When life hands you lemons... or in our case, a cheap horse that needs love... You make the most of it. And that we did! We've been saving our money to begin building our own little homestead someday, but ya never really know what the Universe has in store for you. We're excited to announce that we are now the happy stewards of...
GAH!!!!! HAHAHA- JUST KIDDING!!-- APRIL FOOLS!!! (is today) We didn't buy a horse! HAHAHA. No. (And maybe you didn't fall for it😉)
This blog is "The BIG news" I meant to share about 6 months ago! 😛 Oh my gosh, I finally wrapped up this story with the good pics. And it came full circle. What I'm sharing here happened for us exactly a year ago today! No joke. Read on:
(Not a reader? Here's the photo album- Clicky Clicky)
Before Joel and I traded-in city life to live in other places in an RV, we were renting half a duplex with a yard in Minneapolis, MN. Our landlords were super cool. They let Joel build a side-by-side compost bin in the front yard, and sizeable raised gardens behind the garage. We loved it so much!! I'd never seen soil come into being before, which was truly fascinating. And there were often mushrooms around. It's so delightful to watch a garden grow. We had fresh herbs throughout the summer and a bountiful harvest in the Fall. Joel was exceptionally happy building and growing. It really feeds his soul.
After being mobile for 2 years, he was really missing having a yard. And we still say the same thing to people who ask us if we are going to have children: "Yeah, we want KIDS one day, but we're talking about baby goats...😋 -HEHE.
(And a dog. And chickens!")
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| Sedona Pines Resort |
The first 3 years we've been gone had us parked mostly in Sedona at a vacation resort. It was like... "pinch me- This is wonderful. We had access to a pool, hot tubs, ping pong! showers, free laundry and more. We also were parked close to our neighbors. And we weren't far off the main drag into town, so it was pretty noisy. Some days I strongly yearned for a break from the sound of the highway, and space to ourselves, and we would go dry camping for a short spell every month, out on our favorite forest service road.
the SHOCKER
In the Summer of 2020, THE DAY BEFORE we left on our annual road trip up north, ALL the RV owners received a letter telling them to vacate the property, with no info about when or IF we might be able to return.
This was a slap in the face! Was it even legal?? Each owner has a contract saying we're allowed to be here, so... what the heck was this?!
We found out there was new ownership and all kinds of big changes sweeping through. A small collective of other RVers told us they would look into things while we were away, and find out what our rights are in the situation. So we packed up our tent, parked our RV at the storage facility, and off we went to enjoy camping and time with our family.
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| Probably Colorado |
We returned to Sedona in September feeling refreshed, happy, and certainly curious about any latest news concerning our living situation. We found out that nobody was allowed back at the resort yet. So the first couple weeks after pulling home out of storage, we were dry camping. It was great! The weather was still hot, but nights had turned cold. You're only allowed 14 days at a time in an area tho, so we had to mosey on to someplace new. Turns out the forest roads were (unusually) closed in the next town over, so that was not an option. However, it was starting to get cold out, especially at night, and we would want to be plugged-in for sufficient heat through the winter anyway. We were slowly coming to terms with the idea of paying rent again for a while, so... it was time to shop the local RV resorts.
After an entire day of calling and driving around, we discovered the majority of them were already full! However, not long before the sun went down, we finally found one that said they'd take us in.
A couple days before Halloween, we pulled into Sedona View RV resort, perched up on a hill, just outside Cottonwood, AZ. So note that if you stay here, you will NOT be in Sedona! but instead have a view of (some of) it... along with Mt. Humphreys all the way up in Flagstaff 😮(wowy) and a goodly hunk of the Verde Valley, which is very beautiful. We were placed in a dynamite spot and told we'd probably have no neighbors parked next door (bonus!), at least for a couple months time. Our view was truly spectacular. Especially in March, when a lot of rainy weather rolls through, and the clouds come and go, along with an occasional rainbow... we spent a lot of time with cups of coffee and tea in hand, just staring out the window, watching the world go by.
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| Sedona View RV resort, late February |
Once Winter began to fade away, I found myself looking out across the valley, feeling pangs of wanting to leave the resort for some kind of new adventure. "Where are we going from here?!" I would wonder.
The bridge... One afternoon in March I got a text from Joel's cousin who lives in town, asking if we'd be interested in possibly dog-sitting for her coworker. I said sure. She asked how much we charge. And i had no idea. We'd sat for a couple other ppl before, one of them for free, and the other gave us several hundred dollars unexpectedly (it was never discussed!). I had no idea what a going-rate around here was. So i got the idea to pop on Craigslist real quick and see if i could find what other ppl were charging. And this is what i came across right away in my search:
Seeking part-time caretaker/pet-sitter(s) for micro-farm in exchange for full time RV pad- water and sewer included as well as a healthy share of farm fresh eggs, vegetables and herbs... (full posting in the photo album.)
I wasn't even halfway through reading and I felt these zings of energy. By the end, i did briefly think "This sounds too good to be true." And there are SO MANY ppl around here that boondock on forest roads, that "I'm sure a GAZILLION other people are going to want this gig!" And then I figured... "this is probably queued up especially for us." (HeeHeeHee.) So i called the number.
On the last day of March 2021, we left work early to go meet the land owners, husband and wife, and see what this opportunity was all about. After 20 minutes together, I thought it seemed we were hitting it off pretty well. The duties around the place sounded like something we could handle and enjoy. Then they showed us where we would park our RV- at the end of their giant, 5 door garage/shed. On the other side of us was this strange, unfinished wall of tiered, compact dirt. Our rig would have us sitting UP quite a bit tho, so we'd not be staring out directly at the wall. Instead, we'd have the added beauty (sarcasm here) of a rusty truck bed sitting next to a scrap-pile of rotting wood in the neighbor's back yard.
Hmmm.
Our view from here would be... something like the OPPOSITE of what we currently have. I found myself stuck between feelings of laughing and crying about it, LOL.
One thing about the spot tho- we could do whatever we wanted back there. They pretty much gave us free reign to build or change things around however we wanted them. I could see the wheels in Joel's head beginning to spin like mad. HeHeHe!
And one of the last things we brought up with them was our trip up north every Summer. It sounded like it wouldn't be an issue this year, given the plans they already had set. And we could probably work things out in the future if needed.
Overall, they wanted someone long term. And were clear that they'd like us to stay for at least a year, if not 2 or more... "You can stay here till ya die, if ya want to!" Holly said 😆 HAHA. Well, she's serious! There's so much to do around here- she's always going to need some help. And it takes a while to learn the ropes- an entire year, really, as the seasons cycle through and things come full circle. So we told her we'd commit to at least a year. However, time does fly! So it was pretty likely we could stay for 2. It would allow us to keep saving money to put toward creating our own little homestead! This seemed like a dream come true for us at this time.
They'd had many inquiries for the position but hadn't asked anyone to take it. Until today- before we parted ways, they asked if we wanted it! With a move-in date about a week out. We agreed to take a couple days to think it over and be sure. As we went to get into the truck and drive away, I realized if I stood in just the right place, there was a line of sight between the hills of land surrounding us, and I could see the campground we were currently staying at! Miles away, but there it was visible, perched up on the hill, straight across from where we were standing. I recalled all the times I had stared out our living room window, wondering where we would end up from there. Was this IT!?!
Before we even got home, we both agreed we wanted to do it. We didn't even wait- called Holly up, worked out some details, and they actually had us move in the following morning!! (Oh my goodness, it all happened so fast!!!)
We're IN! Her hubby still had to clear out the area from the last person who was living there, so they had us park alongside their house for a few days. But the clearing-out happened swiftly, and before we knew it, we had our home backed into it's new spot, at the end of their HUGE pole-shed. They gave Joel the code to access it, along with permission to use any of the equipment and tools inside: all kinds of woodworking and metalworking stuff, a bobcat, backhoe, dump truck, on and on... Joel's jaw just about dropped! (the first time i stepped inside, my jaw about dropped too. It's just so big!)
He took them up on their invite ASAP! Within a week he was creating and building us a shade structure for behind the RV. A labor of love. He was so happy building that thing! Holly's hubby had to help us drill the holes for the posts, which he was happy to do. He's helped us with all kinds of stuff. We didn't even have to buy the pavers for the patio floor- Holly gifted us a load that had been laying around for a long time and she had no plans for them. In the Fall we finally took a stab at some landscaping, putting in purple flowering sage, tall grasses, something with orange flowers, and a vine to grow up the side of the pergola. It looks like everything we planted survived the winter! And I'm eager to see how big they grow this year, hopefully filling in a goodly amount of space throughout this goofy dirt wall! (We can get a good glimpse of the fantastical sunsets tho.) Joel constructed some raised garden beds for us too. I planted lettuce and stuff in them, just like Holly said, although nothing has come up. At least that i know about. Holly did recently mention that it's not uncommon for lizards or mice to munch down a seedling before we'd even see it! Joel suspects our soil mixture isn't actually the best, so we're gonna switch that up and try again.
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| Diggin' holes for the pergola project |
Holly is super laid-back, we get along great, and she's also into rocks- a geology nerd, actually! She also knows a lot about plants. We're learning a lot from her about growing food, and pruning trees. Most Saturday mornings after we moved in, we'd meet with her in the very early morning to do chores together around the yard, learning how to tend her gardens and multiple flower beds, trim the trees and hedges, mow the backyard that is actually grass! (not so common in these here parts), maintain the greenhouse, clean the chicken coop, and the pool...
And help her EAT everything she's growing. She can't even keep up with it! (Her hubby is too busy with his own stuff.) She just LOVES to grow things. I was eating spinach daily and still a bunch of it became compost. We had zucchinis coming out our ears (as is typical) and we were trying to give them away every day for over a month. Joel fell in love with her two plum trees. I find myself partial to the apricots- both of which we could pluck off the branches and eat while floating around in the pool. HA! now THAT really made this place feel like a mini-paradise to me. Along with all the fresh herbs, eggs, not to mention the beautiful flowers everywhere... it's such a mini-paradise 😍 in this dry, desert land.
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| Fruit trees around the pool |
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| Hen on a back |
The chickens are hoot... such curious and sometimes cuddle-y companions! Joel and I are obsessed with them. They like to jump up on him when he feeds them in the mornings. We have 2 different breeds and one is very tolerant of being picked up and pet (the other ones not so much!). With time, they come to like it, and now they run right up to us! And chicken cuddles ROCK. Their soft, pretty feathers, and the little cooing sounds they sometimes make once they settle down in our arms... Aaaaah, it's so sweet. And then there's all the other funny noises they make... they are so talkative!
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| my little buddy |
In the evening an early frost was forecast to hit us, the first week in November, we found ourselves suddenly having to integrate a flock of little ones in with the older hens. What a crash-course-crazy experience that was! Although it went well in the end, and we learned a lot. That same day we were also scrambling around (after work) to harvest the last of the garden crops: honeydew, tomatoes, beans and watermelon. (WATERMELON!! In the desert 😀?! More paradise. It was her first attempt to grow them, they grew absolutely delicious. A few got just HUGE. Holly definitely has a green thumb.)
The other critters around here include an adorable white lab named Arthur, and 3 cats. Holly and her husband have taken off traveling a few times since we've been here, usually for 2ish months. They always take the dog, and sometimes a cat.
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| Cat on a back |
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| End of March- asparagus |
Although we just recently learned that this Summer (2022), they will be gone traveling for the entire season and into the Fall. That's a lot longer than we anticipated!! And it means we'd have to forgo our Summer trip to MN and WI. We had the option of leaving, but we've chosen to stay another year. It's a bummer we will miss our family and the events we return for, but with much appreciation, we look forward to continuing our stewardship to this land, enjoying the animals, saving more money, and then we'll launch out of here to either travel more or perhaps already be building on our own land to call HOME.
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| HOME sweet HOME |
ALL THAT being said, let us know if you or someone you know may be interested in taking over our spot one day! It's a fantastic gig, and so perfect for us right now, but we won't be here forever 😁
We hope everyone is doing well! Take care and
TALLY HO ~
~Angela and Joel
P.S. We never did dog-sit for Veronika's co-worker. It was all just a ploy to lead us to the ad!
P.P.S. I don't blog as often these days, I'm not much on FB, but i'm pretty active on my instagram 😉
