Monday, July 28, 2014

Patio

Okay, I made all of you listen to me whine and whine and whine about this patio project and how badly it had started out.  Then I didn't bother to show you the finished project that I made you listen to me complain about!  Sorry for the whining and complaining; thank you for listening.  Really unnecessary whining in the end is what I must show you....I may be known as the project-doer-that-cried-wolf from now on.  

I told you it was REALLY YELLOW after the first stain color.  
I had a vision for this backyard; I just didn't know how to get there.  Luckily Chuck Evens landscape-architect-extraordinaire knew how to get us there!  We can never thank him enough! 

Chuck loaded a Uhaul with plants and brought them to us and we planted them where he directed us to plant.  

Seriously, he gave up his entire Memorial weekend to help us....

Here's the corner that we didn't know what to do with after the structure got a little bigger than we expected.  Chuck had the perfect idea.

Coffee on the morning of the second day of working.  

The second day of working ended in some rain and some shots from the neighbor Jerry.  Jerry and Chuck, along with Beth K and Sue E and Greg L, kept us from tearing down the entire thing this fall when we didn't know how we were going to get from park shelter to what we have now.  Thanks for the encouragement all!

Enjoying the rainy rest.  

Chuck came with Andrew and Norah; Sue had to work.  The kids were pretty much unsupervised most of the 3 days.  Particularly the last day when I had the flu.  Some of the things they did:
Norah and Luke threw some kind of food all over the kitchen (they at least told me right away they did it.)  So, as punishment I had them clean it up; 
Which led to more giggling than throwing the food all over the place!  Good attitudes I guess!?!
The swing is a fave among the kiddos.  
They even did their own hair!  And ate freezies all day because they'd ask us and we'd just say "sure, whatever."  Those freezies disappeared after that weekend after I picked up snips of plastic and wiped up drips of juice everywhere after coming out of my flu-ness.  

If you build it, they will come...
Ahhhhh....
dinner alfresco in the shade.  That's what I was hoping for!
Perfect spot for cuddle-fun!
Finished project:

We hope to put in a bar with a fridge at some point where the old, outdoor table is next to the garbage can. 
We didn't let Chuck do any work while he was at our house for the 4th of July!!!