Last summer, we talked about stripping and re-staining our little deck off the back of the house. This past February, we dreamed a little bigger and had my cousin come tear it down instead. After a snowstorm or two, I met with the most amazing deck builders ever, Mike and Larry Beeson, a father-son team and friends of my dad's and experts at their craft. In late March, they staked out the project, dug a few holes, poured some cement, and it snowed again. Another few weeks passed, and in between snow and rainy days, the deck began to take shape. Week by week, the redwood pergola was stained, the electricity wired, the sprinklers reworked, the fans installed, and finally the Trex was nailed into place. We finally had a deck! That first night, with no furniture yet, I sat on the deck with my Polaroid SLR 680 and some ice cream. The following Monday, my patio furniture arrived and I assembled it all the next day, and the dining table and chairs the day after that. I worked the entire next day out on the love seat, laptop on the table, a stack of papers weighed down under my phone. It was glorious. We had our first breakfast out there last Sunday, and had the neighbors over for Pie Sunday that night. I couldn't stop smiling. The Roman shades were installed Monday, as well as strings of small clear globe lights. Tuesday night I cooked dinner for a friend and we sat outside for a couple hours, delightfully shaded from the warm evening sun in our beautiful new outdoor room. A few finishing touches remain on my part, things like installing a new screen door and potting some decorative grasses and foliage here and there, and moving my herbs outside finally. They've been holed up on the kitchen table since March. All in all, it's ridiculously exciting and beautiful, and I can't stop admiring our new space.
I came home Wednesday evening from work to find the boys hard at work elevating my garden and doing some last minute sprinkler work. They are truly amazing, these men. My backyard and my dad's front, back, and side yards are a testament to their craftsmanship and hard work. Mike called Thursday to let me know that my garden was ready for planting and they'd be back Monday to finish the rest of the project. I finally have the backyard I've been dreaming about for over a year, despite thinking all I needed was to re-stain my tiny former deck. Tomorrow, I'm heading to the nursery for plants, then flexing my green thumb in my lovely new elevated garden. I've got some pretty Evening Sun sunflowers to plant as well, and then I'll turn on the sprinklers and look around smiling. I think we'll have dinner out there every night next week. Fresh salads and pasta, and maybe even some ice cream.
And with all of this gushing about how cool my new backyard is, I am now crossing #5 off my list, with #15 soon to follow. Yay! I'm sure I'll have many more photos to share of the space as the weather warms and the finishing touches are completed.
