Morning routine

Sunrise was pretty this morning off our deck. It's been a bit more humid, which makes us wonder when monsoons will start again. Early July is common and coming soon!

Frankie and Dingus are my morning companions.

Of course, they're really just making sure I don't forget their breakfast.

They're still around to greet me after my morning walk. (Yes, Frankie is a bit cross-eyed. It's cute, right?!)

So is this! Sometimes they only tolerate each other; sometimes they play and chase each other around. I think they act like brothers.

Awhile later I had the door open for the fresh air, and we had a visitor. 

He was making a very loud clacking sound. Very exciting for the cats! 

He's a roadrunner, of course, and has been a frequent visitor, but today he stayed quite awhile. I love seeing wildlife up close.

Both cats avoid the swamp cooler when it's running, but when we turn it off in the morning, they suddenly get very curious. 

Finally, it's naptime for Dingus, within arms reach of Mom's chair.

The Wild West

I'm waiting for Sam to get home from work and thought I could give you an update on a post from a few days ago.

On my morning walk, half a mile east of us there's a windmill owned by the Double X Ranch. That's the outfit that used to own our property and they are actually a working ranch. Unlike our Pumpkin Patch Ranch, which we just call a ranch because we love the idea of having one!

Across from the windmill is a road and I went exploring the other morning.

I found several tanks for watering cattle and wondered about the hose leading to the big one. Sam explained later that a pipe goes from the windmill to fill the tanks and that's why they're right across the road! (I call this one of my "blonde" moments.)

My adventure into the Old West inspired me to resume my brisk walk and slow jog home. On a side note, it has been an adjustment exercising at this higher elevation. We were at 2,600 feet in Tucson and the PPR is at 4,100 feet. I'm still getting used to it.

Our tractor comes home

Several years ago, my Uncle Henry gave us a tractor for the ranch. Since we weren't living here yet, we didn't want to leave it out here unattended, so good friends loaned us a corner of their horse corral.

Yesterday, the tractor came home!

With a little coaching from Sam, I took it for a spin. Okay, a lot of coaching. He basically had to tell me every single step to take to get it running.

Driving it was a little emotional for me because at haying time every year, it was my Aunt Lela's job to run the tractor. And she passed away two years ago.

After being out in the weather for years, it was pretty dirty, so Sam got out the pressure washer.

Much better. It's a 1967 Massey Ferguson 135, made the same year Sam was born.

There's a few things Sam wants to fix, but we're mighty happy and blessed to have such a good workhorse on the ranch.

My morning walk

I'm back on track! I usually exercise and walk three times a week, but moving and settling into the little house threw me off . . . for weeks!

It was a beautiful morning. I always feel better when I get out regularly. I even do a bit of jogging to get my heart rate up.

I often see interesting stuff. Yucca flowers come out in May, so this one is gone.

But down the road was a late bloomer - spectacular.

Millipedes only come out after the summer rains. We've seen one or two, but when the rains start in earnest, there will be many more. 

Creosote blooms are fun and smell different-good when it rains.

Back on the home stretch.

That's the PPR on the horizon (left). The slash of dirt in the foreground is where the road grader makes a runoff for the rainwater.

Then I have to say goodbye to Sam as he leaves for work. 

After setting up driving music on his phone, of course!

A Day in Town

I drove into town with Sam this morning, dropped him off at work, then did errands such as laundry and shopping for supplies.

But first I picked up my Mom and we went for a drive. We found a country road and she got a kick out of the big bull (he was huge!), the miniature and regular horses, goats, sheep, and the green fields with nice trees.

Next, we drove a little ways up Mt. Lemmon and pulled off to look at the views.

Mountains in all directions, the city below, and the breeze a little cooler than in town. Very refreshing! It was a great outing.

Bugs and blossoms

On Friday and Saturday we hung around the ranch enjoying two very rainy days. Skies were overcast, the air was cool, and much-needed rain came down.

As the weather cleared up Saturday afternoon, the moisture brought a few changes. This little guy (over 1" long) appeared on our deck and caused a bit of consternation until we learned online that he's a juvenile Giant Mesquite Bug and not poisonous or harmful. I'll still keep my distance!

Overnight, our Texas Ranger bush went from 99% leaves and maybe 5 tired ol' blossoms . . . to this!

And when we came home from town this afternoon, the small bush is an explosion of blooms! We've enjoyed these colorful plants in Tucson for years, but I had no idea how quickly they react to monsoons.

I hope you had rain, too, if you needed it!

Celebrations and showers

Earlier this week we had a birthday in the family (me!) and the other family member (Sam, not the cats) brought me flowers! The mix of bright colors is stunning; I love them.

We had a hilarious taste of small town life when we made plans to go out for dinner. Our first choice was BBQ in a town 45 minutes away, until Sam checked the website which announced they were closed due to a fire. I called our second choice in another town and was told they usually close early on weeknights when it's slow, but we could check back later.

We ended up in our local town, Benson, and had an incredible dinner at Mi Casa, which has been recommended several times but is only open on weekdays. A perfect celebration!

The chip decoration on my plate was a coyote and on Sam's, saguaros.

Afterwards, we walked around the railway park on a balmy evening. Nice and peaceful until this guy came by, but we love trains.

A few days later and monsoons are drifting in.

One of our favorite times of year!

Adios to the Miata

We spent the weekend with friends Jack and Dottie. They came in from out of town to buy my Miata and drive it home!

They were our first overnight guests since we moved here, and our new little house only has one bedroom, so our bedroom became the guest room.

For our accommodations, we could have put a foam mattress on the floor of the living room or on the deck, but Sam wanted to put up our 10 ft. by 12 ft. tent. It's been several years since we used it for camping and it was fun! Sleeping in the fresh air, with all the conveniences right next door.

I was having a good time with our guests and didn't take any photos of the tent. But I did memorialize my goodbyes to our fun little red sports car.

Today was spent cleaning up the house and taking down the tent. Once again, I had expert help from Dingus Magee. 

Hope you all have a good week!

Hurray for Improvements and Rewards!

We have our first overnight guests coming this weekend, an event that always motivates me to clean! I started with the cluttered deck and yard.

Our wheelbarrow worked great to transport boxes and big things to the storage trailer and well house over 100 feet away and up a slight slope.

In the interest of full disclosure, here's what it looked like yesterday morning.

And here's what it looks like tonight. It was worth all the hard work in 100+ degree heat.

The yard doesn't look too bad either.

Meanwhile, the cats were a big help.

But when Sam came home from work, he offered to fix dinner, which I loved.

Speaking of Sam, his prediction of rain was spot on! This was the view out our kitchen window this afternoon.

Have a good weekend, everyone!

Early morning walk

I woke up at 6:15 this morning (normal for a day off, but late if this were a work day) and went for a walk around the perimeter of the ranch. Lucky you, I have photos!

Summer is our dormant (as in, hide from the heat) season, but there's still some beauty. This is probably a prickly pear cactus and I like the color of the spines.

Our native yucca is probably the most dominant plant on the PPR and also the largest, with the exception of the trees.

I also found a native agave that's exactly like the one in our friends' yard from my post a few days ago. I love the shapes and shadows.

From the southeast corner of our property I could see our new little abode.

Near our northeast corner is a small grove of mesquite trees, one of several on the ranch. The county calls it a "riparian area" and says we have to leave it natural and not build too close, which is fine with us.

A couple of other plants are creosote, which smells pungent after a rain, and the remnants of this ground cover, another bit of color in the dry season.

Finally, I ran across our decorative yard art that's been languishing in the grasses over 10 years. We should bring it down to the yard now. On a ranch, you never know when someone might need a hitching post!