Thursday, December 04, 2008

A YARD!!

It is a very exciting day in our house because we finally have a backyard!! When we first bought this house 4 years ago.... one of the selling points was the large backyard. We had lots of plans for this backyard but time and money kept getting in the way! So we scaled down to a very simple landscape plan and decided to hire a company to do it for us since time is still not in our favor.

When we first moved in the backyard had 8 citrus trees and a fig tree. Unfortunately they weren't well taken care of and the only one that produced fruit was a lemon tree and it still wasn't even good for juicing. I spent a year pouring fertilizer and trying to save the trees but it was a lost cause. I'm sure I have a picture of it somewhere but I can't find it right now - so just take my word for it. It looked like the previous owners were trying to have their own private forest!

So we tore them all out last year when we had the equipment from the pool business and ended up with a wide open space.

Then that space grew to a weed factory. We were scared to go out there because the weeds had taken over! This is what our backyard looked like on Monday. I'm a little embarrassed at the condition of our yard. It was a weed and junk yard haven and I didn't even like any windows on the back of the house open because it was so bad out there.

Fast forward to Tuesday with the weeds removed and the sprinkler system being worked on.


Wednesday with the curbing up and the rocks and trees and plants in place.


And here is today with the grass in! Ellie and the dogs went racing outside and just ran and ran and ran. It may not look like much but it makes me so happy to have grass! Hallelujah! Now we can enjoy the "winter" in Arizona outside. I love it! And I'm pretty sure Ellie is a fan since she hardly took a nap today and wanted to go play outside again.

17 comments:

Shanna said...

It looks fabulous!! What a transformation - you are going to LOVE it! I may need to come out and inspect it in person though ;) It is still amazing to me that you have green grass all winter long.

Kristen Michele said...

wow, it looks great!! makes our yard look horrible. ours is huge too, but we have moles and fruit trees and its just a mess right now. i'm jealous :)

Christina MC said...

What an amazing transformation. I'm excited to see it. I miss soft green grass and hope J can work some miracles on our yard in the next year.

Nikki said...

That is a BEAUTIFUL backyard! Congrats on finishing such a wonderful asset to your home. I think having a place outside for little ones to play in is the most important thing a house can have. Ellie sure does look like she's in heaven.

Ashley Dent said...

Whoo hoo for grass yards!!! Enjoy it!

The Hall's said...

Hooray! The backyard looks awesome! That will be such a blessing...large, fenced backyards are the only way to go! Enjoy it!

Christina said...

Beautiful!

Janelle said...

oh, what i would give for a yard for our boys. it looks beautiful. how exciting!!!

Christine said...

LOVE IT! I think it's just bigger than our new place and yes it's all grass and we hired landscapers :)
Can't wait to come see it next week.

Claire said...

Its fabulous!!! I love it. I can't lie, I'm jealous of how big it is!! They just don't make yards like that anymore. What a great place for Ellie to run and play. I'm glad you were able to get it done so quickly. Now you have PLENTY of time to enjoy it before the hotter than sin summer... :D

Erin said...

That looks great! The weedy backyard reminded me of mine when we lived in AZ. It was a nightmare and like you I hated looking outside. It's nice to see so much grass in AZ. If we ever move back it's going to be hard to get used to the rocks again and not the grass everywhere. Ellie will love it. We put in a sandbox and though it is SO annoying my boys absolutely love it, so the sand that I am constantly cleaning is worth it!

Erin said...

I tagged you!

Paula said...

Our yard is looks like your before pictures. It is horrible and I too shut the blinds on the windows facing the back. It looks great and I am sure it feels awesome to finally have it done.

heidi said...

lovely!!! i am inspired to at least trim my shrubery today. or tomorrow. or later.

Hadley Family Clan! said...

Oh my gosh I LOVE your yard. I am sooooo happy for you and it looks amazing. How fun and rewarding to have such a big backyard that Ellie and your dogs can run around in. I am excited for playgroup next week and all the fun the girls will have running around. YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!

The Becks said...

Your yard looks incredible. And... it's huge! We never did get around to putting in a backyard in the first house we built. We completed the front but sold it before the back was done. What a difference this made. Enjoy away!

The*Evans*Family said...

Looks great! Our yard is at the "over grown weed stage" at the present time! This week we are going to get rid of those and try leveling things out a bit. Matt's parents are doing curbing for Christmas! I just might have grass is 2009!