all.for.love: home team.

one of the great things about being a nurse is working 3-4 days a week. yes they are long 12 hours shifts, and yes they can be so tiring, BUT every once in a while your days off end up all grouped together and its like mini vacation. A mini vacation in the middle of your full time work week. glorious. this last week i had my 4 days off in a row and was able to travel back home to beautiful, wonderful, hecka tight northern california.

september is a busy time for my family. my moms birthday comes first, then my brothers birthday is a week later, which is also the same day as my parent's wedding anniversary. full of celebrations and fun. so i was ecstatic when i realized my 4 days off were in the middle of all of this. not to mention it was not just my brothers birthday, but his 21st birthday. it's wild to think my younger brother is 21. the crazy kid who would never stop chatting or telling corny jokes. the crazy kid who used to drink coke for breakfast and eat nothing but hotdogs. the crazy kid who is now a super talented musician, making a name for himself. the crazy who now only drinks iced black coffee and eats kale and chia seed salads. and this crazy kid loves that someone once told him he looked like dave grohl and has never been happier.

my brother and i are 5 years apart. we used to argue all the time as kids. i always felt like he was such an annoying little brother and he thought i was too much of a know it all sister. it wasn't until we both grew up that we got super close. and sadly this happened around the time i left for college. but thankfully i chose i school in southern california, not too far away, which made it possible come home for big events. i got to be there for some of his school dances, shows for his different bands, high school graduation, and now his 21 birthday. i always joke about my brother being so much cooler then me, but its real. he is such a cool dude, and so talented. thankful i have such a stellar bro to live life with.

there is something so refreshing about being home for me. i cherish every moment i spend at home and always wish for more time. it sounds so cheesy but when i'm at home i feel like everything stops. there is not crazy hospital business, no work drama, the stress of being a nurse is gone. i get to just be me with my family and friends from home. yes a nurse is a huge part of who i am, but on my days off in southern california i spend sleeping, trying to restore all the energy lost at work. on my days off in Sac, i fill every moment with seeing people i love. spending it with my family, seeing my best friends, and having my brother show me the cool new spots. i get so much energy from spending time with them and come back feeling so restored. i feel so pumped from spending wednesday nights at the local sushi place with my family and their friends. going to Rims deli and always getting the best sandwich with the best ice for your beverage. being able to get places in a reasonable amount of time because traffic is different there. being able to stay up until 1 am either talking to my best friends from high school or watching my brother jam in his studio.

this is my home team. my people who truly know me. the people i would count on for anything and everything. people who i feed off of and don't feel any pressure about having to hang out/entertain them. the people who remind me the person i am/things i can do. my heart aches for home and to be around those people all the time. now i feel like i have to reiterate i do like my job, love where i live, and am not always sad about my current work/living situation. i am so grateful for those. BUT home is special. it will always be a special place to me and am so thankful i have FO town to go back to from time to time. i dread the day where i have to live more then a 6 hours drive away from it. :)