The Backyard Project

     This past winter I had been doing a lot of thinking about our back yard and what I would like to change and what we could do to make it look better.  So after doing a lot thinking I had this thought, so I said to Steve, " I have a great idea! Lets dig a large hole in our backyard and make the neighbors think we really are crazy!" NO!  that's not what I really said, but I think that is probably how Steve heard it because he was very hesitant and not really motivated to start this project.  Since Steve is such a smart, wonderful husband he knew I would keep pestering him until it was done so he reluctantly said okay and helped me plan out what we were doing.  

     I believe the neighbors thought we were putting in an in ground pool or maybe that we were just board and wanted to dig a hole in the yard.  What we were actually doing was digging out a large section of lawn that swing set and play structure sat on so we could fill it in with mulch and make it look nicer and be safer for the kids when they are playing.  The other reason for doing this is because the grass wasn't looking so good from the kids playing and the dog's doing there thing on every corner of the swing set.  It seem like a simple, fun, cheap project......I was wrong!  After 7+ of digging out sod and dirt I was second guessing the idea but you can't really go back.  Let me just say I have a great husband, he knew all along it wasn't going to be fun or easy that is why he was reluctant to start and he went along with me anyway.  We went to bed that night very tired and sore and woke up the next day feeling the same way. We put nice garden edging around to help keep all the mulch in.  After wrestling with that and hauling load after load of top soil and sod out of the hole it was ready for the land scape fabric and mulch but since it was now 8:30pm on Sunday night we ran out of time and realized that the back of our little Ford Explorer wasn't going to hold all the mulch we needed to fill the large hole, we decided to beg Steve's parents to come the next weekend with the truck to help.Thankfully they said YES.

     So now a week later we were ready to fill the the hole and be done.  We had a truck coming and a few extra hands perfect!  Not so much!!  Steve thought he would take a trip over to the city where we were going to get the mulch the next day, FOR FREE. You will never guess!  Yup, nothing, they were completely out of it.  So now we have the truck and no free mulch.  You see this project was going to be a very cheap one.  I got all the garden edging for free from various places, I had to buy spikes to put the edging in and the land scape fabric, staples  and that was it.  Unfortunately we were forced to spend $106.00 on the mulch that was suppose to be free.  

All I have to say is it looks great and was well worth the money and it smells great because it is cedar mulch.  It wouldn't look that good with the free stuff we were going to use.  I am just glad it is done and I think Steve still loves me??  My arms and back don't hurt anymore and we can now return our new lawn mower because we can just trim our back yard with scissors since there isn't much lawn left.