Gratitude Friday

1. Fall color. This time of year, everything is changing so fast. We walk somewhere and just a day or two later we go back and it looks so different.

2. Morning walks. I love the cooler weather, the shift to more quiet. So many people go back inside in the fall and winter, especially in the morning, and it sometimes feels like we have the whole world to ourselves. We got rained on one morning this week, but it was really warm and we saw a rainbow.

3. Science. We got results back for allergy tests we did on Ringo, in part because of his wonky belly. Turns out he’s allergic to corn, flax, milk, oats, peas, pumpkin, rice, and spinach. He’s been getting pumpkin and rice every meal! He’s also allergic to all kinds of grasses and cottonwoods! And the kind of yeast that can cause ear infections, which explains the trouble he’s had with his ears. So I dropped some serious cash at the feed store because pretty much every food and treat we have for him has something he can’t have. I’m so grateful we had access to the test, the money to pay for it, and a care team who loves him so much. So handsome, so high maintenance.

4. So many tomatoes! I went out yesterday and picked as many as I could, as we are in that part of the year when the real cold could come any time. This weekend I’ll be making roasted tomato soup and tomato jam.

5. My tiny family, tiny home, tiny life. I am looking forward to sinking in to all three this weekend.

Bonus joy: Drawing and hanging out with Calyx, lunch with Carrie, texting with Chloe’ (especially now that she can send me pictures of her cute baby) and Mom and Chris, meeting with my new nutritionist (she’s both HAES and ED centered — if you know, you know), good TV, listening to podcasts, getting in the pool, sitting in the sauna, cooking with Eric, laughing with Eric, being cold, a big glass of cold clean water, cancelled plans, clean laundry, pay day, paying all our bills, clean sheets, taco salad, vaccines, reading in bed at night while Ringo and Eric sleep.