Of all places, why did we pick Wyoming?

We have been asked this so many times! Why did we pick Wyoming? How did we even find out about the land? Did we go see it before we purchased it? Had we ever been to that area before, is that why we bought land there?

I can't believe I haven't talked about this yet, but now is the time!

We purchased the land back in 2012, a little over 2 years ago.  At that time, I was an intern at an engineering company in Cincinnati (a little over an hour drive, one way from home!) and going to school at night for my associates in mechanical engineering.  The company that I worked for was closing (we found out in ~Dec 2011 I think), it was just a matter of time when I would lose my job.  Scott was working a seasonal job doing concrete/construction. 

The end of February, Scott randomly asked me, 'What would you think about moving to another state?' and I said, 'Why not? There's nothing holding us back!.' 

So he proceeded to tell me that for years he had been receiving email notifications about land for sale all throughout the west, from Arizona/New Mexico all the way up to Montana.  He said he had always wanted to buy land, but never had anyone to do it with until me!  That last week in February he had received an email from a land realtor that had land for sale (that we could afford) in Wyoming.  There was land down outside of Cheyenne and then some up near Cody, WY.  When he asked if I would consider moving to Wyoming I said 'Heck ya!! It's horse country out there!!'

We looked through all the land that was for sale and narrowed it down to some of our favorites from 2 locations.  I cannot recall the town  or area near Cheyenne that we were considering, but one thing that drew us to the area was the beautiful land!! It had rolling hills, beautiful grasslands, and amazing areas to ride horses.  However, that particular area was only accessible by vehicle during part of the year and it wasn't equipped with electricity.  So it would have been perfect for someone that wanted a hunting getaway, but not for a permanent residence (unless we would be totally off the grid).

The second place that drew our attention was an area north of Cody, WY.  So after looking at lots of different properties, we picked one that had electrical lines at the road in front of our land and it had lots of character with the rock formation and the natural drainage though the property.

Keep in mind this was all the last week of February when we decided to consider moving and found some land options (that we could afford) in areas that we really liked.

That same week, I received notice that my final day was going to be on Friday, March 2cd.  On Monday, March 5th, we left for Wyoming to look at the land!! 

We had been out to Rapid City, SD the year before for a friend's wedding, but that was the only time I had ever been out west.  Scott had been to Utah, Colorado, through Montana and all around the west, except for Wyoming! 

And we had nothing that was taking us there - no family that lived out west, no friends that lived in Wyoming, no jobs we were moving for.... only open space, the freedom to roam, and the adventure of a lifetime!!

I can't remember the exact date, but I think it was on Wednesday that we met the realtor, went to the land and walked the property (here is a link to the pictures from that day:  http://welovewyoming.blogspot.com/2013/12/first-trip-to-wyoming.html).  That same day we committed to it and purchased it!

We were only out in Wyoming for maybe 1-2 more days to explore the area a little by mainly driving around to check out the town life.  We did meet our new neighbors out there who are the nicest people!  Since 2012, they have helped us with questions we had about all the permits and the companies to use for our build.

When we got back home, we went to talk with our neighbors and found out that Charlotte's daughter Amy lived in Cody!!!  What a small world!  Amy and her husband have been so helpful and we even got to meet them when they came to visit in Ohio.

In a nutshell:  It was completely on a whim that we decided to look at the land in Wyoming which also happened to be the first and only time we've even been to Wyoming!

Side note:  We never did go look at the other piece of land near Cheyenne.  We did look at another piece of land about 2 miles from where we purchased, but it didn't have electricity and the road wasn't graveled all the way to the property yet so we decided against it.


Here is a picture taken from a property that is 2 plots down the road from ours (so they are farther from the mountains than our property and these pictures would look over our land too - our land would be mid-right of the picture).  This gives you an idea of how pretty it is on a clear day when everything is green!

Photo Credit: http://www.rockymountaintimberlands.com/images/5162.lg.jpg

 

Why did we wait so long to tell everyone?

Most of our close friends and family knew within 6 months to a year after we purchased the property what our plans were - that we had bought the land and were planning on moving sometime.

We initially thought it would be at least 5-6 years before we could move out west.  I was in school and had anticipated graduating with my Associates then going for my second Bachelor's.  Well, plans changed!  And now, looking back, they all changed for the better. 

We didn't tell everyone that we were moving (and I didn't post anything about it on Facebook till just recently) because we didn't know when we were actually going to move.  Initially we had these crazy plans of a large 2,000-3,000 sq ft house and having someone else build it, but then we would go in and do all the interior work.  After we received quotes from contractors saying it would be approximately $150-$175/square foot, well that plan was blown out of the water.  A 2,000 sq ft house would have cost between $300,000 and $350,000 just for the main structure!!

So after lots and lots of discussions and research, we decided that if we downsized to a 20'x28' 'cabin-sized' home and if we built it ourselves, we would save an immense amount of money AND, the kicker, we could move much sooner!!!

We started working toward this new plan last December 2013 and started downsizing all our belongings, finishing up renovations to the house, working on updating the truck, and making multiple lists of things we needed to do still.  At that time it was a goal to be able to move in spring '14, but so many things had to happen that we just had our finger's crossed at that time!

When we sold the '67 Ford Fairlane XL, things started falling into place so we rolled with it:)  And about a month ago, it seemed like it was really going to happen!

I hope this answers the questions - Why haven't we told everyone when we were moving, or that we were moving?  But there is so much to take into consideration with jobs, our current house, our build, money, etc.  We didn't want to say something and then have it not happen and be stuck.

Busy, Busy, Busy!!

I have several more things I want to post before we leave, but we have been so busy I haven't had the chance to take more pictures yet!!

I have 4-5 more sewing projects I'm working hard to finish, Scott is finishing up the last of the house updates  (mostly just painting), and we are just praying the weather starts warming up soon!  Still so much to do, but I'm just so thankful that we started getting ready about 6 months ago.

Post to look forward to:
-Drawings and descriptions of our house plans and how they have changed. 

Oh, just 'catting' around!

How to capture a cat, or 2:)

 

 Which of these does not belong.....

 

 

 

A little closer... and we have a Tiger!!

 



 

This was his way of helping me organize, separate, and pack clothes this morning.



Shopping!!!

It has been a very long time since I've been shopping for something that didn't involve Lowes, Home Depot, or Harbor Freight!! But today I had the urge to stop at our local Goodwill to do some shopping in preparations for the move.  I scored some major loot!!  I found 11 hoodies/sweatshirts for only $40.66!  And ironically, this shirt was one that I found and purchased:

A few weeks ago Scott and I were bored so we decided to go to the book store and we also picked up 2 travel books and a journal - that way I can keep track of everything especially when I don't have the internet/electricity!!

 

 

We are holding off on doing any major shopping for tools and other building materials until we get out to Wyoming.  We are only a few miles from the Montana border and Montana has no sales tax!  That's an automatic 7% savings!  I love saving money so I'm really excited about this:)



Lucky Horseshoe

 

When we first went out to see our land, while we were walking around, I found this horseshoe and have had it ever since!  I want to do something special with this once our house is built and I came across this.  I think I'll clean it up, remove the old nails and straighten them out so I can use it as a key holder.

 

 

I also have a few old shoes from our horses (Ernie, Teddy, and Ceasar) back from when I was a kid.  I think I'll incorporate them into the house somehow too.  A little of the old into the new house!

 

Here is another picture I took.  This includes a few small pieces of the rock we found on our land.  The rocks are in a formation at the driveway entrance and have beautiful coloring on them!! I'm not 100% sure what causes this, but for the past 2 years it has stayed the same color.

 

 

 





Wyoming/Montana Bucketlist!!

So many places to go! So many new experiences! This is just the beginning....

• Visit Yellowstone National Park
• And go with Amy on a photo shoot in Yellowstone:)
• Visit the Tetons
• Learn to ski at Red Lodge Mountain
• Drive the Beartooth Highway in both a car and on our scooters:)
• Drive the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway
• Take a soak in the Thermopolis hot springs
• Go snowmobiling
• Experience ski joring in Red Lodge
• Go tubing down Clark Fork Creek
• Climb a mountain
• See the Aurora Borealis
• Watch for meteors on a cloudless night
• Visit Cody's Buffalo Bill Historical Center
• Go to Frontier Days in Cheyenne
• Take a plane ride over Yellowstone
• Visit the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center
• See Wyoming's wild horses (including the horse Cloud) in person
• Experience Cody's July 4th Rodeo
• Visit Cooke City
• Learn how to snow shoe
• Learn how to cross country ski
• Go kayaking at Yellowstone Lake
• Harvest hops during Red Lodge Ales Brewing Company's Oktoberfest
• Go on an archeological dinosaur dig
• Go dog sledding
• Visit the SD Black Hills
• Visit the Akley's
• Visit Krystal too:)
• Explore Flathead Valley in Montana - http://www.fcvb.org/
• Go to Glacier National Park, Montana
• Go to Jackson Hole, WY
• Explore Laramie, WY
• Drive over the mountains from Buffalo to Tensleep
• Another beautiful drive is from Sheridan to Greybull
• Visit the Flaming Gorge Dam near the Utah border

I'm still adding to this list, so if you have any ideas, please let me know!! We are ready for an adventure!!

A few websites I found with lots of ideas to add to this list:
http://snowmobile.off-road.com/snowmobile/feature/snowmobile-hidden-gems-in-idaho-montana-and-wyoming-13205.html

http://www.wyomingtourism.org/articles/detail/10-Northeast-Wyoming-Hidden-Gems/1306594

http://www.wyodino.org/dig-for-a-day/

It is going to be worth it!

We have dreamed of moving for quite some time! But as soon as we saw our dreams becoming reality, we began looking for ways to save where we could.  Here are just a few of the things we've done over the last 6 years to save money:

• No cable/satellite TV for 5 of the 6 years ($2700)
• No 'smart' phone for either one of us for 5 of the 6 years.  Only 1 year did I have a smart phone, but am now back to my old flip phone ($4620)
• No car payments - we purchased older cars to avoid having a car payment (say the average car payment is $250/month and we both have cars - ($36,000)
• No internet for 2 of the 6 years ($720)
• Used scooters as daily drivers over the summer to save on gas as they get 110 mpg (~$100/month for 5 months each summer over 2 years = $1,000)
• We eloped ($5,000 minimum) and did not have a honeymoon ($5,000 minimum) and did not have a wedding reception ($5,000 minimum)
• We never purchased a flat screen TV and still use our old, heavy 19" and ~30" TVs (~$1000 minimum)
• We have refrained from taking vacations, trips, or getaways over the last 3 years ($6,000 minimum)
• We do not purchase clothing unless it is a dire necessity.  And when we do, we have shopped strictly at Goodwill for the last 4 years. (estimated $500/person/year = $4,000)
• We have not purchased birthday or Christmas gifts for each other or for our family/friends for the last 3-4 years (~$4,000 total)
• I now color my own hair ($2,500) and only get a hair cut once a year ($720).  When I do get a haircut I now go to Super Cuts.
• We do not turn on the furnace at night, no matter how cold it gets.  And during the day we only turn on the furnace first thing in the morning then use infrared heaters (2 of them) to heat the rooms we are in at the time. (saves $100-$200/month for 4 months out of the year)

Additionally:

• We have made all home renovations ourselves
• We do not have any decorations in our house
• We used hand-me-down furniture, kitchen stuff, and even clothes
• I made homemade laundry and dish soap for the last 2 years
• We have limited our out-to-eat meals to more cost effective restaurants like Steak 'N Shake, Hot Head Burrito, and fast food places.  And we have cut back to only 2-3 times per month.
• I purchased all Scott's junk food for his lunches at the Hostess thrift store (now it is closed, but this was a big savings for 2 years!)
• I also purchase all our bread, for the last 2 years, at the Aunt Millies Thrift Store too
• All our food comes from Aldi or is the generic brand from Kroger or Wal-Mart
•  We don't go out to see movies and Scott rarely buys beer (maybe one 12 pack every 3-4 months)
• I use the plastic grocery bags instead of buying trash bags for all the rooms in the house
• Instead of purchasing new shower curtain liners each month, I wash and reuse them
• We only plug in and turn on appliances that we are using.  All other times they are not only turned off, but unplugged - like the washer/dryer, microwave, TVs, etc. 
• One summer I even had my own garden that really helped save grocery money!  And for 2 years, I've been growing my own blackberries as they can be up to $4/container!! 
• We buy groceries that are cost effective.  For example, we don't buy a lot of meat, so we substitute a lot of beans/legumes in our diet.  I like to purchase dried beans to save even more money!
• I pre-make breakfasts for Scott to last at least 1 month.  He really likes French toast, breakfast burritos, and pancakes. 
• We no longer purchase cans of soda.  If we do purchase soda, we will either get the off-brand 2 liters, or get name brand 2 liters when they are on sale.
• When I can, I use coupons.  But I discovered that if you typically purchase store brand or Aldi products, that it's usually the same price as buying name brand with a coupon.
• We combine our trips to town to save on gas.  We try to plan trips so that there are at least 3-4 stops every time we go to town.
• We planned to ahead, and decided to wait to have children till we are in Wyoming and have our house built.
• My husband made one of the biggest sacrifices.  He sold his 1966 Ford Fairlane XL!  This car meant so much to me as we had some of our first dates in it. However, we both knew that this car would provide so much more for us if we sold it:

Finally, we will be saving at least $75,000 - $100,000 because we are going to be building our house ourselves.
DISCLAIMER - If you do not have the background experience in construction, electrical, plumbing, concrete, etc then I do not recommend you go this route!


We have lived our lives with this motto:

Use it up,

Wear it out.

Do with less,

Or do without!!

No Regrets!

I came across this saying and just had to share!  With our time in Ohio winding down, the closer we get to our move date, the more anxious, nervous, and scared I get!  I've never made a big move like this before.  All of my family, including my extended family, all live within the same county.  When I moved one county over after graduating college, I felt like an outsider (and still do!).  But now we are moving ~1,400 miles away where we have no family and only know 2 people.

The day that we pull out of our driveway and see our Ohio home get smaller and smaller in the rearview mirror, will be one of the scariest moments in my life!  But I know that if we don't take this leap of faith, we will forever regret it.

I am so very thankful to have my amazing partner-in-crime, my husband Scott, to be with on this journey.  For a very long time he has wanted to own land and build a new life somewhere, but waited all these years till he had me to do it with.  I'm so very thankful!!

As scary as it's going to be as we leave Ohio and make the journey toward our next adventure, I'll always keep this in mind:

Let's CELEBRATE!!!

We are ready to CELEBRATE!!!  We headed down to our favorite grocery store - Jungle Jims in Cincinnati, OH - to pick out our celebration bottle of champagne.  Once we make it to Wyoming and our house is sold, we will have so much to celebrate!  My Facebook friends helped me decide what to get, and I just want to say thank you:) 

A Blessing in Disguise

For about the last 3 months, Scott has been making improvements to the '66 Ford truck to get it in tip top condition for our move.  Well, this week he finally had all the new parts on and everything was working smoothly until be backed it out of the garage.  When in reverse, the transmission was slipping and would only back up at a snails pace.  So after much discussion to decide whether we should  have it rebuilt or just buy a new one, we decided to just get a new transmission - one with a warranty.  That way we would know we would be covered.  Unfortunately there went $1,708.88 we weren't planning on spending, but I think this was a blessing in disguise because if this would have happened on our way out there, with 4 cats with us, it could have been a nightmare to deal with!! 

Lesson of the day - our little girl cat has figured out how to unzip the cat tent and she managed to escape!! Luckily, Scott caught her and all cats are safe and sound.  But, I think we are going to have to lock them in the tent now! She's too smart:)

Cat tent!!

Today, in Ohio, we finally hit 50 degrees and it feels so great outside! I think the cats just knew it was warm and were meowing all morning for me to let them out.  They are inside cats only, but I do let them out on their harness/leash under supervision.

So, we purchased two cat tents and a connecting tunnel for them to play in!  I didn't feel like getting both tents and the tunnel out today, so I just got the one. 

Here are a few pictures of our little ones hanging out in the sun!

They were out for about an hour when Tuffy, the long haired one standing up, started meowing because he was bored. 

When we make it to Wyoming, we don't want the cats to be cooped up inside the trailer, so they will be staying in these tents during the day while we're outside, then in inclement weather and at night, they will come inside the trailer with us.

Making Progress!!!

We have finally downsized all our belongings and sold 3 extra vehicles, mattresses, dressers, a dryer, etc.  The only big items we are taking include our mattress, our couch, and the kitchen table - which makes a HUGE difference on the amount of things we need to pack!!  A majority of the house is already packed up and ready to go, we just have to get started on the garage yet.

Permits
We finally got back both electrical permits (permanent electric and temp electric) - received within 1 week of submitting - and we go back our well permit, received within ~3-4 weeks of submitting.

We will not be submitting our building permit or the septic permit until the well is in place and we know exactly where we are going to build.

One fun fact I have learned:
If you own your land (no mortgage or loan on it) and you are building your house all yourself (owner owned and owner built) you do not need to get a building inspection or an electrical inspection in Park County, WY.  We do have to get the permits, but only if we are hiring someone to do the work or if we have a loan/mortgage do we need an inspection.   For our own safety/security reasons, we did opt for the electrical inspection.

The Build:
Because of the timing of getting the well in, then getting the septic permit submitted and the septic tank installed, then having the temp electric pole installed, getting the building permit, having our footer dug out for our house, then laying our concrete foundation and slab (this part we are doing ourselves) - tentatively it looks like about mid to late May before we will be able to actually start building the structure of the house!  But Scott believes that within 4-6 weeks at most, we will have the entire exterior of the house completed. 

Anyone want to take bets on how long it actually takes?!?! Keep in mind I'm his only helper!!

Left to Accomplish
We still have a good bit left to do - pack the trailer, finish the updates on the truck, buy some additional supplies we need, etc.  But we are making really good progress and are on track to move within the first few weeks of April!! 

Logistics

We've been asked a lot lately just how this is going to work? Where will we sleep? etc.  I am sure we haven't thought of everything, but I think we have the major bases covered.

Basically we're going out there to a piece of land that has NOTHING - no water, no electricity, no septic.... just a plain piece of land with some sage brush and small cactus.

NOTE:  The following has very detailed information on our living situation and maybe construed as TMI (too much information), however, it's a part of this adventure so I'm including it.

Living Quarters
We will be sleeping in a cargo trailer (16'x7').  Scott is building a raised platform in the front of the trailer where we will put either a queen size mattress or an air mattress.
The trailer has NO heat or electric, so we're 'roughing it'.  Luckily though, it does have a crank vent, so we can get some fresh air if needed.

Water/Shower/Bathroom
We have met one of our neighbors already and they have graciously offered to let us get water from their house!  I am so very thankful for this simple gesture. We will use the water for drinking, cooking, and bathing too.
With a trailer/property with no water, that means no toilet and no shower!!  No problem!  We have been collecting cat litter buckets (with lids) that we will bring with us and used in many ways. 

Toilets: We originally were thinking or purchasing something like this:  http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?pdesc=Reliance-Flushable-Loo&i=437321&r=view
and using it with these bags:
http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?pdesc=Reliance-Double-Doodie-Toilet-Waste-Bags-6-pack&i=437316&r=view
However, mostly because I'm cheap and we're on a very tight budget, my goal is to not purchase any unnecessary items.  So we're going to purchase some heavy duty trash bags, place them in the empty cat litter buckets as liners and 'go #2' into our saved plastic grocery bags, tie them up and after there are several in the bucket, tie them up and throw away.  Scott will not need a bucket to go #1, but I however will.  So we're going to cut the bottom off of another bucket that I can use. 

Showers:
We originally were thinking of getting something like this:
http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?pdesc=Guide-Series-Camp-Shower&i=708561
But again, this is money on a product that will only be a temporary fix, so I thought for sure we could come up with a better/cheaper solution.
The plan is two fold.  First can use the local campground's shower facilities every 3-4 days.  However, for the in-between time, we can warm up the water over a small Coleman propane burner, then sponge washing.  And a simple bucket of water will work nicely to wash our hair.

I think we have all our bases covered here.

Food and Cooking
We will not have a refrigerator so we will be limited to foods that won't spoil.  Fruits, fresh vegetables, canned foods, instant mashed potatoes (Scott's favorite!), pasta, oatmeal, etc.  We will be using the Coleman propane single burner unit to cook all our food over (unless we get ambitious and make a camp fire). We will have some coolers if needed, but it may be several days to a week between trips to town to get ice, so we won't be relying on them.  However there will be plenty of nutritious foods that we can eat and store that won't require refrigeration.

Entertainment
We have a portable DVD player that we'll bring with us along with some movies.  But I think most of our 'free time' will be spent sleeping (especially during the build)!! Otherwise, we'll play board games and ride the scooters around to explore the area. Best of all we'll be chilling by a camp fire and hanging out with our cats.  We are very low maintenance folks, and are very much looking forward to enjoying nature and the outdoors!

Cats
Yes, we are crazy.  But we love our 4 cats like they are our children!  All 4 of them will be accompanying us for the build.  We will be driving 2 vehicles out to Wyoming and the cats will all ride with me in the car.  Once there, the cats will be in the trailer with us at night and during bad weather.  But during the day, we purchased 2 of these cat tents along with a connecting tunnel.  If we have the budget, I may purchase another set so they have more room.  We are cutting up some old carpet to put in the bottom of the tents for extra cushion for them.  The biggest thing is to keep them safe and out of the way.
You may be thinking, why not just have a friend or family member take care of them during out build?  Well, first it would be very difficult to be away from them for so long. They really are our children.  And second, we don't want to burden our family/friends with this obligation.

Moving
We will be making 2 trips total.  First trip will include all the tools, necessities, 2 vehicles, 2 trailers, 2 scooters, and 4 cats! Once the cabin is completed, Scott will be returning home with the truck and cargo trailer to get the rest of our stuff (luckily we don't have much)!

We've been asked several times about getting a Uhaul or a POD unit - well when we looked into them, they were very expensive! And as I've said many times, we are on a very tight budget and to me this is wasted money.  So, instead, I purchased a cargo trailer that we get to keep instead of renting something that we don't get to keep.