where my heart is.

I sometimes think the amount of excitement that builds up inside me before going home to visit my darling parents is worth the 1,663,300 feet¹ that separate us.

Items on the weekend's agenda include,

1. hanging out with this little guy:

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2. accompanying my dad on [at least one of] his early morning jogs throughout Red Rock Canyon and taking in every glorious ray of desert sunshine in my sleepy stupor

3. convincing my mom to bake me something special, for being special :D

4. going to Tutti Bella with Faraz and self-serving myself a big ol' cup of frozen goodness topped with every kind of berry you can imagine (note: my eyes are much, much bigger than my stomach)

5. [insert something to do with Elham and Natasha here]

6. sitting in my pajamas in the backyard, watching Toby try to dip his little head (approximately the size of a door knob) into the pond in attempts to capture all the fishies, thereby fulfilling his purpose in life

7. presenting my pathetic excuse for a knitted blanket to my mom, and having her help undo all my blunders (i.e. dropped stitches, random holes, strings hanging loose, crooked edges, stop judging me, it's a mess, I know)

8. taking a leisurely afternoon nap in my room, and waking up to feel Toby's warm little 2.5 lb body curled up next to me under the covers

9. walking into my favorite coffee shop and knowing I don't have to tell them my order (despite the fact that I haven't been there in ages) because yes, they're that good

10. Okay, I'm letting my excitement (and imagination) really get ahead of me here. Besides, I gotta go!

Final thought: Home is so where my heart is.

Oh, and this time, I promise not to stop in Barstow to purchase any more sea turtles to bring home as "surprise visitors." I thought they were legal, okay?!

¹ 315 miles too many.