Some of you are under the very false impression that my backyard always looks like this. . .
or like this. . .
maybe like this. . .
or finally like this. . .
But you would be wrong!!!! At the beginning of each spring season our backyard looks more like this. . .
and this. . .
and this. . .
Yes, every spring we have a major clean-up on our hands. And quite frankly we despise it. I used to be the type of person who would begrudgingly do this work to save money, but these days I have a different mindset. Because Tim and I don’t get as much time together as we used to, the things that I value have changed. I would much rather shell out some dough (not a crazy amount, but some) to have someone else come and clean up, landscape, rake, ect so that I can spend some quality time with my husband! Obviously I know that some people have to pinch every last penny and hiring out yard work would be out of the question, but for me- it’s an investment, an investment in my marital relationship. Not only that, I wanted to hire someone who would actually enjoy the work. . . enter Mom and Colin.
(Mom did not want to be photographed in her lawn working wardrobe.)
And there’s Colin. . . (ok, so Colin probably didn’t just love working, but he’s a teenager and really wanted some spending money!) 🙂
One thing I really wanted to change was our pond. Although I love the idea of it, the truth is that it was really hard to keep clean and required a lot of maintenance. (See below)
So, I decided to get rid of it. I put an ad on craigslist and said whoever would come empty the pond and move the rocks could have the pond liner and pump for free. I had 20 offers within an hour. So the pond area now looks like this. . .
I plan to set up a garden box (much like Ashley’s seen below). This will mainly be for looks because some people have a green thumb, some people have a black thumb, but Tim says I have no thumb. So, although I am sure I will try to plant some things to show potential buyers the possibilities of our back yard, I am sure it will end with me pulling out dead, lifeless plant bodies.
The rocks that were around and in the pond now line our flower beds, which include mostly monkey grass because it is almost impossible to kill. The rocks stretch all the way from the old pond area to the master bedroom area (about 40 feet)! I like how it cleans up the edges of the landscaping.
All and all, there were about 20 bags of leaves, dead plants, and God knows what else.
My boss/friend, Katherine mentioned something about wanting to have a garden party. I wonder if she’d want to have it here. I have some great decorating ideas. . . and maybe she can spread some of her green thumb goodness over my garden box! 🙂
Lastly, I want to give a big thank you to my lovely mother and the super cool Colin!!
It must feel so good to have it done!
Ah, yard cleanup. We’re in the midst of it, too, but still need to clean our pond. Which – I’d love to get rid of, but two fat, happy frogs moved in last year, and I can’t bring myself to be the remover of their habitat. *sigh*
Your pond was lovely, too bad it was such a pain to keep clean! I’m sure a garden will be just as lovely 🙂
I would LOVE to see your garden party decoration ideas! We’re hoping to have a party at our house this summer if we can get the yard cleaned up.
I actually bought you some heirloom tomatoes this weekend because I felt bad for making you get up so early on Friday! So yes, I will garden in your garden!
Yay Katherine! I can’t wait to eat home grown tomatoes! 🙂
Mrs. Foot, It feels sooooo good! 🙂
Amanda- You are so sweet! There’s no telling how many tadpoles I killed cleaning out that pond! I admire your environmentally friendly attitude!
Cait- Yes, hopefully I can share my garden party ideas sometime soon!!
Kara,
Did you guys do the fence where the boards run horizontally? I really want a version of this for our yard and am looking for advice.
NickieRock@gmail.com
Thank you,
Nickie