Building Our Texas Retreat

The first thing to do while we wait for the ground to dry out from recent rains, is build a retaining wall around the culverts.

All suited up to play in the mud.....

Plumb line and everything.......

First side done.......

Retaining wall done.....Not too shabby! 

Need to extend the culvert 6 feet.....

All dug out, ready for the extension....

Culvert extension in......

Second wall completed.....

Well, it's now March 26th, and the ground in front of our site dried out enough to allow for heavy machinery.  The steel trusses and supports are going up.....finally:

Crane ready........

Steel trusses up........

Taking shape........

Front roof section done........

Welding the steel support beams.......

Roof done.......

Windows, and even a front door!

Exterior insulation and siding.....

Taking shape.....

Back view......

Front flap done.....

Garage, Loft bedroom above.....

Insulation and steel siding in....

Steel roof sheets on......

Lumber for framing apartment...

More lumber..........

Scaffolding for 19 foot ceiling......

Future bathroom.........

Garage door and Texas star......

American and Texas Flags up.......

Here we go! Cabinets and appliances
will fill our garage!

This is only for the kitchen and bathroom!

Studs for the back wall and ceiling.....

Bathroom studded......

Stairs to bedroom loft, 
and catwalk to storage area:

12 X 18 Bedroom......

Electrical, plumbing and shower enclosure in....

Insulation and brace for the moose ready......

We headed back to CT for 5 weeks, then we'll return to the site, and hopefully it will be completed.  Our neighbors will take some photos that I'll post when we return to Texas in mid-June.

Since we're in a rural area, at night, the sky is black and the stars blanket the sky.  I saw a shooting star and a GPS satellite on the same night!  I use the following link to see where the satellites are in the sky.  If you have a clear night try it - just insert your zip code:

http://www.spaceweather.com/flybys/flybys.php?zip=85623

We also were able to see the International Space Station one night.


How's this color for a pick up truck:

Cowgirls Rule!

Stay tuned in June for the rest of the story........


Here are some photos of the sheetrock going up, emailed to us by our neighbors:

And taping:

Cabinets starting to go up:

Painting scheduled for this week , then floors, appliances and bedroom rug go in.  Have been packing all the animal heads and western artifacts for shipping to Texas.  Lots of work to do when we get there on June 12th.

Back to Texas

We traveled east and TZ was back to his old habits:

Zzzzzzzzzzzzz.......

Along the way we crossed the Continental Divide:

As we headed into Quitman, here are some sights of the neighborhood.....

 Livestock and Dairy Auctioneers

Horse Farms

Bison Farms

Oil Drilling Rigs

A 28 mile lake with HUGE Bass

Gorgeous Homes.......(but some shacks, too)

Need I say more ???

We will be here for about five weeks while we wait for the building to be constructed on the property.


We have some great neighbors across the street - and they are RV'ers too.  Our property will be built very much like theirs:

Joanne & Robert

Ours will be different in that we will have a garage, and a rear studio apartment with bedroom loft over the garage.


Our neighbors' granddaughter was visiting this week, and she took their dog out for a spin in the golf cart:

Kalani and Peanut

Hallelujah !!!!!  Tony had his cast removed  :-)  

Shouldn't he be smiling??

Now we have a medical equipment graveyard!

We drove over to Shreveport, LA, for the weekend, where there is a choice of casinos, and yes, Texas Hold 'Em for TZ and 21 for mamma. We spent all day on the tables, and pretty much broke even, but it was fun (not to lose).
Since we recently had a deluge of rain in Texas, our building project is set back a few days........we're anxious to get it started.  Should be by the end of this week.  Will post photos as the work gets started, of course.


We saw a spot near a creek we call....... 'Lover's Lane' for Turtles:

Now we wait for the new building to be constructed.....as soon as it dries out from the recent rains.