Fall Projects – Before and After

The husband and I often get sucked into television shows where the “hosts” are crashing yards, kitchens, bathrooms – well, you get my drift! So for one of our fall projects we decided to crash our back yard. – and yes, it does say ONE!!

We often talk about “down-sizing.” Down-sizing in the yard means less to mow. Plus our back yard has so much shade it’s hard to keep the ground covered in grass. So we decided to make some changes.

We thought about starting with landscape software, but then we just decided to do what we could in our own way. Just shape it as you go!

Our back yard started out with two beds, one filled with hostas, one with a few flowers, my Oklahoma windmill and the play house. Plus the numerous trees – which we love because they make these Kansas summers bearable back there!

                         

         The corner of the yard before the playhouse           - - - - - -     The Playhouse.

The playhouse was our first anniversary gift to each other in 2012. We had a great time building it! Our first “big” project together! The husband calls it “granddaughter bait.”

                      

                       

A few more angles of the back yard.

The bottom left I only put in to show you one of two wild turkey’s

that was in our yard!!

I apologize for the lighting – these were taken in 2012 and I didn’t have a decent camera plus I didn’t know for sure what I was doing with the camera!! (I still don’t but at least I’m trying to do better!)

                      

These were taken in 2013 and as you can tell – a wind storm hit. So it was the damage to the fence that caused us to step up the yard crash and not just dream about it.

Let me say, the beautiful weather has helped. We put a lot of sweat into this yard!!

We started with 1 ton of landscape bricks.

Then lots of cardboard… We had to go dumpster diving for that!

Then 190 bags of mulch…

Then 2.5 tons of flagstone.

And, yes, we moved it all ourselves! All of this work now – for less work in the future.  Isn’t that the way is usually is?

With education?

With our jobs?

Raising our children?

Exercise?

Almost everything we do – we work hard up front for a period of time – for things to be easier in the future.

I can’t wait to show you the After Pictures!!

Tomorrow!