Foothills view on our walk the other morning

1. Being home. I’m still conscious of how nice it is to be home, even two weeks later.

View from our front porch

2. Really great resources for dog training. I haven’t said much about it here, but the week before we were supposed to leave the coast, Sam and Ringo started fighting. It wasn’t super bad and no one got hurt, but it did mean some big changes and reaching out for help. We are now working really hard to get them back on track and they are doing so much better, (a huge issue was lack of sleep — we were on vacation, but were working them harder and letting them sleep less and didn’t realize the impact of that until it was too late). I’ll write more about this later, I’m sure, but for now I’m just glad to have help — human, text, and tool.

3. My dogs. So willing to start over, to forgive/forget my mistakes, to keep teaching me new stuff. So smart and so goofy at the same time.

5. My garden. Not producing as much as it has in years past, but still such a good thing.

Bonus joy: peaches, peach pie, cucumbers, cold clean water, a warm shower, my new car, clean sheets, good books, naps, cooler mornings, long walks with Eric and the dogs, how hard Eric and I laughed at our fortunes at lunch the other day (mine said “There’s a secret romance blooming! Go for it, in spite of your hesitation” and his said “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket”), some good training sessions with the dogs, Ringo singing in the kitchen, Sam sleeping in with me, one more weekend of vacation, lunch with one of my favorites, the surprise storm, a dream in which the foxes came back.

The picture I took because my mom said, “that would make a pretty picture.”

1. Spending time with family. Playing cards, eating together, walking on the beach, talking on the phone and texting.

2. Long walks on the beach. The other day the tide was low enough that we walked all the way from Waldport to Seal Rock. We also walked at Ona Beach and there was a long stretch with no people, other dogs, or birds so the dogs got to go offlead for a longer time than before, and we saw a heron fishing. We also went hiking at Cape Perpetua.

3. My tiny family, and a partner who is there to support and help me. I’m not gonna lie, kind and gentle reader, we’ve been having a rough couple of weeks. I couldn’t do this without Eric.

4. Friends who can step in with help, even though they aren’t “here.”

5. Sleep. Getting enough of it, that particular kind of rest where you can relax and let everything else go is such a comfort, so essential.

Bonus joy: an amazing dinner last night at the kookiest little restaurant, leftovers, marionberry pie, clean cold water, a warm shower, coffee with a friend, beautiful weather, the color of the ocean this afternoon, the sound of the waves, a slight breeze, a long nap, dog crates, smart and compassionate dog trainers, an unexpected butterfly, Eric making me laugh.