The last weekend in June was all hands (well, my hands) on deck – I had had enough.  Sitting at work on Thursday I started cooking up some grand plans for the yard, and more specifically, the yard in the days to come.  And maybe less “grand plans” than “feasible solo projects.”  I have Fridays through Mondays off (I know, I know…) so I have A LOT more time to do house projects than Ryan does.  This means much of the manual labor around here falls to me.  Which is fine, because then I can be as anal retentive as I want about how things get done.  (So that’s that.)

Here are some before pictures of the yard.  I was so anxious to get started on Friday morning that I forgot to actually take photos before I started working, but I’m pretty sure the idea of “unfinished project” still comes across.

A couple of “befores” of the areas to be renovated.  To say we let the weeds go a little too far is an understatement.

After a couple days of tilling and pulling and tilling and pulling and hauling endless bags to the curb, here’s where I’m at. So close. This dirt area is going to get sod, so we have a little more lawn and less weed-pulling.

Anyone that knows me, also knows about our bizarre yard. The previous owners had a couple dogs, a couple kids, and a less-than-perfect reputation for flinging things at-will into the backyard abyss. This means that every time, and I mean every time, Ryan and I do a little landscaping, we find amazing and sometimes puzzling treasures. This may be the most awesome find yet. I posted this on Twitter with the caption “Somewhere, there is a super hero action figure missing his satellite laptop.” If you know this household at all, the fact that I found a miniature laptop is pretty awesome.  Had to take time out from manual labor to snap a picture.

And because staring at all the work left to be done can cause one to burst into tears of frustration, I leave you with these two images.  When the task at hand seems insurmountable, it helps to take in what HAS been completed.  This summer I’ve already spent a considerable amount of time in the front yard making our house look presentable – stopping at the end of a hard work day to take a few pictures of healthy flowering plants made me feel a little better.  If I whipped the front yard into shape, I can do the same with the back.  Just a little perseverance, is all.  (And some serious ibuprofen.)