Progress Report

Hello, Everyone.  It has been a glorious spring, with bluebonnets and other wildflowers blooming and the birds singing from every tree.

Cody and I have also had fun competing in a couple of herding events.  First at the Texas Herding Association's trials at Destiny Farm outside Bertram,

Then at Jimmy and Janet Walker's awesome place in Aquilla for a Texas Sheep Dog Association-sponsored Open Ranch Trial.

Thanks to fellow photographer John Braseaux who took the following images of Cody, waiting his turn and on the course.

But that's only a small part of what has been going on in our lives this year.  I’ve been getting lots of questions about progress…on our barn, on the sale of our home in Volente, on our “final” move to the farm, etc.  So, here you go.  

The barn is progressing nicely.  The exterior is complete, as are the interior walls except for finishes.  And, the “tornado shelter” safe room inside (which also doubles as a bathroom) is ready for use.  We have almost taken shelter there a couple of times, but fortunately the dangerous clouds have passed us by.  The septic tank and drainfield are complete except for soil and seeds to cover the bare spots.   Right now, we are waiting for the electrician to come and install lighting and other wiring so we can move forward with insulation, interior plumbing and finishes.  As you can se, the fact that it isn't finished hasn't stopped John from using his new man cave to work on projects.  

Our home in Volente went on the market Thursday at 6 p.m. and we hope to have offers to consider in a few days.  Here are a couple of images the photographer made for the listing.  We built this home in 1996, and hope it sells to someone who will love it as much as we have.

Our realtor wanted us to leave some furniture and art work in place until after  the sale, so we will be doing a final pack and move as soon as the barn is ready…for all the stuff we will need or just couldn’t part with. (There’s a lot of that!). Our tentative date to have the movers come is mid-June, but that could be extended if the barn is not completed on schedule or the house sale hasn’t closed.  

Another project that had to be completed was a stairway to access our upstairs loft room in our home here at the farm.  Until yesterday, access was a ladder which visiting kids just loved.  They went up and down like little monkeys, and used the upstairs for a private playroom.  Visiting adults, not so much.  Climbing the stairs to our "third bedroom" was a challenge that few enjoyed enough to do it twice.  That room is becoming my office, and yesterday my cousin, John Jones, a master welder, delivered and installed the stairway so I can reach it!  The downstairs furniture hill be rearranged once we move things from Volente, but my desk and computer are in place upstairs and life is good! 

We will keep you posted as we have new adventures, and hope you will all visit us here soon.