1. Flowers in the bathroom. Eric got me some lily’s for my birthday and I’ve been amazed by them all week — are we absolutely certain that lilies are flowers and not aliens?!
2. Vacation. It’s so weird how I’m not working, but Eric being on a break from his work feels like I’m on a break. I have no pictures of the morning walks this week because Eric has been running with Ringo and taking him to a bunch of different places they don’t usually get to go during the week, while I sleep in a bit and have a leisurely morning. It’s been nice, but I’m also looking forward to getting back to our normal schedule next week.
Look closely — that’s NOT a stick
So proud of himself
3. Good food and the best person to share it with. Because our family all live in Oregon and we only go visit in the summer (except this year, when we had to cancel because of COVID-19), spending the winter holiday season on our own is something we’re used to. In years past we’ve gathered here with friends, but sometimes we haven’t so having a quiet day with our tiny family is familiar, and I’m grateful for that because there were a lot of people not used to being alone, who are experiencing sad days. For some reason, this year all the things we made, which were the things we usually make, turned out extra good. The apple pie Eric made is one of the best things I’ve EVER eaten, and now we get to relax and eat the leftovers for a couple of days.
4. Eric got me a bird feeder. My new favorite pastime is standing at our front window watching the birds, looking up the ones I don’t recognize, being able to name them: chickadees, finch, nuthatches, blue jays. 
5. My tiny family. I’m so so so lucky we like spending so much time together, get along so well. I can’t imagine doing this — a global pandemic, life in general — with anyone else.
Bonus joy: Texting with my mom and brother and Chloe’, hanging out and writing with Mikalina, late birthday presents that mean I get to see a good friend in person even if I couldn’t hug her, the pool (they dropped the cap on aqua aerobic classes to only eight people in the pool and we’ve been wearing our masks even in the water), sitting in the sauna with Eric (wearing masks there too), watching Guy’s Grocery Games with Eric (we finally watched all the Forensic Files episodes and with the election results we are open to thinking about things that are more fun), podcasts, movies, cooking with Eric, laughing with Eric, getting on Zoom with friends we haven’t seen in too long, grocery pickup, online shopping (this year I’m going to try and do all online and ship direct so I keep out of the stores and the post office), getting all the laundry done and put away, my HappyLight, napping, reading in bed at night while Eric and Ringo sleep.
1. Morning walks. I only have three pictures, because it snowed this week and the only walk I went on was dark, cold, and slippery. There wasn’t much to see or take pictures of and I was too busy keeping my “eyes on the road.”
2. Snow. We got 16 inches at our house, and were so happy to see it because the fires were bad, We’d had multiple days of wind and the Troublesome Fire (one of four fires burning here) was headed straight into Estes Park but the snow slowed things down.
3. The final days of fall. Fall is my favorite time of year in Colorado, even though this year it didn’t last as long and we couldn’t go hiking because of the fires. We spent the day before the storm raking leaves and washing ash off the cars. I also gathered up all Ringo’s toys from the yard, washed and mended them, after which I temporarily changed the “no toys in the house” rule to “no toys outside.” 
5. My tiny family. Sam has been gone five months now, and I still miss him so much. For now, we are enjoying giving every bit of attention and all the treats to Ringo and he seems to be okay with that. We’ll get another dog eventually, but for now this is enough. Eric is back in his office a few days a week, so I get Ringo all to myself and kitchen counter love notes. I especially like winter because Ringo and Eric get more cuddly.
Bonus joy: two hours in the pool, sitting in the sauna, a big glass of cold clean water, clementines, funeral casserole, onion buns, Fritos (my go-to pandemic snack seems to be chips), good TV, good podcasts, good music, making myself a new playlist on Spotify (I called it 
Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray) 