Time to Work in the Yard

A recent torrential downpour, although welcome, identified a problem to be solved in the yard.

The rain runs down the roof, through the downspout, and onto the roof over the back porch....

....making a small pond right here...,

...then flowing along the side of the sunroom creating a small gully and exposing tree roots.

Time to put these bad boys to work!

 Our neighbor purchased pallet loads of bricks and pavers at an auction for a buck a pallet.

He very generously offered them to us if Brian would load and take them away himself!

He didn't need to offer twice.

We also have a couple pieces of flagstone. This one has been standing at the front corner of the house since before we moved.

The other one is already part of the walk, under these bags of mulch.

The project list includes replacing the gully with bricks, pavers, and ground cover. 

Brian will reroute the downspout in the back and build an extension to the back deck that will have gravel underneath to more effectively soak up the water and cover the muddy spot.

We will also use the bricks to make a new sidewalk to and from the front parking area...,

...as well as borders for flower beds by the porch.

I can not even begin to tell you how delighted I was to find bare dirt, good soil under the leaves I raked away a couple weeks ago. Last fall it was grass covered and I was dreading digging it out.

The current sidewalk is a bit wonky, so we'll be straightening that out.

 The porch is going to get a facelift, too. Well, not a full-blown facelift, let's call it a touch up.

More on that later.

Sorry for the drab pictures.

For one thing, the sun hasn't shone in my neck of the woods for weeks (it feels like, anyway)

and the uglier the before shots, the better the after shots, right?

Thanks for dropping in!