Spring 2015

May 14, 2015
I just realized that it has been almost a year since I posted an update here.  I've been focusing on Facebook and promoting the town of Watonga more than concentrating on our own place!  We have been following the premise that what's good for Watonga is good for us as a business. In the meantime, we've also been working on developing our property for activities that we hope will bring people from Oklahoma City and suburbs to our little piece of paradise. 

Andy has put in a pond!  The Oklahoma room and the New Mexico room both have a nice view of it, with a thick green backdrop of trees.  He has also built a wood-fired brick oven off of the back patio.  We have been holding fundraisers for the art center we are working on in Watonga on Main Street, with paint and wine parties we call "Liquid ART".  We are fortunate to partner with an excellent wine-maker, Brad, who grows his grapes in Fay, OK and makes his wine right on Main St. Watonga.  Several of the paintings we  and friends did last year at Liquid ART were entered into the Blaine County Free Fair last August and came home with winning ribbons in several categories.

Through our work with the Phoenix Circle Foundation and the support of many, many wonderful people here, we've been able to help the local Elementary School with their music program, helped with the VBS at the Methodist church, the 4-H kids, and the Live at the Liberty in Watonga.  I was excited to see some of the children's art from these efforts were entered in last summer's County Fair! 
 Our friend John Diamond has been bringing music acts to the Liberty Theatre over the past year and the program has grown significantly.  They are generally blue-grass, but the variety of musicians is ashtonishing - from a celtic group to a band named MilkDrive from Austin that plays covers with a touch of jazz as well as original music.  As an alternative to the Liberty shows, we've started having "house concerts" at the Retreat.  These are shows put on by musicians that are part of a circuit, some of whom will play for donations or just for the pleasure of getting to play somewhere unique.  We aren't competing with Live at the Liberty, but rather complementing it by offering an alternative venue in a unique setting. We have several local musicians scheduled for the summer months -- watch our facebook page for updates. 

[got to go for now, I'll be back tomorrow to write more -- There is so much to catch up on!]  /Linda