Backyard Makeover

When we moved in last summer we new there was a lot we wanted to do to the backyard. The previous owners hadn't done a whole lot with it and what they did do we weren't to excited to keep (lets just say a TON of rocks and sand! YUCK!!!!). So our big goal was to take this summer and do what we could to make it what we wanted. So instead of having the worlds largest blog post at the end of the summer I have decided to give you piece by piece throughout the summer. Hope you enjoy watching our amateur landscaping skills. And get a good laugh cause I am sure it will be comical!

After 2 days of jackhammering (sorry I forgot to take pictures, much to Corts dismay) the old patio was taken out piece by piece, LITERALLY!!! Cort did all of the lifting and putting in the truck with a little help from the boys. Hallalejiah it is all out now!!! In Cort's words "I think that will be the hardest part of the whole backyard!"

Here is the truck with its 2nd load to the gravel pit. It was so heavy I thought the truck was going to tip backward. Besides the gravel pit we had to take a bunch of crap they had behind the fence to the dump. It finally doesn't look like the dump behind our fence!!

This is the only part that hasn't been torn out yet. We are giving the neighbors a break from the jackhammer! And there is our tree! Cort has been eyeing this tree at Home Dapot for awhile and so it was purchased for our landscaping. Here is its home until we are ready to put it in the ground.

This will be full of plants in the not so distant future. We were pretty proud that it turned out so nice. Cort took a lot of time making sure that every stone was level. Now we just need more soil in it and then we can plant!

This entire spot where there is no grass was a giant kitty litter/sandbox!! We (Cort and I) hated this the most. Just imagine how much sand was in my carpet, rugs, couches, boy's shoes and pants pockets. Way more than I ever wanted!! So that was the first thing to go. We used a mini excavater and after a lot of laughs and some help from my dad and brothers it was gone. Now we just need to get our plants in so we can put down grass seed! I love grass!! Can I say that again I LOVE GRASS!!!!

Here is what it looks like with the concrete gone. Our little raker is trying to get all the small pieces in a pile. Such a good helper!!

I just have to say that I am really grateful for a wonderful husband that didn't complain about my inability to help with the heavy stuff, because I am prego, and all the other helpers we have had so far. I am sure we will have a lot more help as the project continues through the summer!

P.S. If you didn't catch that in the last paragraph, just thought we would let all those who didn't know that we are expecting baby #4 in sept/oct!!! Should be a fun summer project with a giant belly!