Girls Weekend

One of the gifts I gave to the girls in our family this past Christmas was a Girls Weekend in Santa Fe.  We gathered on the weekend of February 18-20.  Sister-in-law Mary and I drove to Truth or Consequences, NM on Thursday, February 17 and spent the night at the Sierra Grande Lodge.  We were treated to two jetted mineral baths and had a scrumptious Italian dinner.  On the morning of the 18th, Mary and I drove north through Bosque del Apache, stopping to photograph a pond teaming with thousands of Canadian snow geese.  We arrived at the Albuquerque airport by 1, and met Audrey, Whitney, and Grammar.  We had a girls reunion!

We drove north through the Sandia Mountains, along the Turquoise Trail to Santa Fe.  We arrived at our hotel, Inn on the Alameda, enjoyed cheeses and fruit, then went out to explore.  We walked to The Shed for spicy New Mexican cuisine for dinner.  We gallery hopped, chatting and catching up along the way.  We exchanged gifts of Hands in Hide slippers and antique broaches that belonged to my grandmother.

On Saturday morning, we enjoyed breakfast together, then went to the Santa Fe Farmer's Market and The Flea at Santa Fe Railyard.  We made purchases of cashmere scarves, lavendar lotion, and raspberry jam.  We had lunch at a French cafe near the Plaza and explored the Loretta Chapel and Indian jewelry under the eaves of the Governor's Palace on our way to the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum.  Later we played bananagrams before dinner at Mucho Gusto.

We had a lazy Sunday morning with a healthy and generous breakfast before driving away from Santa Fe with spitting snow in the air.  We drove south toward Albuquerque, stopping for coffee together, and then had barbeque for lunch.  We dropped Whitney at the airport as our Girls Weekend came to an end.

Time spent with the girls in our family is very important to me.  My mother, Grammar, is 73 and in great health.  She quilts and crochets, works in her garden, is active in her church, and is quite close to her four living siblings.  Sister-in-law Mary is an avid photographer, enjoys travel, and has a lifetime of memories made with Papa's Dad, who passed away in 2003.  Spending time together and soaking up the thoughts and ideas of those in our family is how we pass ourselves from one generation to the next.

Tucson Rodeo

We went to the 2011 Tucson Rodeo this week.  We enjoyed every moment, from team roping to bull riding to clowns, and watching Carly compete in the women's barrel racing event.

Hides in Hand

About a month ago, I was shopping at Bon in Tucson, and found these deer hide slippers.  I bought a pair for each of my girls and myself.  A perfect "I love you" gift!  They are softer than baby bottoms.  They are made by a Canadian company, Hides in Hand. 

Deer on the Ridge

Over the past month, a herd of 17 deer have been spending time near our house.  We hiked up toward the mountains a couple of days ago, and came upon them.  We walked toward them as slowly as possible, looking away, to avoid making eye contact.  This photo was as close as we got and the deer had already turned to run down the ridge.

Master Bedroom

This is our bedroom at the ranch.  My favorite things are the painting of Buck Knob, by son-in-law Dan, black and white photos on the night stands taken by Claire, the red handwoven cover we bought on our Panama Canal cruise in Guatamala, and the X pillows I made.  Comfy!

Bisbee

We recently visited Bisbee.  Located 90 miles southeast of Tucson and nestled in the Mule Mountains, Bisbee is a mining town turned artist colony.  The community was founded in 1880 and was one of the richest mineral sites in the world. By the early 1900s, Bisbee was the largest city between St. Louis and San Francisco.  With a population of over 20,000 people in the early 1900’s, Bisbee had become one of the most cultured cities in the Southwest.   

Bisbee was a thriving community until the large scale mining operations became unprofitable in the mid 1970’s. As mining employees left to go elsewhere, many artists moved in.  Today Bisbee has evolved into an attractive artist colony and retirement community.  Old miners' boarding houses have been refurbished into many small bed and breakfast establishments. Former saloons are now quaint shops, antique stores or art galleries, cafes and restaurants.  Bisbee is a fun day trip!

Tucson Home Magazine

Old West, New West

One Couple's Search for Adventure Led Them to Build a Home on a Historic Cattle Ranch

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By Bryn Bailer | Photography by Amy Haskell

As managing director of RBC Capital Markets, the fifth-largest bank in North America, Dale often conducts his work from behind a comfortable executive desk, filtered through tiers of investment peers, and documented on the slick pages of chart-filled fiscal reports. But these days, as owner of a 15,500-acre cattle ranch in the rolling grasslands of Cochise County, he often conducts his work on the back of a horse and is dictated by seasons and the sun: soft pink sunrises giving birth to new days, clear night skies choked with sparkling stars, spring calving and protracted cattle roundups to take the stock to market.

"Ranching is a more solitary activity than either of us has ever experienced before," admits Louise, a gracious yet plucky Kentucky native whose great-grandfather ran several thousand head of cattle on ranches in the Bluegrass State and in Florida. "But we are now more in touch with the cycles of nature than ever before in our lives."

The Hendersons - who met and married in Tucson in the early 1980's - bought the Winchester Ranch in 2003, after a nation wide search of ranching properties.  Of of its many attractions, Dale and Louise agreed, was that it is an authentic cattle ranch and runs about 200 head of free-range cattle.  The red and black crossbred Hereford-Angus cattle and reddish-gold Limousin bulls graze on the grassland, herded between various parts of the ranch by horse, based on water supplies and plants growing cycles.

"This is not a gentleman's ranch," 64-year-old Dale emphasizes. "We don't have an irrigated 40-acre pasture with a bunch of pedigreed cows that you can look at and pet. This is an old-style working ranch...with 20 miles of pipeline, eight wells, 50 miles of fence—as well as corrals, buildings, roads, and cattle. There's never a shortage of things to do."

For visitors, just getting to the ranch is an adventure. It is located about 25 miles from Willcox, down rumbling gravel stretches marked with ominous PRIMITIVE ROAD signs and other signposts that point the way to the 55,000-acre Muleshoe Ranch, which is partly owned by The Nature Conservancy, and to the historic, family-owned Warbonnet Ranch, which abuts the Winchester.  And after you turn off the main road, there are another 10 miles of twisting, turning, rutted dirt roads with sheer drop-offs into rocky canyons that are impassable to all but a trusty pickup truck or sturdy ATV.

"You have to be in the right time in your life to do this," says Louise, who enthusiastically signed on for a ranching adventure that would have given many a Southern belle the vapors. In fact, she is the one who not only found the isolated ranch property but also chose a particularly remote location on which to build the family home. "When I came, I wasn't looking for dwellings," she says with a smile. "I was looking for space."

She found it on a dramatic ridge overlooking the rolling hills below, in a place that catches cooling afternoon breezes and affords views of no fewer than nine mountain ranges, including the Santa Catalinas, Santa Ritas, Rincons, Galiuros, Huachucas, and Dragoons.

And although the 2,700-square-foot, modernist house may be located smack in the middle of a cattle ranch, it is anything but rustic. The surprises start at the entry, which features a 500-pound, 6-foot-by-8-foot steel front door that operates on an offset pivot. Designed by Florida architect Guy Peterson, the house also boasts polished concrete floors and soaring ceilings that impart an open, loft like feel—highlighted by a dramatic second-floor catwalk suspended by a single truss and thick steel cables purchased from a marine supply store. Another whimsical touch comes in the form of a steep wooden galley ladder to the catwalk. Built by Dale, it echoes the Hendersons love of boating.

The house's four sunlit bedrooms are decorated in neutral shades of cream and happily house the Hendersons children, grandchildren, and friends when they come to visit. A custom kitchen anchors the ground floor and features a backsplash and counter of gray marble purchased from a tombstone manufacturer. A powerful punch of color bursts from the wall in the form of a dramatic painting of barrel cactus blossoms by a Willcox artist.

The house's overall design is chic, clean lined, and minimalist, yet surprisingly homey. "I don't have a lot of stuff," Louise says. "We are constantly 'editing' our things.  Everything needs to be very simple, because our views are so magnificent." And, of course, sunsets and shifting cloud patterns become part of the decor through the home's banks of windows. Soaring hawks, magnificent mountain lions, herds of delicate Coues white-tailed deer, the occasional bear, and slow moving tortoises and tarantulas only reinforce the knowledge that Winchester Ranch is a very sacred and wild place. And the Hendersons wouldn't have it any other way.

"What attracted me was the space, and the never-ending projects here," Dale says, gesturing at the house and ranch land with the sweep of one arm. "This has been a self-supporting, working ranch for more than 100 years, with basically the same boundaries—and there are just not many places like this left."

Hand Me Arounds

The girls in our family have exchanged "hand me arounds" for several years.  We planned well before we gathered for Christmas, to "hand me around" while we were together.  Each of us brought things we don't wear much and went through an enormous pile of sweaters, slacks, jackets, skirts, and more.  I ended up with 7 pairs of slacks, 3 sweaters, 2 blouses...  After everyone got what they wanted, I donated the leftover clothing to a charity.  A great way to improve our wardrobes without buying new clothes!

Big Cat

A couple of days after Christmas, the girls and I were in the kitchen of the Tucson house when I noticed a big cat walk slowly across the walkway to the guesthouse.  I did a double take, then ran to get my camera.  It was a bobcat and not at all in a hurry.  He stood around, then layed down and rolled over.  I got this photo just as he noticed me.  He was a very big cat!

Sewing Pillows

I just finished sewing pillows for Audrey's guestroom, in colors of purple and cream.  I also made pillows and a duvet cover for Toby, in masculine shades of blue, and a bed cover and pillow for Whitney, in cream and aqua.  All the fabrics were purchased at my favorite fabric store in Tucson, Home Fabrics.  Love that store!  Their prices are so good that it makes sewing and decorating more fun.

Leather Vest

Papa made this vest from sheepskin scraps leftover from building saddles.  It is completely handstitched and he braided the buttons from leather strips.  Nice and really warm!

Zero Degrees

The recorded temperature at the ranch last night was 0!  At the same time the wind was blowing up to 50 mph.  It was a very cold night!  We woke up to a frozen water pump and no running water in the house.  By 2 p.m. the temperature had risen to 15 and still no running water, so we packed up and drove to our Tucson house.  Tucson had the lowest recorded temperature in its history last night at 18 degrees.  It is expected to be 21 degrees tonight in Tucson.  Brrrrrrrr!

Post script... We stayed one night in Tucson and came back to the ranch.  The temperature was 54. Still we had no running water in the house.  Papa checked the water pump in the tower, and the water inside the pump was still frozen.  Papa took the pump apart and we heated it up slowly on the stove, to thaw the ice inside.  He put it all back together, and we had running water again!  Thank goodness!

Bibs

I spent some time today making several bibs for Emerson.  I used fabric pieces from various other projects and made three different pairs of styles.  I'm hoping Emerson will get good use from them.