Backyard Baby Steps

I've moaned and groaned about my backyard and it's craptastic state for a long time now. I got tired of listening to myself and took two little baby steps in making it somewhere that I would like to spend time.

I have to start by telling you that my mom and I SKIN the plant clearance racks at Lowe's on a regular basis. They always have great plants that just need to be watered (most of the time) for like $1.00 to $1.25 and the same plants were going for $7-$10 a week ago. So with that in mind, I decided it was time to beautify the backyard.

So I took these..

And some of this:

 And we turned this dirt patch (with a lovely stump) ...

 

Into this..

I can see this flower bed from my kitchen window and it makes me happy...worth every minute I had manure compost on me (note to self, next time don't wear flip flops).

 The pinkish-red bell flowers attract hummingbirds & butterflies.  I also have Veronica Lavender and Autumn Joy Sedum in this bed.

And the stump is being very helpful in keeping my lovely pot upright.

And look who is still around!! Here is one of the little black kittens from earlier this summer.  Unfortunately, only 2 of the 5 are still here - we named them Kevin & Pickles.  I don't know what happened to the others.  They're scaredy cats and it has taken weeks & weeks for them to trust us.  They eat by the back door instead of the very back of the yard and I can pet them now. I'm taking them to the vet next week..we're just winging it from there.  I'd love to rehome them but 2 skiddish kittens are a hard sell.  Although, Kevin is turning into a love bug..so I think they will be wonderful little kitties once I can really get my hands on them. 

Ok, moving on...here's the second bed...

I already had some of these plants here but it needed to be cleaned up.  A little bit of hump-busting work on a Saturday and we're done!  It looks a little weinee-ish now but these plants will fill out and be gorgeous next year. 

 I'm going to have some fun in the back with color.

And check out these great pallets!!  I am thinking we'll work these into some kind of outdoor furniture around the fire pit (that doesn't exist yet, but we're working on it).

And one little nod to the garden that we've enjoyed all summer...

They were delicious!

 Thai Basil - yummm! We made flavored oil, added it to salads and gave quite a bit away, too.  The flavor is amazing and it smells just as good!

 

So bye to summer fun...until next year...

(Two posts in 2 days...are you amazed?)

Smell ya later,

Hallway & Some Befores

For pete's sake!  It's been a MONTH since I've been on here!  I feel like the page creaked when it loaded just now.  When I have to choose between family, work, my sanity or blogging...blogging gets kicked to the curb.

While my job can be demanding at times, I work with some pretty awesome people.  In fact, my hilarious friend & coworker, Leslie, sent me this card.  I got it in the mail today and LAUGHED my head off....

 The inside reads, "A bad day is all about perspective."

Classic.  She's the best & I don't know what I would do without her!

So let me show you the hallway.  We finished it a few weeks ago and I'm pretty happy with the new look.

Before:

I had already taken down pictures and started patching the walls.

After:

Ta-da!!!  Yes, it's a white hallway.  Seriously, though this was A LOT of work.  Brian installed all new trim, added crown molding and then I caulked & painted everything.  The devil is in the details and he whipped me on this one, but it was totally worth it!  

 Here it is at night with the light dimmed.....looooove it! 

 

Here's a view from the back of the hall. I have some blank frames hanging while I work out which pictures go where.  This will also motivate me to get enlargements finally made of vacation pictures.  I'm the worst about getting that kind of stuff done.

What I really like is that I can easily add more pictures and go bananas with frames from ceiling to floor, and it will totally work with my look here.

 Other side.

We used the slip-on corner pieces and I love how easy they are to install (or I should say Brian loved how easy they were to install.)

I flipped the attic cover and found this grooved wood.   Love it!

And yet, another angle.  It feels more open and brighter now. 

Before I run, let me show you really quick what I have going on for the next few days (and next couple of years)...

 I have this chest painted and will be putting the finishing touches on it sometime this weekend.  This one is going up for sale.

 I'm sanding the top of this coffee table and will stain it, then paint the legs. It's a nice solid piece.   

This is what's going to take a few years...my backyard rehab...

We had 2 Bradford Pear trees removed last week.  It's always hard for me to pull the trigger on trees but it had to be done.  (Bradford Pears are brittle and will split in half and make a mess.)  We have a lot of work to do but this was a good start.  Now that we're getting some good sun back here, we're going to relocate and expand our garden for next year.   

And I'm working on this..

  When the guys cut the trees down, they trashed my trumpet vine.  Not a big deal - it needed to be pruned anyway.  A little TLC and some paint and this will be ready to enjoy when the weather cools down some. 

Mom says that as long as you own a home you will never be finished.  And you know what? She's right!  Thanks for reading and I'll talk to you soon!

I'm linking to The Before & After Party at TDC,  Anything Goes at Type A.

Hugs-