Cactus and Moonlight and Venomous Things

In November 2020, we were amid the pandemic and my hubby was turning 60. I had been talking to him about checking out Tucson as I had determined I could no longer spend the winters in Colorado. So, to help make his big event a little more special, we headed south to stay at one of our favorite hotels in the La Paloma area of Tucson.

We visited a community called SaddleBrooke to the north of the city in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains, where our good friends lived. We fell in love with the area. When we returned home, David decided it was time to go. The Denver market was booming and David felt that we should move now so we could get a home, make all the updates, and be happily ensconced by the time we hit 65.

We moved into our new home on March 19 and have been hard at work unpacking and cutting down (technically we reduced our overall square footage by half). We have found a wonderful designer to work with us on elevating our 20-year old home into a stronger Southwestern design in the common areas. I will maintain my wonderful French design in the master bedroom and bring it into my new master bathroom using the beautiful black & brown color scheme from the French-style guest bath in my former home. I'm remodeling one of the closets (Yes, I have his and her closets!!) into a glam closet where I can shoot my styling videos and display my growing handbag collection.

My new powder room will revisit a design from three houses ago with a beautiful white and gold console sink and wallpaper that will display our wonderful Asian artwork. The new guest bath will have a Southwestern vibe as will the new guest bedroom. We are adding a butler's pantry to replace the old existing bar for additional storage and use when entertaining in our highly social 55+ community. Lastly, we will put in a beautiful pool and spa for my aqua physical therapy and watching the awesome dark skies in the hot tub.

There is almost nothing I love more than designing a new home. Like a scrumptious piece of cake, I have to be careful not to rush through it so I can enjoy the process. I will keep writing blogs and posting photos so you can enjoy the journey with me and perhaps gain some design ideas for your home along the way.

Note about the photo: This Gila monster came to visit us today. We have to call the police to have the venomous lizard taken away. Welcome to the desert!