Time flies when you’re having fun

Holy moly, how has it already been a month since I’ve posted anything?? Shel and I have been busy busy busy between work and visits and trying to stay in touch with people back home and exploring and alllll the things. I mean when we’re only out here for a few months, we gotta make the most of it, right?! This also means lots of naps though.. that’s for damn sure!!

When we’re not napping though, we’re checking out cool places like Snakes and Lattes, a super cool brunch spot in Tempe with mimosa flights, deeelicious food, and board games!!

..or the Desert Botanical Gardens where the only game was don’t step on a cactus..

..seriously, don’t step on a cactus, unless you have a damn good best friend who will pull the prickers out one by one so you can continue your hike!

Other games we’ve enjoyed playing include “how many times can we go to Taco Guild in one week?!” Or current record is 3.. what can I say? We love the Guild! We mayyyy or may not have matching personalized sweatshirts.. scroll to the end to find out!

Let me know if you think we should see if they have punch cards where after our 10th visit we get a free marg or something.. HA who are we kidding, we’ve been treated to plenty of free drinks, including on Valentine’s Day! Shoutout to the random guy at the end of the bar who asked to have our drinks added to his tab, without even having a conversation with us! Such a pleasant little surprise :).

The place I wouldn’t get any use out of a punch card is work, as I am really keeping true to my title of “float pool nurse” being that I am floating ALL over the hospital. I think I have now been to 7 different units! With that though, I am definitely learning a lot and meeting a ton of new people which has been great. As much as I like consistency and becoming comfortable in my routine on one unit, I am really enjoying being a float pool nurse and plugging in wherever I am needed. It is taking me back to my days as a CNA during nursing school where I would float all over the little community hospital near my parents’ house. Granted, back at the community hospital, I didn't float to places like the burn center and postpartum.. yes you read that right, I really have been floating allllll over the hospital. Thankfully, our covid numbers are finally dropping and are staying low which truly means I am seeing a wide variety of patients.

Speaking of near my parents house, the other thing that has kept me busy was a quick lil trip back east to go to THON! I have a whole post about that, but lemme tell you it was such a phenomenal time— and always is. I always look forward to THON weekend and was so very glad to be able to go back again this year even with being on the other side of the country! (I also owe a special shoutout to my beautiful roomie/bestie for being my chauffeur, dropping me off and picking me up wayyy late on Thursday and Sunday, as much as I enjoyed the weekend SO MUCH, I missed you WAY MUCH MORE.. I know it doesn't make sense, just let it be!)

Most recently we got a little taste of home with Shel’s momma paying us a visit. We explored some of our favorite places and hopped into a few new ones to check them off the bucket list; we ate lottts of good food and had plenty of tasty drinks. We also treated our bodies to a spa day of facials and massages, and then later in her visit went on a little hike that ended with a beautiful little picnic in the “grass.”

All in all it’s been a good month since I last posted. Obviously with all the good stuff comes some bad, but I think we need a little of that so we can truly recognize and appreciate the good. In case you’re having a hard time finding your own good, I encourage you to take a step outside because chances are you can find even a little bit of good in the sky, sun, and clouds.. shoutout to you, Mother Nature! Now could you go ahead and get this weather in check? We’re suffering from some whiplash goin' from cold to hot to rainy to dry to windy to calm… all in one day sometimes!

Hopefully I'll find some time sooner than a month from now to post again and keep you updated on this crazy lil life I'm leading.. but until then, stay well my friends..

XO, Al.