11/24: Cabin update, a weird party, and a goodbye.

Hi everybody! ESPECIALLY a big 'HI' to Kevin and Dawn and kitties as they head out to their new home in Idaho. We're really looking forward to seeing you guys out there! 

And now, a quick update:

Greg has been here for the past 10 days already (and is staying for Thanksgiving hooray!), and we've made TONS of progress on Cabin v. 2.0. This is going to be quick, but here are some pictures and things:

My wonderful neighbor Ann who lives in a cabin down the lane

came over to help finish up the flooring.

She even brought breakfast sandwiches.

Thanks Ann!

 

We finished up the floor as best as we could,

but had to wait for Greg to get here before we could 

do the kitchen because we had to move the fridge and stuff.

It was pretty gross.

There were two dead mice under the oven.

 

Yeti and Dad came down for a visit on Veteran's Day and it was the best.

We wandered around the river valley, Mattie got covered in stickers,

we got a little lost but not too lost, and had dinner

(GNOCCHI AND PIZZA) at the Los Olivos Cafe.  

I love hanging out with you guys.

Also, I got a technicolor dreamcoat for an area rug and I just love that too.

 

Since Greg has been here we've been having relaxing cabin mornings

with coffee, tea, hot chocolate, candles, and fires in the wood pellet stove.

It's the coziest little place ever.

We set up a little bird bath out in the front yard and have

been watching them closely. 

  

 The bathroom is officially DONE, and it is EXACTLY

what I wanted it to be. It's so friggin' cute I can hardly even deal with it.

The final touches - putting up the oval shower rod over the clawfoot tub, and setting

up a hand-shower holder so you can use it as a shower - got finished up just two days ago.

Hot showers are incredible. 

To celebrate the (mostly) completed cabin upgrade, we had 

a pretty epic 'Woodland Creatures' party up here on Saturday.

Here's a picture of some of the crew.

There was also a unicorn, yeti, sasquatch, leprichaun, deer, butterfly,

and other creatures who didn't quite make the picture.

It was basically as weird as you'd expect. 

We also found out that the new cabin floor makes a great dance floor,

which is IMPORTANT.

And, most importantly in recent Allison and Mattie news, 

last week we said goodbye to a good friend. 

The Radio Flyer/Nissan/BMW pick-up truck retired to its next life.

This truck was our shelter for 4 whole summers in the Sierra Nevada,

got us safely all over the western US, took us through National Parks,

deserts, forests, rivers (that was dumb), and never once let us down. 

We spent nights in the cab and in the bed, 

listened to music while watching moonrises and sunrises over Mono Lake,

went down rutted forest service roads to get to climbing spots

and many, many Laughing Places. This was a true explorer mobile.

The truck was our second home, and we're sad to say goodbye.

BUT...

Our sadness is quickly fading because the truck

has an amazing new family and life!

Dylan and Jessie have been wanting a truck

for all of their work on the orchard and property up in Big Sur,

so have adopted her to help them. Which makes sense -- after all, 

it was Dylan's first car. So it's kind of just going back to the original owner.

We're happy to know that the truck will head into retirement doing what it should - 

carrying loads of hay, seaweed, wood, plants, jade, and whatever else along the

Big Sur coastline with two of our favorite people.

Yeti emailed us a happy picture of Dylan and Jessie 

heading north with a truck bed full of hay, going off to work in the orchard in Lucia.

So things are good.

 

 

 Anyway, it's a beautiful foggy/rainy day today in Santa Barbara.

Greg and I are drinking coffee in the cabin with the stove on,

and Mattie is taking her morning nap.

There's only one week left of school, and then we're heading to the mountains for a month

to spend some wintertime on a ranch on the Truckee River with Greg and all the creatures.

So, things are the best ever?

With love from a cozy, upgraded cabin,

Allison, Greg, and Mattie the Sleeping Dog