Weed Whacking Monster.

Call me weird, but I enjoy mowing the grass. I also love the smell of fresh cut grass. It reminds me of my grandfather. I used to mow his grass when he was no longer able to mow it. He would sit on the front porch swing and watch me make my rounds. If I took too long, he would get up to check on me.  Some times when I am mowing, I can almost see him sitting on his swing smiling at me as I go by. 

The weed eater is a different story. To say that I dislike weed eating is an understatement. It doesn’t help that we have a big yard that needs a lot of trim work. Last week while I was whacking the weeds around two of my freshly planted flowers, I got a bit too close and took out a piece of my new shrimp plant. Not a smooth move. I needed to find a solution to protect my two new additions from the weed whacking monster. Out to the shed I went to see what kind of wood we had.

 I found some 2x4s, old lattice, and a few pieces of wooden fence slats.  I only had about 5 pieces of lattice left from the pergola project that were sitting in the burn pile. They were all the same size. Yea! I measured the width of them and made my boxes that wide so I wouldn’t have to make more cuts. Keep in mind that I have only been friends with the saw for about two weeks and I get the wording wrong for tools so be kind if I get a few things mixed up. I just made a square box to make it easier. Here are my steps.

• I cut the 2x4s the length that I needed for my boxes on the chop saw. I needed 12 pieces for each box. (4 for the bottom, 4 for the top, and 4 to connect the top and bottom). I cut 6 pieces on the chop saw and then ripped them length wise in half to make the 12 pieces.

• I used screws and my drill to make the top and bottom base. I attached them together with the remaining 4 pieces.

• I measured and cut the pieces of lattice for each side. I nailed them on with little white nails so I wouldn’t crack the wood.

• I used my scrap fence slat for the top ledge. I cut the lengths that I needed and nailed them like a picture frame on the top of my box. I didn’t make any angles. I also didn’t make a bottom for my box. I didn’t need a planter. I just needed a plant protector. 

• The last step was to put sealer on it to protect it from the rain.

Not perfect by any stretch but I like it. It matches the pergola with the different kinds of wood. Most importantly, it protects the plants from the weed whacking monster.

 

Simplify Life One Step At A Time

Back Yard Bliss

We had a spot in our back yard that was just wasted space. One part was a big concrete slab that has been there since we bought our house over 10 years ago. The other part was a raised pile of dirt with a retaining wall that was falling apart. 
 

In the beginning, I just wanted to replace the retaining wall. I priced out the landscape timbers that would be needed. Way too much money. I wanted to come up with something cheaper, or better yet, free. I just love that word. FREE. One day while I was down by the pier, an idea came to me. Mooring Poles! That’s it! I wanted my retaining wall to look like the mooring poles at the pier.  My hubby just looked at me about the same time that the idea came to me. He said he saw that look in my eye. Ya know the one of determination? 

My husband has taught me patience when it comes to things we want. His wise words are, “Be patient and wait. It will come to you.” Sure enough, he comes home one day and tells me he has my pole. FOR FREE!!  I was so excited.  One by one, we cut the poles to size and dug the holes. It took about two weeks of working on and off to finish. Here is a picture of the beginning process. 

With the pole looking so pretty, I decided that the big pile of dirt needed some flowers.  I went about the yard looking for some plants that might need a new home. I found my center piece next to my air conditioner. It was a big beautiful morning glory. I found a few others that need new homes then headed to the store to get prices for the rest. I wanted most of the plants to be green and self sufficient. I wanted some color but not a lot that I would have replace every year.  I bought a few plants at a time as we could afford it. 

Sago Saga

Before I could even begin with the garden, I had to get a huge Sago out of the middle of my space. Hubby to the rescue. His work truck has a crane on the back that was just perfect for this situation.  

With the Sago in its new home, I was ready to start planting. This process was also done a few plants at a time. Gardening is hard work.  Before long, I was standing back admiring my new garden. This is the first garden that I have designed and planted myself. I am happy with how it turned out.  Very Pretty. 

The red things in the back are mushrooms made out of a red bowl, piece of stump, and a white dobber. My daughter's creation.

 

The next step began when I came home with some chairs that were on my Granny’s porch.  She got these chairs many years ago. When I got them home, I realized that they were not in very good shape. In fact, they were in such bad shape that they were not safe to sit in. This made me very sad. I am very sentimental. I have spent so many holidays sitting in these chairs because there wasn’t enough room in the house.  So my wonderful hubby suggests making new ones that look like hers.  PERFECT. We built two love seats and 4 chairs.  

The red chair is my Granny's chair and the other one is the one we built.

A few months later, my hubby comes to work with this drawing on a napkin. He had been out of town on business and had seen this while driving. It kind of looked like a pergola that was a triangle shaped. He said he wanted to build something similar to that but more of a rectangle shape. He wanted to build it over the blank piece of concrete next to our new mooring poles. He said he had most of the material already.

Let the building begin. My husband tells me over and over that he is not a handy man but a diesel engine rebuilder. The engine rebuilder continues to amaze me with his handy man skills. I don’t know if he makes it up as he goes or he knows more that he is letting on. Either way, he does an awesome job to me.  We worked on this a little bit each weekend until it was finished. 

We need just a bit more mulch for the back of the chairs.

The last part of this project was to make a spot for my Granny’s swing. This is another one of my favorite things. I used to go to her house as a child and swing with her for hours. What wonderful memories. I love to swing to this day. It brings me instant stress relief, relaxation, and fond memories. I wanted a spot that was dry for the most part. On the edge of the concrete was another piece of cement that would be a perfect spot. We built this part on to the pergola. 

Granny's swing has a new home.

The wonderful view from my swing.

 Our little Back Yard Spot is just perfect for us. We wanted a rustic look. With all of the different pieces of lumber, that’s exactly what we got. We spent about $400 on the garden, chairs, and the pergola. 

 Simplify Life One Step At A Time