Alright y’all I’ve been on the road for 30+ hours and still have 9 or so more to go before I reach my place. I can’t wait to sleep in my own bed and to sit on my own toilet! TMI? Whatever, I’m a scientist and that’s a natural body process 😂😂😂😂 But all of this moving about has been in the name of family. In the last 2 months, I’ve been to Portugal & Italy, Orlando FL, Boston & Cambridge, Various stops in Ontario Canada, Syracuse NY, pit stops in Georgia, and kinds of places in between. So in case you haven’t figured it out yet, this week I am turnt up about FAMILY!!

Visiting family is one of the best parts about summer for me! For the last few years, my family has gathered in the summer for family vacation. We seem to have fallen into cruises every other year and something local on the off years. This year was an off year so we ended up in some beautiful homes in Davenport, Florida. It was such a delight to have family dinners together multiple days in a row and to play with my young cousins in the pool. There was so much to do at the house that we didn’t even make it to the parks!! But let me not dwell on the travel or destination part because today is all about family.

For those who don’t know, I live away from all of my family. I had an opportunity to return home January 2018 and to live with the family for a few months and it reminded me of how much I missed spending time with my family. Soooo I’ve been trying to do my best to roll up on the fam any chance that I get…and SUMMER TIME is perfect since I’m a college professor.

This summer has been filled with so much more surprise family time. I’ve had the chance to hang out with my siblings, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Since bae came to town, I got a chance to show him around the Dub Dub and he met even more of my family. The part that touches my heart the most is that I even got to see 2 of my besties this summer when they surprised mom at home! These are the types of experiences that remind me that my earlier sacrifices of missing trips and family events were totally worth being in the position that I am in now for flexibility in finances & travel dates.

Just this past weekend, I even got to meet more of bae’s family. We ate, danced, sang, drove, laughed, barely slept, and did I mention drove hours and hours…but spending time with family made it so worth it! So today is my reminder to you to cherish family moments. Put down the mobile devices, switch off those TVs and live in the present with your loved ones.