Who doesn't love a good house tour?

Julia has organized a Hooked on Houses Blog Party – a fantasy open house, as it were – and I've decided to participate. When you click on her link, you'll find links to a bunch of other Open Houses in progress. Go ahead and snoop around. And come on back if you've ever wondered what the inside of Rancher Woman's house looks like.

Good, you're back! Wasn't that fun? I'll pretend you've just driven up and take you on the grand tour, ok?

Welcome, my friend! Did you have any trouble finding this place? Sorry about the road...kind of bumpy, huh? Do you need to use the restroom? No? OK. Let's go on through this gate.


This is my pathetic garden. The water kills just about everything, but I have fun trying.


Here, let's go on the front porch. The main entrance is the first door on the left, and that door at the end leads into my office.


Welcome to my happy little home. I think it's about 1,350 heated square feet. The floor is stained concrete. I LOVE it because it's indestructible - perfect for ranch living. I love it almost as much as my wood stove.

Let's walk over to my office.


This is where you'll find me during the week, chained to my desk. But I'm not complaining. People who are allowed to work from home are never allowed to complain. I can hop out that door any time I want to go play with the herd.


The southern exposure helps keep this room warm in the winter. I love geraniums, could you tell? But they're toxic to cats so I can't keep them on the windowsill where my darling felines might snack on them. Rosebud, did you want to wake up and say hello to our guests? I didn't think so.


Let's stop here for a closeup of the fake-tooled-leather-covered half-wall that always seems to dazzle our non-virtual guests.

I found the fabric online, used spray adhesive to stick it on the wall, then found upholstery nailheads to trim it out. Where did I get that idea? I don't know - it just seemed like a more interesting thing to do than paint.

Over here we have the guest bathroom. The sign over the toilet? Oh, I saw it advertised in the back of Western Horseman magazine and ordered one. The frame around the mirror? A lady in Mountainair made that. The horseshoes in each corner? That one was Hank's, that one was Lyle's, that one was from EmmyLou - Lyle's mom, and that one I found here on the land. I always wonder about the cowboy who might have been riding the horse who wore it...sigh...


And here is the guest room. You're not allergic to cats, are you?


Next time you come, I promise I'll clean and straighten up the pillows.


You have your own entry. It leads out to the horse porch and the guest corral. Why is the lid open on the grill? Umm...let's not go there. But if you really must know, click here.


Let's wander on back to the dining room. There's the table and butt benches I picked up in Ruidoso, remember?


And here is the kitchen. That glow on the ceiling? Oh, that's one of those light tubes. There's one in the laundry room, too. They're perfect for rooms that don't have a window.


And here's more of that fake leather with nailhead trim. I hammered in each and every one of those little stinkers - what a p.i.t.a.


This is the laundry room/mud room and home to the infamous camouflaged cat box. That door to the right? That goes into the garage. We'll save that for the Fantasy Garage Tour.


Let's head on back to the owner's suite - isn't that what they're called these days instead of master bedroom? I think so. Anyway, it's back off the kitchen. This is where Rancher Woman sleeps, over on that half anyway. Smooch sleeps on top of the saddle blanket.


And there's the view out the front. Oh, look. There's Hank.


And there's Smooch...staring at the ceiling fan. Go figure. The cats do love the window seat, and so do I.


Come on, Smooch, let's go outside and show them the horse porch. No, we're not going to show them my bathroom! There are too many used clothes on the floor.

This is where I bring the horses to tack them up. I prefer to keep my tack in the garage so it stays clean, and this is a pretty convenient arrangement.


Do you have time to take a walk around front to see what the outside looks like? It will only take a second. Come on.



Here, you'll get a better view if we walk out a little further.


Well, thanks for stopping by. Come visit again whenever you're in the neighborhood.