1. Snow day. We hardly ever get these at CSU, so to have TWO in one season is just so weird. We got a foot of fluffy, wet snow, (which is almost all gone already). Denver was under a blizzard warning and at one point both I-25 and the airport were closed. This was the worst part of the snow day: Eric was supposed to be flying home from Chicago, and instead got stuck there for an extra two days — but he comes home today!

Ringo loves snow days.

2. Root Beer. I actually bought this for Eric, but I drank all of it while he was gone. It was so good.

3. Found money. On our walk, on a day when I’d taken myself to breakfast and this just covered it.

4. Fresh flowers. It’s tulip and daffodil season now.  I really like having some in our new bathroom, (which I’m still loving).

5. Walking with the dogs. With Eric gone, I’ve been in charge of all the dog walking. Since he left on Saturday morning, I’ve walked almost 40 miles. It feels so good to be out there again. We saw an owl one morning, and the same day there were seven tennis balls at the little dog park.

Bonus joy: A “Superior” ranking on my annual evaluation for the sixth year in a row, being healthy and strong enough to be able to walk the dogs AND shovel all the snow, coconut oil chocolate covered almonds from Trader Joe’s, good TV, a good book, sleeping in the middle of the bed, Wild Writing.

1. Morning walks. I’ve gone on a few of these this week, and yesterday I went on my first full one. My foot is on the mend and I’m getting my strength back, so I can do this now. The morning walk is so much different than the afternoon one — quiet, you don’t see too many people (if any) but you see lots of animals (yesterday, we saw a huge owl), and for most of the year you get to see the sun rise. I hadn’t even realized how much I missed it.

2. Meals with friends, which include great conversation. I know some really amazing women, and am so lucky to get to spend time with them.

3. Signs of spring. I saw snowdrops the other morning, and there are crocuses all over.

4. Grocery shopping. I know that probably makes me weird, since so many people seem to hate it. I just love going to the store, picking out what I want to eat, ingredients for what I’m going to cook, all the choices and the means to buy the good stuff.

5. Little dog park. It reminds me of going with Obi and Dexter, how much Dexter loved it and how Obi only wanted to make one lap around and then leave — exactly the way Ringo and Sam feel about the dog park. What I might love most is when we go early in the morning, we are the only ones there, have it all to ourselves.

Bonus joy: my new car — that Eric is going to wash it for me in exchange for getting to drive it to work today, our new bathroom (yes, still!), clean water, yoga, my physical therapist, sweet potatoes and butternut squash, almonds covered in dark chocolate with coconut oil, the cute way Ringo talks and howls, how hard that makes us laugh, Wild Writing, fresh flowers in the bathroom, a warm shower, knowing that what you teach and write matters to at least a few people, getting excited about our trip to the beach this summer, a friend who will live in our house and take care of our garden while we are gone, the way the dogs play together in the backyard every morning after their walk, emails from my mom, texts from my brother, clementines.