New Backyard in Time for a Party!

I'm going to double-up in this post and talk about two things:  1) our renovated backyard that has been a long time coming, and 2) the little celebration that took place in our new backyard this weekend.  Here goes - lots of pictures!

We bought our current little bungalow in April 2011.  Tax day, to be exact, which meant that both Uncle Sam AND the bank took a helluva lot of money from us that day.  :)  After closing on the house April 15th, James wanted to start renovating the backyard by...hum, let's see...the 16th?   It was bad, y'all.  The only things that were green were weeds, but even they were having trouble growing due to all the rocks and debris.  A huge selling point of the house was definitely the size of the yard (in comparison to the neighborhood), but the fact that it was a barren wasteland meant it needed lots of TLC-time.  And some money.  Neither of which we were rolling in by the time we actually got into the house.

Fast forward a year.  By the Spring of 2012, James was dying to get started on the backyard.   He would sit on the deck, look down, and sigh.   We would mow the "weeds" so that it looked halfway decent to the neighbors, but one step off the deck and you knew it was a sham.  By the time we brought Enda home and I spent time playing in the tall weeds, I was ready to join him in the constant complaints - something had to be done!!

We had some professionals do a design for us, mostly to make sure that we were using appropriate plants, allowing for proper drainage, etc.  Our yard is really shady with a pretty good slope - not really for amateurs.  After we got the plans, James shifted into PM-mode to tackle the actual backyard build.

"Let's do this"

I won't go into details about how it was done, because I don't think either of us want to remember that chaotic time.  Let's just say we carefully utilized our skilled labor network to do the heavy lifting, took advantage of being our own general contractors and learned to navigate wholesale supply companies, and earned "premium renter" status at Home Depot which means we no longer have to put down a deposit for a piece of equipment (woo hoo!)

And now...some before and after shots!

View from the back of the yard, looking up to the house:

BEFORE 

AFTER

AFTER

View from the top of the deck, looking out over the yard:

BEFORE

DURING

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

A little more explanation about what we did and what you're seeing.  This top part of the yard was where we had the most issues.  Our neighbors had warned us that NOTHING would ever grow there for past home owners, except for some really unruly, random bushes (which we replanted down in the back flowerbeds - no waste!).  So, we bypassed grass and went for rock:  paver patio with a rock seat wall, place for the Green Egg, and cabinets for storage of Green Egg accessories.  We also ran a gas line under the patio for the gas fire pit and gas hook-up in the grilling area (for the turkey fryer).  We laid down sod, created some flowerbeds with lots of perennials, and made a raised garden which is now a feeding trough for some irritating squirrels.  (There was some other work down on the sides of the house to create rock paths from the front to the back - so much better than trekking through snake infested, overgrown ground cover!!)

We LOVE our backyard.  Love, love, love it.  Since we entertain so much, it's also a wonderful place to hang out with friends.  Leading me to the second part of this post - our first backyard party!!

Our dear friend, Michael Murphy, graduated with his MBA this July.  A very grueling 20 months balancing both a demanding full-time job plus school - what an accomplishment! Kellee threw him a lovely party, and we officially broke in the patio.  We even turned on the gas fire pit since the summer temps flirted with 70 degrees that night.  (Here in the South, that's "chilly".)

Not a lot of pictures from the party or of the party guests, but I did manage a few of the usual crowd!

Kellee and Calvin

The Murphys

The Sassers

A classic Southern, celebratory Hummingbird Cake

Big THANKS to James for all his work the past 4 months to make this backyard a reality for us (as the "after" shots were after a lot of time and work).  And a big CONGRATS to Michael on his achievements - so glad we were able to celebrate!