YEAR OF THE YARD

I should probably say yearS of the yard since we actually spent several months last summer and ALL of this summer working on the yard! But we are now at the point where anything else we do is just fluff. We have done the grunt work (although planting bulbs has caused Ben to grunt a lot) and now we can enjoy :) After this Christmas, I am going to make everything I've blogged for the last three years into a book (blog2print.com), so I wanted to make a record of all the hard work we've done so in the future we can look back and remember. So this might be boring. I don't have any before pics, but just imagine weeds and dirt and that about it. I also didn't include any pictures of the front yard. We have worked a lot on that too, but the backyard is especially rewarding because we put it in from scratch, while the front at least had sod and sprinkling system when we moved in.

Last fall we were able to put the trampoline in the ground, get sprinkling system done, lay sod, and do the concrete pad. But this year, I look back on all the work we've done and I seriously cannot believe it!!! The fence was a big one, and thank goodness we did not do that ourselves because everything else was way more difficult and time consuming than we could ever imagine! Way back in the corner you can see the shed we put together. It lived in the garage for about a week while we built it which was nice since it was so rainy.
In April my Mom helped pick out most of these plants. I love that most are perennials and will get better and better each year (I hope). We have gotten several pickup loads of bark to spread around the flower beds, and I HIGHLY recommend getting bark this way instead of buying by the bag. It's way cheaper if you are getting a lot of bark.

We also did the "garden wall" as we call it. That was one of the first things we did this spring. The garden boxes are behind it, and next spring we will plant vegetables in them. We scored some cheap trex on KSL and built them out of that. It's hard to see, but there are stepping stones that lead into and around the garden boxes. Then there's the playset. Ben and I nearly killed eachother while putting this together. It wasn't a bad one to put together, but just imagine Ben standing on the platform holding the roof up which was big and VERY heavy for one person, while I look for the right screws and bolts and keep dropping them on the ground and having to climb back down to get them. All while Ben continues to grunt and sweat under the weight of the roof. It was awesome.

Ben built this firepit and the benches around it. The sandbox also has a bench around it, kind of hard to see. We used trex for that too. So far no cat poop in the sand box. I don't know, maybe there is Malia poop since I sometimes let her run around naked. Who knows. The flagstones were GREAT fun (sarcasm) to put it. First we had to go GET them from someone's backyard where they had been previously used around a pond, and were covered with dirt and spiders. But now it's done and the bitterness of what a PAIN it all was is fading :) In the spring I am going to plant moss-like ground cover seed between the stones. We have used that firepit several times and it is so fun to have. It's also nice and tall to keep little ones from falling in.
The side yard. There are two flower beds back in the corner that will have trees and flowers someday. The rocks that you see are just a small sample of what goes all around the house. We got those rocks from our own lovely dirt. Payson soil is ROCKY!!!!! I can't emphasize that enough. But at least we got free rocks.
A few fun little things are the chiminea and potted plants. The big one in the front is actually cemented in the ground. We learned the hard way that it was not going to stay upright if a the umbrella is up and a gust of wind comes along, even though it had a whole bag of cement inside of the pot. The umbrella is strategically placed to provide shade to the area where the chairs are since we get late afternoon sun there.

A few more things we did, for my own memories (again, ignore this, it is boring): curbing, gravel (lots and lots of gravel), rolls and rolls and rolls of weed fabric, two dumptruck loads of dirt (the poor wheelbarrow has really worked hard this year), stained the deck, planted 5 trees, and countless plants.
Wow Riley! You really are just like Spiderman!!!

Kindergarten, Soccer, 10K, Labor Day

Riley started Kindergarten this year!!! I am so excited for him. I loved getting him all registered, going to the office, walking around the halls and seeing the lunchroom and gym. All those things take me right back to when I was in elementery and I can't believe HE is about to start this new phase of his life. The first day he was so excited and didn't have ANY problem with me leaving, which was a great relief to me. I love this! He gets out of the house and learns and has a good time, and I can run errands or whatever with just Malia who thankfully isn't old enough to say "I want that!" about everything she sees in the store.

Riley and his pal Hayden

They got star treatment coming into the building with red carpet and all.

Two pairs of chubby, happy cheeks. This was just before I left the classroom and set him free in his new adventure of KINDERGARTEN!!!!!!

This is also his first year of soccer, so it's a big year for my little guy. He loves soccer, and he thinks the shingaurds are so cool. He's been a little discouraged because it's hard for him to get in there and get the ball and score a goal. I mean, lets face it there are 14 or so kids all huddled together trying to kick one little ball...that's a lot of little legs and bodies and who in their right mind would purposely jump in the middle of that! I've been telling Riley it's no big deal if he doesn't get a goal, just to keep trying and have fun. But the other day he scored his first goal, and he was so proud of himself. We were so proud of him too, and because we love him so much we will wait until he's much older to tell him that unfortunately the game was already over when he scored that goal :) But he finally found his moment to get the ball all to himself and take it all the way down the field and score an awesome goal, afterwhich he turned around and gleefully clapped for himself! Nevermind that he had no competition because the other kids were starting to find their way off the field and to their parents. Way to go Riley!!!!!

Riley and Hayden

For some crazy reason, I told my friend that I would run the Labor Day 10K with her. I told her this at 3 am when we were both at work, and any one who works nights knows that you sometimes say things you regret or don't mean. I went ahead and registered and had two weeks to get ready, during which time I ran probably 3 times and never a full 6 miles. So I was nervous when it came time for the race. But I have to say, it was a blast (except for miles 3,4,5,and6 and getting up at 6am) but the finish line was AWESOME and I did it in just under an hour! I also love how people hand you water cups along the way, and then it's okay for you to just toss the cup to the side of the road. I felt kind of bad about that, but it also made me feel cool like "I am a professional, serious runner and I have no time to throw this cup away properly." Ha! Ben and the kids were there waiting for me, and so was my Dad, Laurie, and my brothers Ben and Sam and sister Kelsey. I think this may be the start of something great!

It was a great Labor Day weekend! My family came and stayed over Sun night. After the 10K the next morning I hung out with family, saw the parade, went out to lunch, took a long nap, and then watched Avatar at Sam and Stacia's house. They just finished their basement and it is SO cool and makes me want to get started on ours. They have a projector and movie screen, and their is nothing like watching a movie like that sprawled out on a comfy couch with surround sound and a blanket! Waaaaay better than the theater :)

Riley trying not to smile :)

Dad, Sam, Riley, Ben, Malia (mooching) Laurie, Kelsey, and Little Ben.

How cool are these guys! I love how Riley's ears are being smooshed. Glad they were wearing their safety goggles to play with Sam's little flying helicopter.