1. Morning walks. With Daylight Savings Time, we are actually doing part of the walk as the sun rises. I know it will only last for another week or two before it’s dark again, but I’m enjoying it for now. This morning we saw the big buck and two bald eagles, and Ringo wants you to know he almost got a cat and got to carry a stick for a bit.

2. A day “off” after a week with a lot of people-ing. This week was packed with dates and appointments and phone calls that needed to be made. For an introverted hsp, that’s exhausting, so I’m happy that today walking the dogs, doing the laundry, maybe making some muffins, and writing this blog post is all that’s on my schedule.

3. Kitchen counter love notes. Hopefully Eric and I can hang out and rest this weekend, as he’s had a busy week too.

4. Good friends. I have three in particular that I see regularly. They are smart, funny, kind, creative women always down to spend some time writing together, going to a movie, or just hanging out talking about everything and nothing.

5. My tiny family. In a few weeks, Ringo will turn six years old, and a month later, Sam will officially be ten and well on his way to being our oldest dog yet. Being able to spend more time with them is one of the best things about being “retired.”

Bonus joy: even though my washing machine randomly beeps while it cycles and that can be super annoying it still works, breakfast burritos, a super soft sweatshirt my brother bought me for Christmas one year paired with a super soft pair of pj pants my aunt bought me another Christmas making the perfect stay at home on a cold day uniform, even though I’d read lots of criticism about this season of Great British Baking Show we enjoyed it just as much as always, good books (I finished Maya Angelou’s autobiographies and now I’m reading James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room), good TV (even though there are many things that are irritating about it, HGTV’s House Hunters series is a relief to watch when things get too complicated), good movies (went to see Harriet yesterday and now I want to know everything there is to know about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad), sunshine, sitting under my infrared heating pad and my favorite blankets after a long walk with the dogs.

1. Snow! What I’m actually grateful for is that even though it was a bit earlier than usual, and because of that we didn’t have snow tires on the cars yet, we made it through okay. On the morning I walked dogs and it was only 5 degrees out, I was especially grateful for the hour I got to spend under my infrared heating pad and a couple of blankets. And on all the other cold mornings, Eric ran with the dogs while I stayed home in our warm bed.

2. Writing with friends. I got to do that twice this week. There was a bit more conversation than writing, but that’s okay too.

3. Trying new recipes. Eric made General Tso’s with cauliflower instead of chicken (good, but I missed the chewy texture of the chicken, as the cauliflower is pretty soft), and I made oven fries with three different kinds of potatoes. We also tried spaghetti with Quorn Meatless Grounds, (recommended, in fact it might have been even better than a meat version). We are trying to add more plant options and eat fewer animal products. It’s so much easier to do now than it was 20 years ago, with all the new products you can buy and the ease of searching the internet for recipes, (although 90% of the time, I land at Smitten Kitchen).

4. Practice. Being able to come back to it, depend on it, no matter what else might be going on. It keeps me steady and sane.

5. My tiny family. Ringo is getting used to me being home more often, asks for and offers me more attention than he has, (Eric’s his primary person, the guy who does all the fun stuff like running, hiking, and playing Frisbee, but I’m the one he cuddles with). Sam is still my baby at almost 10 years old, looking to me for, well, everything. Eric and I did a salt tank sensory deprivation float last week, and while I was a partial fail on the float (I could float, but not with the hatch closed), it was fun to try something new with him.

Bonus joy: a crunchy Gala apple, a glass of cold water, sleeping in, sitting in the sauna when it’s cold outside, down blankets and pillows, clean sheets, TV shows where most of the characters aren’t white, grocery shopping, getting all the laundry done and put away, pay day, being able to pay all our bills and have money left over, my new therapist, snow tires.