Yesterday was a wonder! It started out so badly, with terrible dreams the night before of horror and torture, but I went back to sleep and woke up refreshed.

Since there would be no workmen up at our new home in the foothills, Mike and I took a bottle of champagne and a picnic lunch up to just enjoy the results of so much expense and stress over the past ten months.

When I finally had a chance to relax completely in the midst of the drywall pieces and dust, it hit me:

We are actually going to be living up here very soon! I am going to wake up everyday to look out on this amazing view, enjoying each change in the clouds and weather!

It started to  snow a bit as we left. I have learned through a number of backpacking trips how quickly the weather can change at high altitudes.  And sure enough we went from this lovely, snow-capped scene to a mini-snow storm in just a few minutes!

To give full credit where credit is due, Mike was the one with the vision and faith to pull off this amazing retirement coup. He noticed the Spanish Peaks along Highway 160 back in 2005 when we took our first road trip together to Durango. He remembers thinking even back then how nice it would be to live somewhere down here eventually.

The man has so much vision and faith in his own abilities to manifest his dream! If it had been left up to me, I would probably still be looking at the neighbor’s house across the street in Fort Collins.

Proving once again: