I seem to gather my thoughts best these days when I am on a plane. Today is no exception, however, one thing is different. I have one of my kids to my left and one to my right. We are headed back home after our vacation. For the first time in a week, they are quietly keeping to themselves. As a new business owner, my vacations look a little more like work than before but in a much, much nicer place and with a better view surrounded with the people I love, which rocks. And now we head back to reality. Why do we all mourn that so much? Reality is pretty darn good.
However, to soften the blow of getting back to my routine, I decided to keep a running list of all the reasons why life not on vacation is worth coming home to. Everyone knows the great stuff about vacation time, but what about all the good stuff about coming home?
1. I feel healthier. I have a plan, a structure to when and how much I exercise and when and how much I eat and drink. Vacation is brutal on my health. I drink wine every day, think nothing of ordering pizza and eat cheese puffs for a snack. Not feeling so great as I head back home.
2. Money management is important. When I am on vacation, it’s like money and bills don’t exist. Twenty bucks for two ice creams? Sure! I think I really need that $150 giant white hat for the beach. It is like my bills are suspended in time. My bank account stays the same until I get back, right?!
3. My bed. Every morning before I leave for work, I tell my bed “Goodbye, Bed! I’ll see you again tonight!” Part of it is that I travel a lot for work, so my bed is my respite from the hotel bed. And when I come home from vacation, I look forward to getting a really good night’s sleep…in my own little cocoon.
4. Getting everything I need is easy and fast. I don’t have to use the map function on my phone to get anywhere. I know my way around the grocery store. I don’t have to search and search for my favorite brand of salsa or the best restaurant.
5. Unpacking my suitcase. I’m not one of those people who unloads my suitcase into the drawers of the hotel. I usually live out of the suitcase, which isn’t great for the state of my clothes. I love being able to get back home and unload that suitcase. That is a great feeling of organization.
6. Friends and family. Ok, so maybe this should be number one, but I usually have the people most important to me on vacation with me. But I do love to get back home and see all the people I haven’t seen in a while. It is comforting to know that they were watching out for my house and generally keeping the home fires burning.
7. Some of our favorite places are new again. Both kids have been discussing where we might go to lunch when we land. All the places they were sick of before vacation become new again. “OMG, a Starbucks. Can we eat lunch there??”
8. My car. We live in a driving city so I spend a lot of time in my car. And as much disdain as I have for sitting in traffic, it always feels good to get back in my car. It fits like a glove. And trying to get my little rental car up a hill was almost impossible.
Do all of these things beat a good old relaxing vacation? No, but it does make it easier to come home and get back to living life. What are some of your favorite things about being at home? Share with us in the comments section below. Welcome home!
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