Fred,
Welcome to CO, it's not always -3 degrees here, sometimes its colder. Only kidding. Monument is a beautiful area, you'll enjoy it there. I live on the prarie in Littleton about 30 minutes north of you. We just moved here from Pine, CO about 35 mi SW of littleton and an elevation of 8500 ft. My wife couldn't stand the peacefull solitude of living in a log house in the mountians, so, after six years I gave in and now we live in the city.
Best of luck
Tom Stroh