Working outside

Saturday we spent most of our day working outside in our "yard". Our back patio consists of a nice covered space with concrete and pavers and then a 4x20 space of rocks with a really awkward dirt mound right in the middle. SO random!! We really like the shaded area and a few weeks ago Oliver "helped" me hang some outside lighting, but that awful pile and dirt rock needed to go. We made it happen on Saturday. Tim and I spend an hour shoveling rocks into buckets and redistributing them in our front courtyard where there were some thin spaces in the already existing rock. Then Tim dug up some really obnoxious bricks (they were encircling the dirt mound) with a pick axe and we walked them out to the dumpster in our alley. Then my dad came over and helped Tim mix up the dirt which he said was more like concrete. They mixed in some top soil and we planted 50 plugs of dichondra (kinda looks like clover to me) and two fig ivy's. Even having the rocks gone and the dirt flat makes the area look so much better. Now I am going to have to wait impatiently for the plants to spread and share their green goodness. The best part of the afternoon? We finished in time to get in a little swimming at my parents and have dinner with friends. We also watched the Impossible which was amazing. Such an overwhelming true story. I LOVE productive and relaxing weekends.

How great is that mood lighting? Now we just need to get a nice table and chairs. If you look close enough you can see the dirt mound in the back that I'm talking about.

While hauling rocks, Oliver decided to catch a free ride with Tim in the bucket. The boy was so dirty when it was nap time that we had to give him a bath.

Our "concrete" dirt

The goods. Don't green plants just make you feel refreshed?

My little farmer. His hat still kills me!

Proof that I helped too. I didn't just micromanage :)

After (who didn't roll up the hose?)

This is the view from our bedroom window. I will be much happier waking up to a patch of green goodness than a pile of ugly rocks!!