Home decor has never exactly been my forte. In the first seven years of our marriage we had lived in nine different "homes" so quite honestly it was never something I thought much about. For that matter I grew up in a very simple home and so I don't really require all that much to feel comfortable and happy. Well, we've been in our first house for 2 and 1/2 years now and I still have some commitment issues...with paint and with decorating walls in general (notice my plain white-walled blog?). Thankfully we've focused our attention (and checkbook for that matter) to outdoor matters. We didn't exactly realize this at the time, but the lot we built on made for a very tricky yard situation. The backyard was at such a steep slope it was risky to have children even walking in our backyard for fear that they would begin to roll down the hill (much like the character Westley does in the "Princess Bride") except that our yard is MUCH smaller.
We (and when I say "we" I pretty much always mean Rob) spent one summer building retaining walls. Three walls to be exact. Two of them have been rebuilt already and the same two still need more work. The next year was spent (again working on walls) doing concrete, fencing, and grass. And so this year, we really have the itch to get our backyard finished and most importantly be able to send the boys outside to play! For 2 1/2 years Rob talked about building a deck himself (with some help obviously), but we ended up biting the bullet and hired it out. I was seriously amazed as I watched 4 professionals work full time to complete the deck in 5 and 1/2 days. This project would have taken us (and by "us" I mean Rob) 10 years--if ever to complete. So this spring I am thankful for a deck in a fenced backyard where I can send my kids out to play.
So our goal (ok, this time I'm really just talking about myself) for this summer is to "finish" landscaping the backyard including planting our garden! I think it is possible although it will be a lot of work. Who knows, maybe by fall most outdoor projects will be completed and I will have to focus on the inside projects I thought I would have finished by this winter.
2 comments:
I'm glad you finally bit the bullet. It was worth every penny and it probably saved your marriage. So in that sense, the cost of the deck was priceless. (This it the reason we paid someone to do most of our backyard)
Yay yay yay yay yay!!! That is absolutely amazing!!! I can't wait to see it and what a huge milestone. I completely love the design and how it all came together. And after all of those "fun" retaining walls, you totally deserve it! Congratulations!!!!
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