Backyard makeover

The biggest takeaway I'm getting from the comments about retiring is the ability to do what I want, when I want! YES --- that is what I want! DH sometimes travels to exotic places, and I'm not able to go because of commitments. That didn't bother me in the past, but this year - well, it did! So I'm considering that when I plan my gradual slide into complete retirement. Because of what I do, I don't have to cut everything off at once. But I must keep working on that plan!

Now, where's his next exotic trip? I'm not sure I want to go to the US, but you never know. 

We had some work to do in the backyard, and they said they could come this past week. Yikes—there was no time to get organized. WAIT - there was nothing to organize, so there was no need to panic. 

We have no grass in our backyard. OH - I should find the pictures of what it looked like when we moved in over twenty years ago. The previous owners had made good decisions, like the shed, the gazebo, and the pond, although we enlarged the pond. Many of the plantings (a couple of big trees) also remain. We have worked around those items and enhanced the overall look. So out with the grass, which, in the words of a real estate agent we had come several years ago, said our backyard is NOT kid-friendly. Yep --- and happy for that! The agent was here to chat about what improvements to make for potential resale way in the future. That was very clear upfront! 

But over the years, some things have gotten a bit tired, and when I chatted with a neighbor, she said there is some disease that is hitting boxwood shrubs, and mine had seen better days. 

I managed to get some before pictures. This is looking off the deck into the entrance of what I called the secret garden because it was separated from the rest of the yard by a little "bridge" and the shrubs. 

The entrance to the secret garden

This is looking from the secret garden towards the gazebo. We are lucky that we live on a corner, so there is lots of room on the side of our house, and our neighbor also has lots of room, so our houses are not close. 

In the Secret Garden

And there's the garden hose draped over the fence! The tap is in its new location on the other side of the fence, but it is still within our fence, as we have two gates on that side. 

The garden hose was draped over the fence

And one more view from the gazebo. 

The side garden from the gazebo

The goal this year was to fix up that transition area. We had a dead dogwood tree in the back of this area. So now the dead or dying trees and shrubs are gone! 

Dead and dying plants are gone

The new plants are in place. They replaced the old, decrepit wooden bridge with three more stepping stones. 

The new plantings

Murphy had to check everything out, and she approved everything. It's much more open than it was before, and I'm OK with that. The plants will grow somewhat, but the area won't be closed off like it was. 

Murphy approved

We got the garden hose set up nicely in a retractable one (I'm leery of its lifespan), but it looks nice, and there are three stepping stones toward that. 

Stepping stones to the hose

The hose is tucked behind the fence, so all is good. If I need to run water in the opposite direction, I can disconnect this hose and put another one in the opposite direction. I have two more hoses! Oh, and in case you're wondering why we couldn't run the hose under that fence, as it looks like a big gap, there is wire mesh embedded in the ground to prevent certain canines from digging! 

The hose is under the fence

But then, things got dicey for the girls as the landscapers had to remove sections of the fence on the other side of the yard to fix a fence post. They had to dig very deep to find the concrete, and it was left open overnight. I stacked the chairs over the opening to prevent the dogs from visiting the next-door neighbor. We didn't even ask if we could traipse through their yard. I don't think they were home.

MOM - the fence is open! 

I know—you're thinking that chairs are not enough to stop the dogs from jumping, but there is a big yawning hole on the other side because of the deck height, and they wouldn't do it. But that didn't prevent Murphy from pushing beside the BBQ, so I had to find something to block that. 

MOM - what is going on? 

No worries—the new fence post is installed, and all is good. I even took the opportunity to pull all the creeping vines from the neighbor's yard away from the fence, as they were creeping through it. On this side of the house, we both have a walkway that separates the houses. I get a good view of the neighbor's brick wall from the office. 

You can see the new post and some new grill on top. But we also found something interesting: a ball cemetery! When I dug through the crap at the bottom of the fence, I found three balls. Who knows how many more there are? Murphy soon completely destroyed them, and they are in the garbage! 

MOM - I wondered where those balls went! 

Fixing that fence took a long time, and the girls were very unhappy. They moped in the house beside the screen door. 

MOM - why can't we go out and play?

I am trying to clear all the leaves out of the bottom of this part of the pond. There is so much dirt and debris in there. While the guys were working on the fence, Mike, who opens and closes our pond and works for the same company that was doing the other work, stopped by. So I got him to fix the filter in the pond skimmer, and hopefully, all will be good. But there are MANY more scoopfuls of leaves to remove. I'll check the new filter later this morning. Since it's all organic material, I wing it over the fence into the forest! 

Leaves and debris need to be removed from the pond

And there is Murphy, who loves the pond and wanted to play ball last night. So I tossed the ball and it went into the pond. She will NOT jump into the pond, so all is good if she's on that side. But she will literally slide into the pond on the other side. I don't know how to describe it, and I watched her do it one day!

MOM - a little help here! 

The second the crew was gone, I was in the gazebo! It was such a beautiful day. And of course, I had company! 

MOM - help me - I'm in jail! 

I had to come in because the sun was directly on my chair and no place to move, but Miss Murphy stayed out in the sun. That dog is weird, as she gets so hot!

MOM - I'm fine! Just sunbathing! 

I didn't get any weeding done last night, but I did the night before. 

More weeds gone! 

What I need now is mulch—lots and lots of mulch. It would be economical to have a large bag (or by the yard) delivered to the front and then bring it back via wheelbarrow, but I'm just as happy to buy bags at the local store and deal with it bag by bag. We have steps in the backyard, so the wheelbarrow only works so far. So I might take a trip today and get the first load. I suspect I'm going to need MANY bags, but I need to remove some leaves in some places before putting the mulch down. I have some time tomorrow, so I'll evaluate what I need today and pick it up. Then I can work tomorrow afternoon and try to work on a small section each day. 

Look at the forest canopy. The leaves are almost entirely out, and I cannot say how calming (I'm calm these days, but still) that canopy is. You just feel relaxed, and when they talk about forest bathing, they aren't kidding. If you have a chance to walk in a forest, do it! We have two trees in our backyard and the wall of forest right behind the fence, which encroaches into our backyard—the leaf canopy, that is. To me, that is the best feature of the house! 

When we looked at this house, we knew immediately when walking in that this was our house. We didn't even need to get past the front hallway. But the clincher was taking a walk in the forest—that sealed the deal. It will take a lot to pry us from this location. At the time, I would never have considered walking anywhere, but now—well, that would have been another high point at the time of purchase. By the way, the walking in the forest thing? Not going to happen for DH! 

The tree canopy in the forest

Our kitchen and bathrooms need to be updated, but they are functional, and I'm not worried about changing them. But if we did—the big thing these days is having a LARGE window over the sink—we could easily get rid of those cabinets and put in a bigger window. 

But I used the island yesterday to work on a jacket for a class later today. There is so much space and it's the width of TWO of my worktables downstairs. 

Tracing a clothing pattern

I shoved everything to the other counter, which I'm in the process of dealing with. But it's still pretty clear considering other kitchens I've seen. 

A large window would fit just fine! 

DH comes home later this afternoon, so I must get all that put away or washed. I already moved the stack of magazines (I'm slowly working on them) back to the office. There are a few things to clear off the kitchen table, and it will look like I've been super busy! 

He's only home for a day or two before he's gone again!

I walked to the restaurant last night, and we'll probably go again tonight as there is NOTHING to eat in the house. Well, some broccoli and a bagged salad. 

Everything is prepped for my classes today—well, I have one more seam to sew, and then I'm ready. The presentation for this morning is done. I can only say that a pattern tester would have had a heyday with this pattern. The number of errors will blow your mind. 

I have tomorrow afternoon "off," and then the week starts again with writing assignments and sewing samples. At least the writing and sewing can be done on my own time, which I don't mind. 

I'm also happy to say I'm not sore from all that craziness with Brooke yesterday. So that's a relief. 

And on that happy note, I'm out of here! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!