My Kingdom for a Garage 

With Lane’s toolboxes residing in what would become our living room, it became clear that one of the major things this property was lacking was a garage. There’s extensive space in the attic, and the house itself is bigger than we really wanted, but everyone needs outside storage for things that are simply too heavy to lift into the attic or that you don’t want lying around the house—ladders, Christmas décor, tools, the hubby’s motorcycle, the kids’ bikes, my horse tack, etc. 

At our previous home, we had an Old Hickory Building that had been my hay barn and tack room. Because you can custom design these sheds in various sizes with windows and doors to your liking, many people who survived the same Fire we did ordered these sheds to store the items they were reacquiring while our homes were rebuilt, and some even lived in them! 

We had gotten one to use as storage for appliances and other items until our house was ready, and later transitioned it into hay and tack storage. Because of this, we were familiar with the quality and value these sheds brought. I was kicking myself for not hiring a trucker to move our shed to our new home, but when we listed that property, we thought we were going to land way up in Oregon and it would have been expensive and risky to move it so far.

Instead, we called the nearest dealer to our new home and asked what deals they had going on. Lucky for us, all previously built on-the-lot models were on sale! We secured one about the same size we used to have for 30 percent off. This one didn’t have any windows, but we happened to have a few windows lying around the property and figured we could put one in down the road to bring in some natural light. In lieu of a garage, Lane now happily calls this shed his man cave, where he has plenty of room for all his tools, motorcycle, and much more.

Transformed Mini Barn

Lane was all set, but I still needed a place to call my own where I could store at least a hundred bales of hay and my plethora of horse saddles, bridles, halters, grooming tools, medicines and ointments, blankets, etc. Our new property already had an existing open-air ag building, but it was pretty janky and needed some serious attention. At least it provided the bones for my future hay barn and tack room. 

With Lane’s plate pretty full of other projects, we decided to hire Humberto’s Roofing again. They shored up the underside so it could support the weight of a hundred-plus bales of hay around seventy pounds a piece. Then they tore off the pallets secured as half-walls and enclosed the whole thing with T1-11 siding, added on a small tack room to the back, built and installed doors, redid the roof to match the house, and installed seamless gutters.

I now proudly own a she-shed mini barn, and Lane and I tease each other about staying out of the other’s shed.

I Left My Heart in Mendocino County

With the mini barn completed, I couldn’t wait to bring my horses home. A friend of mine in our previous hometown had been extremely gracious with caring for them in my absence while we got settled up here (Thanks a million, Lisa!!). Because our home pasture wasn’t going to be ready for a while, my aunt and uncle stepped up and offered space for them in their cow pasture in the same town we now lived in (Thank you, Aunt Velma and Uncle Steve!). This meant I would get to see my horses every day and finally be able to get in some trail riding.

With the kids in school, I made a solo trek down south to pick them up. By myself in the truck for a couple hours allowed me to reflect on how long it had been since I’d been able to see my horses and go for a ride. They are my therapy—the one place I can truly let go of all my worries and just breathe for a few hours—and I’d been without them for the last few months. Needless to say, I was rather emotional upon picking them up.

A lifelong dream of mine had been to ride my own horse in the redwoods, and at last, in October 2023, that dream came true (and continues!). As Kaylee and Blue settled into their temporary pasture at my aunt and uncle’s property, the new grass seed in our home pasture was growing beautifully. We slowly deconstructed the garden area to move forward on the property later (some of this is still to be completed), shored up existing fencing, added cross-fencing and gates, built a shelter, and filled holes, all in preparation of being able to bring the horses home.

I’ll Be Home for Christmas

On December 20^th, after about six months of being apart from my horses, one of the best Christmas presents I could have asked for finally happened—my horses moved in! Our pasture still had a couple of things needing to be done in the long term, but it was secure enough that we were finally able to bring my fur babies home.

Now I get to see them just by walking outside, and hauling them out for a ride is far less of a time commitment, which means more rides more often. Karissa comes riding with me every chance she gets—it might even be time to think about getting her a horse of her own—so she was just as delighted as I was to have them home. Emmy, although not into riding, still loves seeing and grooming the horses and was also happy to have them nearby again. In all honestly, Lane probably didn’t care much one way or the other, but I’m sure he was happy to see me happy. And, boy, am I happy!

To Be Continued…

Next time, I’ll make my way inside to discuss some of the home renovations we have undertaken. Stay tuned!