blender
16. Breville espresso maker
17. Parchment paper
18. Cooks Illustrated
19. The Science of Good Cooking
20. Farmfreshtoyou.com

Cleaning

1. Dyson cordless vacuum
2. Roomba (including industrial strength for pet hair)
3. Laundry sorter
4. Braava hardwood floor robot
5. Clorox bleach tablets for toilet bowl

Clothes

1. Stitch Fix

Beauty, Fitness, & Hygiene

1. Microplane foot file
2. 30min or less Beach Body workouts
3. Living Proof shampoo and conditioner
4. Bikram yoga
5. Argan oil 
6. Shiseido eyelash curler
7. Yogaglo.com quick workouts
8. Dry shampoo
9. Clarisonic face brush
10. L'Occitane almond shower oil
11. Armani face cream
12. Gel manicure
13. T25/P90X3/Piyo
14. Deva Curl products
15. Skinceuticals
16. ReTress
17. Bath and Body Works Stress Relief 
18. Lasik eye surgery
19. Laser hair removal
20. Neutrogena healthy lengths mascara
21. Eyelash extensions
22. Microfiber hair towel
23. Origins On the Spot Relief
24. Pure Barre Workouts
25. TNS essential serum

Kids

1. Baby Bjorn plastic bib to contain mess
2. Clip-on highchair
3. Pump adapters for milk to go directly into bottle
4. Lotus travel crib
5. Go-go-babyz for travel
6. Snap N Go Stroller
7. InchBug juice box holder
8. Puddle jumper floaties for the pool
9. Mommy hook attachment for stroller

Organization and Other

1. Label maker
2. Container Store Elfa system
3. 3 basket hamper, each piece removable
4. Retailmenot.com for coupons
5. Merchandise tags for organization & simple gift cards

What (Many) Doctors Think about a Remodel

One of these tubs is not like the others.

Not gonna lie, yesterday felt like retribution for me. I was finally able to show people at work what all this remodel stuff is about. And to get why that was so satisfying, you have to understand the typical doctor responses to house projects. Here's a sample from real life.

Dr. X: So where do you commute from?
Dr. Daily: Currently Wheaton, but we're moving to such-n-such town.
Dr. X: Oh, really? When do you move?
Dr. Daily: As soon as we're done with some remodeling projects.
Dr. X: Oh. [Looking on with pity.] That sounds tough.
Dr. Daily: Well, no one will tell you that remodels are easy. . .
Dr. X:  Yes, see, I'm just so fortunate/blessed to have my house. It was worth every penny, there was no work to do!
Dr. Daily: That's great. My problem is that I looked and looked, but there wasn't a single house on the market that didn't have something I wanted to change, especially in the bathroom. My husband and I have a very particular style and taste so we bought a perfectly imperfect home at a reasonable price, knowing there'd be work to do upfront.
Dr. X: Oh, trust me, once you're willing to invest at a certain price point, there are baths you wouldn't think of tweaking!

Inevitably, my colleague attempts to educate me on what might have been mine. I imagine they figure if I hadn't gone to part-time employment, I could have afforded a fully wonderful home like theirs. To illustrate this, literally, they'll bring up their property through Zillow or Redfin on their smart phone.

Dr. X: See, look how beautiful that is.

I am then forced to admire my personal definition of designer hell. Envision a McMansion with a brick facade, chasms of poorly planned space surrounded by bland drywall, and 'modern' bathrooms with so much pink beige tile our friend Maria would just have a fit. I also can't help but notice the hefty price tag (always more than half-a-million US dollars), and the address (9 times out of 10 this behemoth is parked in the middle of Nowhere, Illinois).

I smile politely and say something like, "I'm so glad you're happy with that."

(Don't even get me started when they find out I bought a MCM ranch. . . The unwanted pity comes in droves!)

But yesterday, I had my own pictures to show on my phone. And no, I didn't expect other people to actually get my style, I just wanted to show them something different. I wanted them to see that, though challenging, this house tweaking is something we enjoy and that having a personal style is an important aspect of my life. Heck, the fact that there IS a life outside the hospital is the over-arching, more significant point here.

Oh, man, when they saw the tub, the crazy wavy tile and that what-the-heck-is-that firebox, I thought some of these guys might blow an aneurysm. The most common response was "whoa." Interestingly, the followup commentary was more an interrogation about how much this "must" have cost.

Dr. X: Looks expensive.
Dr. Daily: That firebox was the splurge we'd been saving up for since we got married (2003). Everything else we did extensive research on and got at the lowest possible price. There was some nail-biting when we'd order from what appeared to be a shady online countertop dealership, and we'd thank God (literally) when some of this stuff arrived because it was 'cushioned' with garbage you wouldn't even imagine.
Dr. X: What about that tile?
Dr. Daily: Not as costly as you'd think. We honestly didn't expect to get such nice tile, just wanted to look at it, but when we studied the prices it wasn't that much more than places like the Tile Shop, yet the quality is far superior.

And so on.

In the end, I think I got some respect. The pity party might be coming to an end, and the real fiesta is just getting started. . . in my tub.