1. Long walks on the beach and good weather, sunshine but not too hot.

2. The best pancakes I’ve ever had, which just so happen to be at Leroy’s Blue Whale in Yachats, Oregon, and what I had for breakfast this morning after walking 6.5 miles on the beach.

3. Reading and naps, how we spend our afternoons, before the second walk.

4. Spending a few days with my mom and dad, having them all to myself. It’s not such a bad thing to have people in your life who are so happy to see you, to spend time with you. Some highlights: watching movies, taking walks in the morning, having our meals together, and looking at old family pictures.

Jordan Bridge, at Pioneer Park, near my mom and dad’s house.

5. Visiting with my brother, getting to see my nieces a little.

Bonus joy: the strawberry pie Eric made, the delicious strawberries from the farmer’s market, sleeping in, a warm shower, clean laundry, grocery shopping, my favorite playlist, a glass of cold clean water, my laptop, my cellphone, the internet, texting, warm soft socks, a thin soft wool sweater I can wear every day, new neighbors that are quiet, how quiet the house gets when everyone is napping, stepping out of fear, the beans and ground turkey my dad made (talk about comfort food!), a good rental car, a husband who is happy to see me, healthy dogs, an upcoming family dinner with my BIG family, being on vacation for a whole month more, quiet mornings meditating and writing.

First thing in the morning vacation me, sitting on the floor at my mom and dad’s getting ready to meditate, (cold sore thanks to all the sun I’m getting).

1. A safe, relatively easy trip from Colorado to Oregon. There was some minor chaos, but that’s to be expected when traveling with two dogs, one of which is Ringo.

Somewhere in central Oregon

2. Cooler weather for the road trip. There have been times we’ve made this drive when it was 90-100 degrees and we had two dogs in the car, and that’s not fun at all, for anyone. This time it was cool enough they were comfortable in the car, and we got to stop and walk around a lot because it was cool enough outside.

3. My peonies, which were still blooming and producing when we left, were so gorgeous this year.

4. My tiny family. Oh how I love my three boys, and the chance to spend more time with them in this beautiful place.

5. Waldport. It really is one of my favorite places on the planet.

From our walk this morning

Bonus joy: maple bars, a hot shower, getting here and getting unpacked, sunshine on a day it was supposed to rain, bay shrimp, clean water, a remodeled rental house, visiting with relatives, my new car, quiet, the sound of the real ocean when I’m falling asleep at night, the cool breeze coming in the window over my head, how happy this place makes Eric, that the dogs totally remembered this place and relaxed into it right away, the proximity of everything we need, a new book from Tig Notaro on my Kindle just waiting for me to read it, marionberry jam (I bought it at the grocery store just like it was a regular old jam!), how quiet it is here, the familiarity of this place, Sam trying so hard not to freak out about seagulls, Ringo so sleepy and sweet, a bed that is smaller than our own but still works, a washer and dryer so I can pack light, wi-fi, our not so new cellphones with cameras so good I didn’t have to bring another camera on this trip, a good friend I can trust watering and caring for our garden, three Farmer’s Markets, being able to stay connected even when I’m away.