Happy Thanksgiving!

La Puerta Real Estate Services would like to wish all of Placitas a Happy Thanksgiving! La Puerta is thankful to have had the opportunity to service those customers who purchased or sold a home through our company or referred a customer to us. Best wishes to you and yours and Happy Thanksgiving!

Moon over Placitas!

In Placitas, we have so few lights that the moon and the stars just sort of jump out and model for those interested in looking – furnishing just one more of the spectacular views of our beautiful, peaceful area. This bright moon is a prime example of that! One just doesn’t see the fabulous night skies from a city; there are just too many lights! Are we Placitans lucky (and spoiled) or what!?

Veteran's Day

Reading the paper this morning I was saddened that another New Mexico soldier had been killed in Iraq, bringing the total from New Mexico to 54. He was a young man, only 25 years old, and his name was Army Spc. Tony Carrasco, Jr. There have been 4180 or is it 4181 now, deaths of US soldiers in Iraq so far. There have been many more soldiers, before this honorable young man, making the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. I am very thankful that we live in this free country. I want to always be mindful that so much has been given of my behalf. Every veteran in the United States; Thank You for what you have offered to give and what some ultimately did. I owe you all a debt of gratitude. I'm glad when I walk around my neighborhood and see our flag flying, it causes me to remember.
~Jennise Phillips, Associate Broker

New Mexico Roadrunner

I was sitting on my patio enjoying a glass of ice tea and the spectacular
fall colors when a roadrunner goes racing
across my path. My golden retriever barely
raised an eyelid (some bird dog!) while my little
shih tzu/poodle was chasing the roadrunner at full speed. The roadrunner jumped up on the patio wall and then on to a tree limb. He actually sat on that limb for about 15 minutes allowing me enough time to get my camera and take this picture.
~Rhonda Leonard, Qualifying Broker

Surveying His Kingdom from Atop a Cowboy’s Head

This cute chipmunk (although he may actually be a specific species of ground squirrel that lives here in the Placitas area) is nearly always in and around our feeders. Recently, in this beautiful fall weather that we Placitans are enjoying this week, he picked out his snack, and instead of heading for his stash, he decided to crawl up on one of the bronze statues in our yard, perching on the hat of the cowboy of “The Trailride” bronze. I had to take his picture through the window because he has a tendency to run when I open a door or get too close to the window (thus a reflection on the photo). I believe that he was, literally, surveying what he thinks is his kingdom from a higher vantage point while eating his snack! My Westie, Seamus, and Scottie, McKenzie, not to mention the cottontails, might attempt to dispute Sir Munk’s perspective that our yard is HIS kingdom, but at that particular moment, it truly was his kingdom.
Eva Marie Renninger, Transaction Coordinator

Wild Horses!

What could be better than a crisp Fall morning in Placitas? How about a sighting of the Wild Horses right outside my courtyard walls?! I heard some whinnying and there they were for about an hour, grazing on the green shoots outside our courtyard wall. The colt laid down for a nap under a pinon tree and its mother stood watch without grazing or moving an inch for the entire time while the others grazed nearby. It was really sweet. Usually, on my way to the office, it’s like a treasure hunt as I scan the hills around the road for a glimpse of the horses, and often, they are there, but to be able to climb up to the roof of our studio and just sit and watch them for an entire hour was the best yet. They are looking really healthy and well-fed. It’s been a good year for them and all of us in Placitas with the intermittent rains. Life is Good!

~Sandy Poling, Associate Broker, e-PRO

Snowfall on the Sandias – as Seen From Placitas

On Wednesday, October 27, the first visible-from-Placitas snowfall made its appearance on the Sandias. The beauty of the “frosting” on the tips of the peaks from our angle is an absolutely breathtaking site. On that evening after work, as I looked out my south-facing windows just as the sun was going down, I realized that we were going to have the beautiful pinks and blues in the clouds and on the tops of the mountains, and, once again, I ran for my camera. I was just a few seconds late getting onto the west balcony – but the view was still gorgeous, even if it wasn’t as bright as it had been just a mere few seconds before – those seconds it took for me to get the camera and get up the stairs to the balcony. But even though I was just a little too pokey, I’m reminded again of why I am so thankful that I live in this beautiful area – with so many truly beautiful and awe-inspiring sights to behold!
~Eva Marie Renninger, Transaction Coordinator