Our Mountain Adventure Begins

 August 21st was our 1st night in the mountains. We were living with a house full of boxes and rumbling tummies so I scrounged up a light supper. We wanted to commemorate the occasion with a toast, but were unable to locate the box with the wine opener so DH improvised and wine was decanted

And we had our first meal out on the deck

DH was up early the next morning (some things never change 😉) fixing breakfast

And once again, we convened out on the deck

And consequentially, we've eaten every single meal out on that deck since. Only when the weather chases us indoors, will we gather around the dining room table which actually has the same view.

Yes, thank you Jesus for bringing us here!

I will say that I've never worked this hard or been this tired. I'm chalking it up to a combination of general moving challenges, age, a lot of physical labor, and the change in altitude. We're 1600' higher here. The first few days we worked on putting up a temporary fence for the horses.

My job was to clear a path for the fence which included lots of sawing with a pretty view

Then we worked another 4 days picking up and rolling up old abandoned fence across the property so the horses wouldn't get cut and tangled up in it.

We did spend one afternoon exploring and picking our way across an old road in the UTV that is really no longer traveled. It took us over an hour to travel 9 miles.

Then I helped DH put up a temporary electric fence around the headquarters to keep the horses out of that area. 

The skid steer has already proven to be invaluable

And the horses are now much happier now that they are no longer cooped up in a tiny paddock.

Any and every other spare moment was spent taking apart these barbed wire cages the previous owners had put up around trees they had planted. They had put them up to keep their horses from eating the trees. There were 10 cages protecting 10 little trees, but we put up a fence surrounding the headquarters so we removed the individual fences in order to clean things up.

Anyone interested in a barbed wire wreath made by old, tired hands?

My hands were SO sore! And then we had to pull all of the posts and they were cemented in.

The previous owners are the dearest couple and they offered to pay for a couple of dumpsters to be delivered so we could clean up things they had left behind. So that's an ongoing project as we clean out the barn and shops.

They left us 2 chickens and a very sweet rooster 

And our chickens and guineas got along with them instantly. There are two old abandoned chicken coops that DH crushed and put in the dumpster. We are currently using a coop that was built into one of the horse stalls but a new coop and chicken yard is on the list.

We've also inherited a herd of hummingbirds that may eat us out of house and home, but we love these incredible little birds and will enjoy them until they migrate south in a few short weeks.

So, needless to say, the house, that is really nice and clean, hasn't been getting much attention. Boxes are only getting unpacked as we hunt for things we need as we need them because we are working outside all the time. 

I've managed to cobble together kitchen necessities and am cooking simple meals that will give us leftovers. 

This Bacon Green Chile Quiche was delicious. I made 2 because the previous owners have been making trips back to pick up some outdoor equipment and it's always good to be prepared.

I also made a batch of Rice Krispie Treats and when I turned around for literally 2 seconds, they were gone. I laughed and said, "Tell me you didn't bring those out onto the deck", as I walked outside. DH's answer, "They'll cool off faster out here". 😄

We are working hard, but we begin and end each day out on the deck and we're so tired when we come inside, it's all we can do to take showers and fall into bed. There is the most amazing bathtub here, but I'm afraid to use it because I'm pretty sure I'll fall asleep and DH will be asleep so he won't hear if I go under. 😂

So we're excited, exhausted and  extremely grateful. We've had mountain showers many afternoons and the first morning we woke up to a rainbow as we lingered over a 2nd cup of coffee and tea. I'd say that's a pretty darn good way to begin this journey.

Leaving the LE

 Whew! I honestly have not been on the computer since my last post. I've been itching to get back to this space to catch up so I'm backtracking here a bit and I apologize in advance if I get a little long-winded. I'll try and just touch briefly on the things I want to record here because I want to catch up.

To add to the move, my Amazon account was hacked so I haven't had access to anything, including photos. Someone ordered a farmhouse cabinet, sticky notes, and a huge reptile enclosure. 😒

As for packing. 

SO. MUCH. STUFF. We were at this ranch for almost 20 years so I suppose some accumulation is to be expected, but it always looks like more when you have to box it up and move it. 

Some of you would cringe if I shared some of the things I took to the dump. We burned it before we left and I donated a lot to the Salvation Army and various thrift shops in town, but I made myself be kind of ruthless and that's hard when you get sentimental about some things. It was still and quiet as we stood at the edge at 3 a.m. that morning.

We have made this old, falling down ranch house, home and some things that are perfect here, won't really fit in our new home. I love how this old cabinet from Walmart fit into our kitchen, but it's seen better days so it's off  to the dump. 

We never close curtains here, but I do have them on the windows. However, the new house has beautiful wooden windows with wood blinds and 10' ceilings so the curtains here won't fit. Out they go.

Our girl came for a few days (she was a huge help) to take the beautiful antique piano we bought for her 18 years ago...and a horse. I wondered what else I could convince her to take. 😉 She spent many a hour combing witch's knots out of manes and tails out at the barn through the years - one last time

Before she loaded up as one last desert sunrise made it's appearance

And the books! There is a bookcase in every room. Plus I still have 2 or 3 very large bins of books from when the kids were small. I have sent them a few here and there since the grandbabies have arrived, but we pretty much have a collection of books that would qualify as a small library. I am respecting DH's decision to keep ALL the books, but reserved the right to cull  my high school and college yearbooks. And honestly, if he was packing them, he would realize just how many we have! 

He came in one day and said he had started going through his tack room and he tossed 20 wore out saddle pads. He gets Brownie points and a gold star. 😂 

My kitchen here is super small. I only have things that have proven to be workhorses so I'll take almost everything to the new house. I love this rack that DH made for my cast iron and I was concerned there wouldn't be a place for it, but there's a perfect spot in the new house.

So I've been in tossing and packing mode for the last few weeks. I'd feel much better about it all if my knee wasn't compromised, but I'm managing.

DH has a tack room, barn, shop, and shed to clean out while still running the ranch, so I tackled the house. 

When we've moved in the past, we've always just moved everything ourselves, in horse trailers, but now, at 60, this frugal girl is splurging and hiring movers. We still moved a lot on our own, but I thought having movers to move the furniture and freezers would be so helpful. OYE! That was a fiasco, but I'll just leave it at that for the sake of my mental health. 😬 

There was lots they didn't move so we made multiple trips Beverly Hillbillies Style. 😂

We probably made 10 trips ourselves with the flatbed and horse trailer. 

And yes, we are moving to the mountains, but we still moved a rock. DH dug this rock out 25 years ago when we lived in Texas. It's an old metate and we were not leaving it behind.

I talked about the duffel bags on Amazon for quilts and I am very pleased with how they worked out. I can fit 5 big (bed-sized) quilts in each bag. There are A LOT of quilts in this house. A reader had asked if they were mouse proof and I'd have to say no. I don't think I would use these for long-term storage. They aren't heavy duty, but they're perfect for a short-term move.

We weren't sure about how to move the guineas and chickens, but once again, DH proved his brilliant ingenuity. He built a heavy duty cage with 2 compartments (1 for guineas and 1 for chickens) that fit perfectly into the horse trailer. We have 1 baby guinea and he is in the little live trap at DH's feet.

They free range, but I had been feeding them in the chicken yard for a few weeks in order to corral them easier when the time came to move them. So the night before, I shut them in and DH and I went out about 3:30 that morning and snatched them from their roosts by their feet and put them in the enclosure. It worked like a charm with only a few squawks and a bit of wing flapping. We managed to slide the cage out into the barn at the new property and we fed and watered them in there for a week. They didn't like being cooped up, but they were fine and I even got a few eggs.

I had 1 last day at the sale barn, After 10 years, it will be strange to not be spending Mondays there. I made good memories, lasting friendships and left with a parting gift of COVID.  It was such a great place to work and Cindy, my boss, is the poster child for the best boss ever. She's kind, thoughtful, and supportive and just a lovely lady. I enjoyed being a part of the team.

 It's funny, the things you think about. We've been very happy in this old, leaky, falling down ranch house. It needs a lot of work, but the new family is already moved in. I hope they'll be happy here too. We've worked hard to keep a nice yard here. A huge challenge in this desert, but we've babied some new little trees and I hope the new occupants will put forth the effort so that they will continue to thrive.

Skeet has of course been by our side for all of this

He kept a watchful eye as we loaded and cleaned

We tried to keep things somewhat routine, but this is the only place he's ever known

But Skeet, being Skeet, is always up for new adventures

And as we close the door on this era and bid it a fond farewell

We are excited to see what lies ahead