From my journal yesterday morning:
“For today we have a darling little kitty cat that we’ve named SPILT…
Nev chose that name because it looks as tho paint was spilled randomly over her white coat!
She’s very sweet
affectionate and cuddly
and wild and playful
and adventurous and a devourer of insects
and a loud, loud purrer!
She slept with us last night and licked me to death with her fine sandpaper tongue,
and she loves the pouches of salmon cat food I brought along.
She wandered onto Juan’s farm yesterday…
he offered her to us
and we’ve fallen in love!
It’s been just under a year since we loved and lost George…
dare we open ourselves up to this again???
How can we not when she cuddles up in the most adorable way?!”
We’re excited to have this sweet kitty on the farm. Look out for her when you come to visit… she’ll purr her way into your hearts too I reckon!

Our friend,Ted, is an adventurous explorer of the countryside about us, mostly on his dirt bike with his buddies.
Today we got to explore alongside him and his wife, Kim, and new friends, Rick and Carrie, all of us in our Jeep's that can handle some good four wheel driving.
He took us on a 75 mile run through arroyos and on top of mesas on roads we'd never known existed...
The cacti
The views
The farms and herds of cattle we passed
left us both jaw dropped and
mind boggled!
My feet were itching to get out and walk
We stopped often just to catch our breaths and some pics of our surroundings
And we came back out into familiar surroundings at Los Frailles, a bay that holds a special place in our hearts where we made fabulous memories on BLUE in 2009...
Yummy lunch was enjoyed in Cabo Pulmo before we headed home to hot showers that would wash away the dust we were covered in
but not the memories we made!
Thanks for a fun run, Ted!

Mum did so well on our drive down the Baja back to Casa Azul and the farm...
we left on the 4th with a fully loaded trailer for the 3 day drive…
it's almost a year since her fall and her last long drive down to recovery here, Gail and Les making that journey with us...
She wasn't in a frame of mind to enjoy the scenery then, but she sure did this time.
She coughed some along the way
I developed a headache as La Paz came into view on Thursday, day three…
On Friday her and I both tested positive for that virus that's been stealing so many peoples plans and more!!
How fortunate we were to be quarantined at Casa Azul with peace and tranquility and gorgeous views and the incessant January winds as our companions...
How fortunate we were that mum sailed thro with minimal symptoms, a miracle for sure...
How fortunate we were that Nev never displayed any symptoms at all!!
I got a lot done in between headaches and bouts of tiredness:
New curtains were shortened and hung
New bedding was put on beds throughout
Furniture was painted
The pantry was emptied and reorganized
Yoga was practiced as my body allowed
And there was lots of sweet time with mum...
all of this as I continued thro “dry” January!!!!
Nev escaped to Cabo for a few days fishing with buddies and I was happy for him.
After 10 days we both tested negative!
It felt as though we were being given our "free to be free" pass and it was SO good to be out and about again...
Mum now happily ensconced back at the house with the blue door, as she fondly calls the farm...
me happy to be out in the community again:
at the local farmers market enjoying the sunshine and yummy offerings,
at a spontaneous lunch with friends John and Deb,
cuddling up close to my honey
enjoying a glass of wine!!!
"Life's too short to dance without wine" is my conclusion!!
Very thankful to be feeling well again,
trusting that plans that needs to be rescheduled have changed to timing that's better for us all…

December has passed by us in a delicious blur of Christmas preparations followed by warm and cozy Christmas celebrations with our family and friends in Tehachapi, and Ladera Ranch and here in Oxnard.
Our house is empty now as everyone left this morning, the only sounds filling the gap of kiddies and laughter are those of the washing machine and dryer.
And I have time to sit quietly, in between loads of laundry and the dismantling of Christmas decorations, wondering, in the best way, what this year will be like.
I am filled with excitement and anticipation and I'm really not sure why.
Our dear brother-in-law, Dave's, passing away unexpectedly just after Christmas is a reminder to both embrace and to let go.
I have been focusing on learning to live with open hands this past 6 months, figuratively and literally;
Open to give and to serve
Open to receive abundant blessings
Open to let go of what brings my soul sadness
Perhaps those lessons from my quiet times in the WORD of GOD are what now fill me with this anticipation of what lies ahead??
We have much planned on our calendar for this year but we all know that can change in a heart beat...
stiil, it's good to dream and hold close in my heart, hope...
These will be my key words this year:
grace and hope...
It's a sweet tradition in our house to watch the last sunset of the year on the beach and then to talk about our dreams and goals for the new year over dinner...
It's a wonderful thing to see family and friends excited about 2022 for so many different reasons...
I see their happy faces floating before me now as I remember our conversations and I smile...
Happy New Year!

As I sit here looking out over the ocean that is being tossed and turned by the wind there is a momentary moment, a lonely moment of sadness that crosses my mind ever so briefly, as Nev left this morning for his 3 day journey home to Oxnard while I remain a few days longer to clean up and pack up Casa Azul and Rancho Sirah before my mum and I join him.
The emotion comes only because we have had the best time here this month, spending so much sweet time with friends and mum and each other...
it's never easy to leave this home.
Much work has been done out at the farm
Much walking and talking and hanging out has been done here at the beach
We have been delighted to see pelicans return to our bay and hear the magnificent call of the fish eagles
to watch another turtle release, my mum tickled pink by it all
We have camped with friends on their new beachfront property
and visited other friends and their new home and dreams
We've been enjoying "date night" on Thursdays exploring new places, restaurants in San Jose and old favorites in Todos Santos
We have had a few guests this month
and enjoyed them much
Patti and Glenn from Ventura, Steve and Tawni from Oregon
We have had time to catch up on fixing up the aftermath of the hurricane and the never ending story of seaside living which we don't complain about!
And boy! have we had some amazing dinners with our friends,
topped off with the three successive nights of feasting over Thanksgiving!!
Night one at the Lodge with a full table of friends
Night two at the farm with a full table of friends
Night three at Gary and Janine's with a full table of friends
Talking about friends:
we have been blessed to meet many new friends/neighbors here at Rancho Leonero as properties have sold this past year and new energy comes to our part of the world,
and we are so sad as dear friends have sold and will be leaving our "family" in the next month or two...
the lonely wind blows today only because it's been an extraordinary month...
thanks to all who have touched our lives so deeply
and brought us so much fun and laughter,
especially you my love xx

Jill and Bruce, our neighbors in Rancho Leonero, recently renovated their bathroom. I was thrilled to be the recipient of their old, hardly used, cast iron bathtub...
but where to put it on the farm?
On the roof top?
In the middle of the avo trees?
The mango orchard??
And then the ordinary looking concrete slab that tops our underground water storage (pila) stared at me, longing to be lovely I think!!
It sure is now
as Jill and Bruce's "trash"
became our treasure
in a gorgeous little outside bathroom
with a saltillo tiled floor
a clear corrugated roof
palo d' arco walls with bling curtain rods
and flax curtains
bright flowers, interesting towels,
a wooden tray over tub filled with spoils
a woven grass lampshade
a truly creative cactus tap
and a darling rustic chair thrown together by Juan who was my builder and my secret keeper as all of this took place without Nev knowing while we were away in South Africa!!
Such a fun addition to the farm 😁
and Nev wasn't even grumpy!! 😂😂