The first little home on the prairie:
This is young Ginger with the new barn, a sun shade and all of the beautiful big bluestem that finally grew in the restored pasture! The pasture had not been fenced yet, so Ginger lived in a big round pen.
The front gate, after the pasture had been fenced. Ginger then had plenty of room to run and roam.
My little orphan Annie, lost to a terrible accident at the trainers. I never took a single good photograph of her, or her beautiful long mane, or photographed her running when she was the most beautiful of horses...
The Good Dog Duke. He came to live at Spiritcreek in April of 1999 and took his leave 16 years later. He is still missed.
Duke in his younger years and the stray dog King, who just appeared, trotting down the driveway one day. I was stupid enough to feed that dog and he was part of the crew for several years. He attacked my beloved cat, Aldebaran, right in front of me, and though I pounded that dog with all my strength, I could not make him leave her alone. He was lucky I did not kill him. I called a dog rescue and they took him away.
The Jake'N'Bake when he was a little puppy. Early morning, everyone's favorite time. Always starts out with a trip to the barn to feed the Supreme Being, Ginger. Duke was patiently waiting while Jake rested. Jake was sick, of course, when I got him from the shelter. It took him a while to become strong and healthy like Duke. It was cold the morning this photo was taken. Duke loved cold weather!
The first week Wally came to the farm. Mutual grooming. Ginger was so happy for another horse!
The chicken coop I built and the beginnings of the entirely enclosed 10 ft by 20 ft pen I constructed for the chickens - all thoroughly chronicled in the first few years of my blog. The three nest boxes were inside, and once it was all built, I decided to take them out and hang them on the back side of the coop. For someone who does not know a freakin' thing about carpentry, I did pretty well, all things considered.
This is the view from the old office window, looking due east and toward the barn. These are the bonded Redtail Hawks that live here and raise their young every year. I was thrilled to see them each morning in the late winter. One would arrive at dawn then the mate would arrive within a few moments. They would greet the sunrise together every morning. I built the new house very close to this tree and was sad to disturb their morning perch.
This is the little mound where the new house would be built. You can just see an orange flag marking the spot. This is the high bank of the creek at this location. The sleeping porch overlooks the creek, about 15 feet below the base of these trees.
The long-held dream taking shape in the physical, at last...
The ugly end to the first little home. It probably deserved a better ending than this. I have photos of the deer coming through to inspect the gaping hole that suddenly appeared along their trail.
The land almost entirely healed from the destruction and the construction. Beautiful.
The abundance of water, photo taken from the driveway. (The two orange things in the office windows are to prevent birds from flying into the windows, killing themselves.)
Tiny little Mattie! At first glance, she was a disappointment to me. I had waited almost two years for a pup and I was expecting a furry fat butterball that weighed about 15 pounds. Instead, she was this tiny little being weighing 6 pounds! When they handed her to me the first time, she looked right in my eyes and we have been best friends since. She is beautiful now.
The northwest view from the front door on November 1. Beautiful!
Same view showing the latest addition: the OK Corral! It prompted my son to say, "You are going to have those horses in the house with you!" Yes. Yes, I would love that!
Driving down the driveway still fills me with gratitude for my little corner of the earth. May the Creator grant me another twenty years and more here in the bend of the nameless little creek.
