1. Fall. The actual first day of fall is a little over a week away and we still have days in the forecast calling for the upper 80s, but yesterday I wore long sleeves, long pants, and socks all day, and this morning when we woke up it was 51 degrees outside, The chrysanthemums and clematis are blooming and our tomatoes are finally producing, so I’m calling it early — it’s fall!

2. Cooking. I am really enjoying doing more cooking, trying new recipes, eating good food.

3. Flowers in the bathroom. Eric brought me home flowers this week. I haven’t had flowers all summer, except for my peonies and a bouquet from Chloe’. They changed the farmer’s market hours to later which kept me from getting there all summer, and after two gnat infestations the end of last summer and the beginning of this one, I was wary because flowers just feed the gnats, ensure they keep producing future generations. I missed the flowers.

4. Ringo. Since I’ve been home more, he’s been so sweet to me. Since he’s getting older, he’s getting easier to live with and easier to love. Had to sneak this next picture through a dirty window so I wouldn’t wake him up. This kind of peace was a long time coming and hard won. Used to be this boy had to be constantly entertained and monitored, especially in the backyard. He got into stuff, ate things he shouldn’t, dug holes, and barked. Now, with six years old just a few months away, he can take himself out and lounge in the sun, with only the occasional bark or roll in a dead worm, and I don’t have to worry he’s out there killing himself.

5. Sam. I was so stressed out about him last week — he slipped and fell in the kitchen twice and threw up his dinner one night. He’s almost ten years old, as old as any of our dogs have ever been, and the awareness that he’s going to die is always right there. He was the dog that took me the longest to bond with, he felt more like Eric’s dog for the first few years and I was just missing my Obi and Dexter, but now he’s my sweet shadow and when he goes I’m really going to miss him.

5. Eric. All the things he does to take care of our tiny family, laughing with him, how he appreciates the things I do, how committed he is to his colleagues and students, his kitchen counter love notes (see a whole collection of them on Instagram).

Bonus joy: Glazed lemon zucchini bread, zucchini gratin, grilled cheese, breakfast for dinner, leftovers, clean sheets on the bed, all the laundry done and put away, excellent credit, money in savings, a whole day with no plans, good movies (the new Mindy Kaling one on Amazon Prime, Late Night, was really good), good TV (I’ve been watching a lot of tiny house shows lately), good books (I’m finally reading the rest of Maya Angelou’s autobiographies), hanging out with Mikalina and Chloe’ (having friends who make you laugh, but also who you can cry with and say “I love you” and fully trust with your truth is a big deal), morning walks, teaching yoga, writing, naps.