I hiked up the hill behind our house today and got some photos from up there of the house and neighborhood. I combined two photos together to get this panoramic rear view showing the patio and some of the RV pull through. If you click on the image to enlarge, you can make out the sewer, electrical and city water hookups near the right end of the patio.
We have lots of critters at our new house. There are lots of birdies, jackrabbits, bunnies and some chipmunks. Today I watched a gray and orange bird on the bush outside of my front window.The Mama took a picture of us. I want to play with the birdies but I can’t get out of the window. Click on the picture to make us big.
Ed. note – the bird is a female cardinal.
Just because the house is complete, doesn’t mean we’re done. We need utensils, tools, furniture and improvements to the house and yard. This is our short list of things that we want to do to the new house. Some are essential and some are optional but we want to do all of them.
Courtyard – We spoke to our contractor last week and gave him specifications for a wall and gateway to enclose part of the house to form a courtyard in front and a dog run on the side of the house. We will have an estimate to build the wall this week and will ask that the work be scheduled right away.
Landscaping – After the wall is up and the gate has been installed, we are going to start landscaping the yard. This will take some time to accomplish but we are planning to put gravel down on the RV drive through and in the courtyard. Later, we will bring some of Verna’s cactus from California.
Shutters – Tomorrow we will order shutters for several of the windows. I contacted a vendor in the Phoenix area that offers a southwestern shutter style that will match our Santa Fe style and will look very nice inside and outside of the house. The wood and stain will match the wood of the cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms.
Furniture – We promised ourselves that most, if not all of the furniture in the new house, would be new. This week, our first priority will be to get a dining room set. Gradually, we will be acquiring furnishings and decorations that are appropriate to the old west and Santa Fe style that we love.
Security Door – We probably don’t need this door for security as much as we want the southwestern style and the ability to open the front door and let the air in and keep the bugs out. I contacted a vendor that is willing to travel to Wickenburg to meet with us and to measure the door. He will also install the door when it is complete. The style we select will match the color and style of Verna’s sconces. 
Screens – While driving through the neighborhood, I noticed a screenmobile parked about two blocks away. I took down the number and called our neighbor who installs custom screens. He came out to our property and immediately furnished a quote for screens for all the windows.It’s just a matter of time until we are completely out of the “camping” mode and have a fully furnished home with landscaping and improvements in place. We plan to aggressively tackle this list (and other items as necessary) as rapidly as we can.
The Arizona Cardinals football team is out of the playoffs, but this Arizona Cardinal (the real thing) paid us a visit this afternoon. He was perched in a mesquite tree immediately behind our drive-through RV pad.
We have never seen cardinals at our old California home, so this sighting was especially nice for us. What a colorful, handsome fellow! Click on the image to enlarge.
The town established a no-leash dog park near the airport. Verna and I took Bear and Cabela to the park to let them run today. I took a series of images and stitched them into this panoramic view of the facility. Click on the image to enlarge.
I throw out a mixture of Critter Crunch and wild bird food across the RV space to attract little critters like these quail. I count 15 of them in the photo but that’s not as many as we have seen in the yard at the same time. Click on the image to enlarge.
