A longtime meteorologist in Phoenix, Arizona, is calling it a career.

12 News' Lindsay Riley, 40, made the announcement on-air earlier this month.

She elaborated on her decision to retire and spend more time with her family in a social media post Sunday. 

'Nineteen years ago, I stepped into a dream I’ve held close to my heart since I was four years old,' it began. 

'As a young child, instead of cartoons I watched The Weather Channel and told my family, "One day, I will do that!"'

Her journey began in Buffalo, New York, at CBS affiliate WIVB in 2007, Riley recalled.

Stints at stations in Kentucky, Texas and Indiana followed. She eventually made her way to 12 News in 2018, she said.

'Now, I am officially stepping away from the mic and stepping into retirement to be with my boys,' Riley wrote, roughly a year-and-a-half after welcoming her third child with husband Shawn.

'It was right here in the desert where life truly happened for me,' Riley wrote.

She recalled meeting Shawn on the plane during her move from Indiana to Arizona. The two married in April 2019.   

'And today, we have three beautiful boys together,' the post continued. Included were a collage of photos showing Riley saying goodbye to colleagues in-studio. Her two older children were present as well.

Producers paid tribute with a news package that showed Riley at work over the years. In several of the snippets, the journalist was visibly pregnant.

'I don't know which baby that was,' Riley told evening anchor Tram Mai as one clip played.

She admitted it had been 'a tough decision' to step away.

'But you got to live your dream,' noted Mai. 'And I know you're not gonna be a stranger.'

'I'm just excited to have the evenings with them and my husband too, just have some margin and spend some time with the little kids, because I know I can't get these years back,' Riley said. 

The broadcast aired on September 11. 

'It's just been a joy, and the team that we have here is just amazing. And it feels like home,' Riley said.

She added in her social media post: 'Time with my boys and my family is what I am most excited about in this next chapter.

'Thank you, Phoenix, to those who invited me into your homes each night, to those who have followed along since the beginning, and to my 12 News family - who are truly family to me. I cherish these years. THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart.'