Outdoor Projects

We've lived here long enough that it's time to accelerate the progress on a few home projects that we've wanted to do since moving in. The list is so long, it's overwhelming and I'm impatient and just want it all to be done now. I may hire some older teens a few times to help us get more done before the heat of summer slams us. 

Front Yard: 

-Weed, cut dead tulips down, and add mulch to the cute little island in our front lawn area. 

-remove leaves from the front rock and flower bed. 

-We started scraping the peeling patio over spring break. There was an awful coating of textured paint on it that started peeling right when we moved in. It looks pretty horrible now, so we're scraping it (a painstakingly tedius process), and plan to sand and stain. Enjoy peeling sunburns? Come visit with me and we'll scrape the porch. 

-There is a large portion of the lawn that is too shaded to grow grass. After attempting and failing, we are tired of the mudslide that gets tracked into the house by the kids every time it rains. There is a beautiful chocolate river rock around the side yard and we are just going to fill in the shady part. On Saturday, I dug out a little trench along the line of dead grass and we staked in metal landscape edging. It's a start! I'm calling to order chocolate rock today. Moving rocks is not my favorite task, but it will look really nice when it's done. 

Backyard: 

-We also staked in the edging around the garden beds where we plan to fill in with rocks. I need to build some terraced beds or create a raspberry trellis or something along that fence. There is plenty of space to grow something and since I'm losing all of my original garden space up behind the garage, I need to add more beds in there, somehow. 

-After I build some more raised beds, I need to lay the landscaping mesh and then put the rocks in. If I had my way, the entire back lawn would be rows of garden beds. But I don't have my way ;) 

-I need to relocate these garden beds to another part of the yard before it gets  covered with a deck in a couple weeks.

It is very dark in my kitchen, because there are no windows in there and not enough lighting. We also feel a little claustrophobic not being able to get out to the yard from the kitchen, so we are having a 5 ft sliding door added where the black cabinet is. It is not a sun facing wall, but we hope that a large window will  let some much needed light into our kitchen and dining area, even if it is indirect light. 

I'm also really looking forward to quick access to the backyard and garden area. If you look in the outside view photo (above), the door will be right next to that window, and the deck will be 8ft wide and run 18ft along the entire back of the garage (blue). Basically where the rock is. The deck will be floor level with the kitchen, so outside it will be just above the height where the blue wood siding stops. (That window is in a stairwell to the basement.) this is a huge project and I was happy to hire a contractor to do it. Big if I'm going to save any of my garden, I need to find a place to relocate it! 

-pictured above is on the other side of the house. It seems to get ok morning sun, so I'm going to try to move one or two little square beds here and maybe put our strawberries and asparagus over here, since it is wasted space anyway. 

-just below that is another little space I'm going to try to squeeze something in here, too. 

-I'm a little disappointed to lose all of the garden space, but an outdoor dining space just outside our kitchen. I was pleased when the contractor's bid came in below half of what we had estimated, and that's why we decided to expand the deck from 8ft to 18ft. I hope it is finished in time for a BBQ on Memorial Day. I'm going to plant grapes below the deck to grow on a trellis between the support posts.

Post edit: as soon as I posted this, the contractor called and can start Monday on the slider and deck! I brought the little travel swing outside and Soren and Sloane enjoyed the sunshine and dug out two spots for garden beds in only about 30 minutes! 

They aren't perfectly level, but it's a good start. Yay for fast progress. I hope to get one more over there this afternoon before swimming lessons. 

Other little outdoor projects in mind

-do something with the disaster/weedspace below the retaining wall. I suggested fruit trees or a raspberry trellis. Right now, It is full of leaves, dead weeds, and firewood that must be cleared and moved 

-reroof the chicken coop and extend the chicken run to give our new ladies more space to play. 

-add gutters to the side of our home. 

-replace the swings on the playset

-build a shed by the playset for the mower, bikes, shovels, etc. 

-picket fence around the garden and along the retaining wall to keep the kiddies safe up above (and the hens out).

I should get started. 

Instead, I am sitting here, feeding a cute baby, wathing Soren play with cars at my feet, listening to the hum of the washing machine. It's 11:45 and I am still in pajamas. I suppose I cab be a little more patient. I've got a good thing going here, this morning.