Landscaping

(Started in May)  About this time, every year since we've been at this house, we get the fever for home improvement.  I think it's largely looking at something all Winter and not being able to do much about it--then as soon as it gets warm, we're out of the starting gates.

This year, we decided to landscape the back of the house.  When we got this place, though it had a nice-sized deck, it lacked much actual landscaping.  First, we started in the front yard, then added an island in the back, then a 2nd island, a fence, landscaped the East side of the house, and so on.

With Amara playing in the back yard even more, we were growing more and more sensitive of the air conditioner--and specifically, my fear of her running smack into it.  We had Oakland come out and do a design for us, but their ginormous price tag gave us a huge incentive to do it with our own sweat equity--and Eric got to work sodding.


Of course daddy's little helper wasn't far behind.  She'd take a chunk of sod and walk it over to the wheelbarrow in short order--before we knew it, Eric had removed all the sod and we were ready to go shopping!

(Update from November)

I felt it was only appropriate to update and post this today, after several months.  One, Eric and I finally remembered to take pics of his handiwork (even though the foliage is all off or dead, and it doesn't do justice to how hard he worked on it) and two, we closed on the sale of this house today. 

Unbelievably, it wasn't even on the market much over 2 months--we listed mid-September, and by Mid October we had a 'serious buyer interest,' and well, closed today. 

Use your imagination with what is here--but I particularly love the stone path (I can take partial credit in helping Eric with, though he schlepped all the stone himself) and the fern boxes he and dad built.  I mostly 'installed' all the plants and shrubs, holly's etc. and dad and Eric did all the dirt spreading, mulching, etc.

It looked SO unbelievable right after it was done, right before Amara's birthday--and we had SUCH a hot Summer, it's amazing it all survived.  PLUS, with us having moved out in August, it wasn't trimmed back, or maintained as much as we ordinarily would have.

Eric also took some pics of our existing islands, both of which we designed and built over our 4 years at Schuylar.  It's funny to think these were all 1 gallon shrubs!  Makes us realize we have to document better as we start landscaping here in the Spring!