New Year New Attitude

 Obviously my plan of keeping up on the blog didn’t happen. In my defense though I have been having some personal issues this past year and a half that I have been trying to deal with, which I might add I haven’t dealt with very well, and have to admit have been having a very long pity party, Been doing a whole lot of soul searching, and praying trying to deal with this. I have decided there are some things just plain out of my control and that I just can’t change (and believe me I have tried). So I have a choice continue in my self-pity and let life pass me by, or pull my big girl britches up and get on with things. Life is way too short to let it pass me by. So my goal for the New Year is get it together in all aspects of my life. Get back to living frugally, I have really fallen off the tracks on that one ( pretty hard to be motivated when you are having a huge pity party). Blogging regular, more sewing and crocheting, doing more with the kids in daycare. Getting the extra weight off that I have piled on the last couple years and getting a lot more fit.

I moved and renamed the blog in hopes of improving it (I guess in order to improve it you actually have to blog HaHa). I look forward to sharing new things with you all.

Mondays I will be doing the 300 a month, goals and things I am working on. (Sewing, crocheting, working out, canning and herbs) I have several projects in mind.

Tuesdays I will be doing post concerning food, (recipes, canning, shortcuts, and things pertaining to food).

Wednesdays will be herbs I want to highlight one herb a week.

Thursdays will be a whatever, I do want to redo some of my older post, update and redo them I will do this on Thursdays.

Fridays will be a recap of the week in daycare, lessons, crafts, music, P.E. and some of the things we have done.

Saturdays I will do the food storage challenge, This year I want to add some recipes for using you storage.  

Sundays I will not be posting, that is church and family time.

So this is the plan hopefully I can stick to it and get out of my rut. Look forward to seeing you Monday and have a great New Years and stay safe.

 

Hope to see you at the new site Frugal Living on the Ranch.

Fairy Garden

 

I have been wanting to do a fairy garden ever since I discovered them. Well this summer I finally got one put together. I had a small section of my yard that I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it. I had planted mint there but the weeds are so bad that they just took over. So with the fairy garden I could put down a ground cover and not have to worry about the weeds. I have several pictures since it is a little larger then most.  

 

I have a water fall fountain in one corner. The little cabin I got at an action, it was actually part of a pile that Andy had to buy to get the one thing he wanted. Score for me :). I used a lot of slik flowers to dress it up that way I don't have to worry about keeping them all watered.

 

 

OK I wasn't going to use this picture since it has a shadow, but it shows the middle way better ( disregard the  bags of mulch to the side ). I did buy the fairy house on the left at Hobby Lobby when it was 50 % off. I also got a few accessory's and a few fairies (can't have a fairy garden with out fairies, right)  to use. The barn I got from Wal-Mart it is a bird feeder but works for  what I needed.  

This is from the other end, I made a stream with blue aquarium gravel and lined it with rocks from the yard.

One more from the other end. Had to put the fencing up to keep the dogs out. Although the cats have found it so I have to go out every now and then and redo it. 

It was so fun to make and it matches my Gnome garden in the front. The little kids love it

 

 

 

Do you have a fairy garden or want one? 

Why Wal-Mart

On one of my food storage challenge post I received this following  comment / question.


Do you realize the cheap rice and food stuffs at Walmart are the lowest quality and do not last like better grades of food. What are you doing to replace these stores when they run out? Is the soup from walmart canned in 'cans' or in boxes, the boxes do not store and the newer cans are often lined with a plastic than can leach toxins over time. Just a few notes to watch for.

Thought I would do a post on this to explain.

The reason I use Wal-Mart's prices
 
I always advocate for making, growing and canning your own. But I realize that not everybody has the time or are able to do that. I also realize  that money is very tight for most people. So some food storage even if from Wal-Mart is better then none.

Most everybody has a Wal-Mart near by.

These prices give you something to compare to especially if you find a sale price some where else. And this is a starting point, you obviously don't have to get your stuff from Wal-Mart.

As far as storing, I have rice from Wal-Mart that has been stored for close to ten years and it is still good. A lot of it depends on how you are storing it, if things are stored correctly they will last a very long time no matter where they are from. And if you rotate  there shouldn't be a problem.

As far as being able to  replace items, two thoughts here.

Food storage can be helpful in a short term crisis like a job loss, illness, unexpected bills ect.

In a long term crisis you will need to be able to live like our forefathers, grow and produce your own food ,be able to preserve it, eat in season , barter and be as self sufficant as possible. Most of which I talk about in this blog. Food storage can hold you over till you can get to point of producing your own food.

I hope this has answered the questions.

Camping up at Haycamp

We were able to go camping this last weekend, so we decided to go up to haycamp, We also wanted to look around and see if we might want to go hunting up there this fall. It was so nice and cool.

We took the jeep out both days and drove  around all over the place. 

So many pretty flowers were in bloom.

The mountains in the distance, You can tell there was a fire here several years ago.

There were columbines everywhere, guess that is why they are our state flower, and the fact that they are so pretty.

 

A little creek we came on, it was so nice and cool.

Sharks tooth in the distance, we went to it then part way around it.

Jersey Jim lookout fire tower.



I would be very hard pressed to climb that much less sleep in it hahah.



More flowers.

 

I love  fences like this, they just look so old and rustic. Although I wouldn't want to be the one to have to build it.

This is the spot that we camped in so nice and peaceful.

It was so nice to get away for a couple days, I didn't even want to come home. When we did get back home and it was hot and every where I looked was work to be done I really wanted to just turn around and go back haha.

Prayers for Dallas

 

 

 

My heart aches, what an awful day in our society where someone thinks that killing those who protect us is okay. Please keep the department.. The families.. The officers.... the dispatchers...the first responders....the EMS....and the community.... in your prayers. It is so sad to think that 5 families lost a husband, a dad, a son, a part of the community. I just can't believe all the hate that is in this country, it will be our undoing.  

Emotional image from WFAA-TV's Mike Leslie: Dallas Police Department officers standing outside hospital, saluting fallen brethren.

 

 

They should not all be judged by the few bad apples, Most are very good Men and Women who just want to help people. They have families who depend on them they have friends, they support their communities. We need to keep them in our prayers at all times, that they stay strong and safe in these troubled times.

Joleen got her fire badge

 

 I am a little late in posting this. We had our fire banquet a few months ago and Joleen is officially on the Lewis-Arriola fire dept and she got her badge. She worked so hard for this and I am so proud.

 

 

 

 

She worked several years as a brush hog and when she finally got old enough she joined and did her year of rookie training.

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see she has always loved the fire dept. She even had her Prom pictures taken on the fire trucks. ( her date was on the fire dept. to)

 

 

 

 

This was after her first big brush fire. She didn't look so chipper the next day after 18 hours on the same fire. What made it even worst was we had her 20th Birthday party that evening so she had to miss her own party. We are going to try and reschedule something a little later that she can actually be there for haha.

You could see the smoke from the fire from the house.

 

Andy has 18 years in so far, think he is going to go to 20 before he retires. It will be funny when he retires to know we can actually have dinners and plan things with out him getting called out. Although now it will be Joleen who has to always miss out or that we are waiting on.

Happy 4th

" Happy Independence Day America!"
~ God Bless America
We salute today the red, white and blue; ...
Our nation’s colors, those that have always run true.

Our country was founded over 200 years ago today;
Let us take time to thank God, and for our country do pray.
Hard times she has faced and wars she has fought to stay free;
It is the price we willing paid for our liberty.
Let us never forget the lessons our fore fathers tried to teach;
Success in this great country is always within our reach.
We became a nation of laws and doing what’s right;
Sometimes we faltered and failed to see the light.
Today should be a day of reflection and praise to be given;
If not for the brave men then free we would not be livin’.
Our flag has flown over many lands and on every sea;
Let us never forget the price many paid to be free.
Many will go to different places to celebrate with fireworks in the sky; Take time to remember and reflect on why.
Celebrate and enjoy this day with a reverence pause;
For if we forget why, we just may become but a lost cause.
We came from many countries to become one nation of the brave;
Let us also remember this day the price that was paid.
It was to God that our fore fathers did pray and give thanks above;
If we forget, then we may cease to receive His divine love.
So take a moment during all your celebrating today and say a prayer; That once again we show God how much we really care.
Put your hands together and do pray with me;
That once again God will smile down on us favorably.
Enjoy your day and have lots of fun;
But never forget that without God we would never have begun.
May God Bless America this day and always with His love;
May He once again smile upon us and bless us from above.

Poem by, Michael Gasaway

Now is not the time for prepper fatigue / frugal fatigue

Seems like everywhere I go on the internet preppers are ramping up their preps and trying to get ready for what is coming. They are all sensing that with so many things going on in the world it is only a matter of time before it all bottoms out.

I had always heard of people getting prepper fatigue, and always thought how can you stop wanting to prep it is so important.
Well about 6 months ago I started losing intrest in prepping I was having a hard time trying to get stuff to put back much less repackage or can what needed to be done. Neglecting my blog , even my yard is suffering. Even wondering if it was all worth it.

I think part of it was I had just got so tired of telling my family and friends that they needed to be getting ready for hard times that never seemed to come. I have gotten to where I don't even say anything anymore because I know they think I am crazy, and that nothing bad is ever going to happen. This is the U.S.  things have always been good here, bad things only happen in other places. Even though there is so much going on right now with all the fires, flooding, tornados, record heat, the economy, Unless it affects them directly they don't give it a second thought. And another thing is I have been dealing with a couple issues in my personal life that I have let get to me more then I should have.

Then to make matters worse I the past few months I have had frugal fatigue also. I have been working so hard the past few years to pinch every penny that I can. Well here lately  I have been taking the  easy way, buying things that I should be making instead, the girls even talked me into buying laundry soap , fabric soften and dryer sheets. I have even been using the dryer instead of hanging out clothes, it is awful.

I am trying to get back to where I need to be. With everything going on here and in the rest of the world I think it is only a matter of time before it all falls apart, although I have thought this for the past several years, But I do know they can only keep kicking the can down the road for only so long, and what is bad the longer they prolong what is coming the worse it is going to be. Not to mention the possibility of a natural disaster. 

I really feel like now is the worst time to have prepper/frugal fatigue so I am trying to get back in the swing of things. I have been reading other prepper/frugal sites, reading the comments and realizing that everyone is trying to double down on preps and trying to save money to get ready for what is to come. I have several young mothers that I babysit for ( a couple being single moms ) and my own daughters and their friends that I need to be setting an example for and showing them ways that they can save money in these hard times and in the harder times to come. So hopefully I can get back on track with things, get the blog caught up, more garden and trees planted, sewing, canning, and all the things I need to be working on plus I want to give some classes on canning and saving money.

So have you had prepper or frugal fatigue and if so what did you do to get over it? I would love to hear what you have to say.

What if an EMP happened right this minute

Or an Attack on the power grid.

So you are sitting at your computer drinking coffee and checking all the latest going's on in the world when all the sudden you power goes out. There is no storm so you assume that maybe someone ran into a power pole or maybe they are working on the lines.
You have a few phone calls you need to make, you pull out your cell phone and it isn't working, darn, thought you had charged it last night. You go outside to go to your car thinking you will just plug your phone into your car. When you get outside you notice there are cars stalled on the road. Now you are starting to get a little concerned. You notice it is awfully quite, you live in the country so there isn't normally a lot of noise but now it is unusually quite. You try to start your car and nothing, won't even turn over.
By now you have a pretty good idea what is going on there has been an EMP or CME.

Do you have food, water, food for your animals, some way to cook, keep warm, protect your self, do you have a get home plan for family members that may be already gone for the day, do you have any idea what you need to be doing right now, do you have a radio and other electronics in a faraday cage, have a garden planted or a place ready for a garden, how many do it your self books do you have, How many skills do you and your family posses to survive this ?
And a few things a lot of people don't think about,
Is the laundry caught up?  You don't want to have a massive amount to do by hand.
Are the dishes caught up.
What about all the food in your freezer? Do you have enough jars and a way to can it.
Is the mending caught up?
Is the weeding in the garden caught up you are going to be so busy with other things in the beginning the last thing you want to be  behind on  is weeds,  you don't want the weeds to overtake the garden before you can get to it since that garden is now more important then ever before. 

So you figured out what has happened, Are you thinking I really should have done all that above or at least started. Or didn't really think it would happen or happen this soon, I fully intended to do these things but other things got in the way.

Or are you thinking I am so glad I put up food and water, figured out how to cook with no power, can keep my family warm in the winter, have light sources (and can find them), have a way to protect ourselves.

Are you able to go into the house and get things done that you have already preplanned and do a rough calculation as to when the rest of your family members should be home or get ready to go and get them at the designated meeting spot.


There has been so much talk lately of EMP's, N. Korean Russia, Iran are just a few who would like to do us in.

Not only do we have the threats of EMP's Our power grid is so very vulnerable. If there is an attack on the power grid how much fuel is in your vehicle's? How much cash do you have on hand to run to the store for a few last minute things before the rest of the populace figures out what is up?   

I feel that if you are ready for a EMP with a few extra things you are pretty much are covered for most all other things that could happen.

So how ready are you?

My Washer died, and the laundry mat

As I mentioned earlier my washer died last month. And of course with all that had been going on I was way behind on laundry. I had to go to laundry mats when I was way younger and I hated them so much, so I thought I would just grab my stuff to do my  laundry by hand and have it  whipped out in no time, silly me, don't think I put a whole lot of thought into that.

To start with I really only thought about doing my laundry by hand in the nice warm weather months, on  the tables outside where I don't have to bend over and all the mess stays outside. Since it was super cold a little snowy and a little rainy, I figured I could improvise and do it in the bath tub, maybe if I was little younger and had a better back. I put them in the tub and filled it with nice warm water and let them soak for a while, then sloshed them around a while, all of this wasn't to bad. Next I needed to wring out the water so I got my handy dandy wringer out of the shed, well I had nothing I could attach it to, went and found a tote that I could use and would fit in the tub got it attached and started using it, not a very easy task since I was trying to hold the tote down and keep the wringer handle from hitting the tub, I made it work but all that bending over was about to do my back in. I took a break for a few minutes and then went back to it. Got them wrung out and a tub of clean water going to rinse them, and started all over with the wringer. A couple hours latter and with a aching back I had one load done.

As I said before I really dislike laundry mats but by  now they were looking pretty darn good.
So I got Joleen to help me and we loaded all the laundry up and as said it was a pretty good amount, we went to town to do laundry.

I will say one thing for laundry mats though you get in and get it all done at once, it even gets folded right away. They are not cheap though, I couldn't believe how much I had to spend on laundry.
By the third time of going to the  laundry mat I was getting a little smarter and just washed them then brought them home to dry ( although they don't get folded right away haha). So after a few more times of that  we got a new washer put in. There was something that did concern me though,
this notice on one of the larger washers

I don't think they put these kind of warnings unless someone somewhere has tried to do this, did they just want to give them a bath or did someone want to go on a carnival ride, does have to make you wonder.

I do know now that I need to work on my off grid laundry plans a little more.

My poor chickens

It has been so windy and cold the past few days, Spring time in southern Colorado (fun fun fun). We did get a little skiff of snow the other night but it was gone by morning, maybe it will help hold down the dust some.

Went out to feed the chickens the other day and something, still not sure what had gotten into the pen and killed 9 of them and the turkey.  The dogs had been doing a lot of barking that night, I even got up once to see if I could see what they were barking at but didn't see anything, guess I should of looked a little harder.

A couple months ago something got in and got 7 of them, we found and fixed a hole in the fence. A friend knew some one getting rid of some, so we were able to get a few more. So now with having lost such a large amount two different times not sure what we are going to do, get more,  wait, put them in a different place, or rebuild a new pen.I am a little upset about this, in over 15 years of having chickens in that spot this hasn't ever happened before.  I do still have the rooster and 4 chickens left. Have thought about incubating our own eggs, Travis has an incubator we could use or maybe I could talk him into doing it :).  

Have a great Day.

Parents 40th Wedding Anniversary

My Dad and Stepmom's 40th wedding anniversary was the 20th, so all us kids decided to throw them a party. Out of the 10 kids 6 were able to come, My sister from Houston was even able to make it.

 We rented the community center , this place is great has a large kitchen and a playroom for the kids, a playground outside, tons of tables and chairs, a sound system, everyone in the community uses it for all sorts of events.

We are setting up, getting the tables ready.

 

A couple of my brothers rolling out dough for fry bread. Love this kitchen it is large enough to do all the cooking here.

We had smoked brisket and pork, baked potato's, salad, rolls, fried bread, steamed corn stew, it was all so good

My brothers built this arch to put at the entry way, we were going to put a few bales of hay around it but decided it looked good enough with out them (plus a whole lot less messy).

 

People are starting to trickle in. We had 160 that rsv'ed so I figure we had right around that amount of people. A real good turnout. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had a slide show going the whole time with pictures from the last 40 years. Dad and Mom got up and thanked every one for coming and told small stories about all us kids.

 

This is the guest book and pen holder. We took some wood to refection's in metal and had them etch this picture into the wood for the cover of the book.

 

This is the cake we got  . I have to admit out of everything  this was a little bit of a disappointment, was not what we really thought we were going to get and it didn't taste very good at all. It was nice but for the money that we paid for it I really felt it could of been better. A lesson learned here always see the work in person, and ask for a sample of the cake.

 

All the kids pitched in and bought them this queen size Pendleton blanket that we had embroidered with "Happy 40th wedding anniversary from all the kids" 

 



 

After we got all cleaned up afterwards, we moved the arch and took some family pictures. here are a few of the kids and a few of the grandkids and a couple great grandkids.

 

It took a lot of work and we have been planning since last November, it was so worth all the work as it turned out really nice.

 

 

Super Excited

I am so excited, Katie ( my youngest daughter) is going to start working part time for me. She has been working at a home health place and has put over ten thousand miles on her car in the last 5 months, and the pay isn't that great for the hours she is having to put in, so she is going to work there part part time like 6 hours a week. She has a job lined up for the end of June so until then she is going to work for me. Also she will be able to do a few more senior things that she has been missing out on because of work.

She gets out of school at noon and will be here to help with the afternoon. Hoping I will be able to get some extra things done. Like catch up on the blog, get some sewing done, and do some of the extra things with the day care I have been wanting to do.
With summer coming this is going to be such a huge help.

So I think it is going to be a win win for the both of us.

What books do you consider important?

The other day I recommened a book to K at planningandforesight it was The Survival Medicine Handbook. Well he asked his readers what books they thought were important for when things go south. That got me to thinking about what books I think are important to have, so I thought I would put together a list of the books I think are important and share them.
I have a ton of books but here is a list of some of the books that I have that I think are important in no special order.

1. Bible
2. A good canning book ( Ball book of canning).I have a Kerr canning book, Don't know if you can find that anymore, I also have a couple other books that have a lot of canning info in them.
3. The survival Medicine Handbook ( Joseph Alton, M.D. Amy Alton, A.R.N.P aka Dr. Bones ans Nurse Amy). This book is wonderful it has all kinds of information in it from antibiotics to major illness, It covers so many areas that you may encounter in a collapse situation. 
4. Beyond Collapse ( T.Joseph Miller Jr.). This book has a lot of information as to what to do before and after a collapse.
5. Food Drying ( Phyllis Hobson)I love this book I have had it for some time,It is an older book and seem to cover every thing even meat and dairy. It also tells how to build a dehydrator. If you don't have a dehydrator it gives instructions for oven and sun drying.
6. Stocking up ( by the staff of Organic Gardening and Farming 1973). This is another older book that I just love. It covers everything. Canning, drying, freezing, harvesting, smoking, underground storage. There is so much information in this book. 
7. Passport to Survival ( Esther Dickey). This book comes from the LDS book store and is another old book. It has a lot of food storage recipes using wheat, salt, honey and powdered milk. There are recipes using a few other things but most use these four ingredients. I mean seriously who know you could make Ice cream and pudding with these four things.
8. The Soapmaker's Companion (Susan Miller Cavitch). This is my go to book when making soap it has a ton of information on soap making.
9. A Complete Course In Dressmaking (Isabel DeNyse Conover).This one I downloaded off the internet it is copyrighted 1921it has a lot of basic information on sewing. I have several books on sewing, but if you are just starting out a book with the basics is what you want.
10. We have Joleen's Advanced EMT book and Andy's 1st responders books in addition to a first aid book. We are very fortunate  that Andy has some basic medical training and Joleen will have a lot more when she has completed her Advanced EMT training.
11.  We have a book on tanning hides. I am not sure of the name it is on a bookshelf behind a book self ( I know, don't judge Space is very limited in my house).Andy has been wanting to learn to do this but hasn't had the time to do it yet.
12. The complete Encyclopedia of stitchery (by Mildred Graves Ryan.) Another old book this covers all the different types of stitchery from crochet to sewing and every thing in between.
13. The Clinical textbook for Veterinary Technicians Joleen was given this book when she was thinking about becoming a Vet. It has a lot of small to large animal information.
14. Andy has a book on reloading not sure which one ( it's on his reloading table and I don't mess with it haha)
15. Beginners guide to bee keeping. We got some bees a couple years ago and still trying to get them all figured out.
16. I have a some binders that I put all the stuff I get off the internet. Things that I don't have in any of my books that I think will be helpful.
17. A whole set of books on Home repairs and building. This will help in doing our own home repairs. Andy knows most of what to do but this will be handy if there it something that he doesn't know or if some one else needs to know.
18. I am taking an herb class on line so I have all the information from that in addition to several herbal remedy books. I think herbs are going to be very important if there is no other help around.
19. A whole set of encyclopedia's , The girls and Andy all thought I had lost my mind when I came home with them (where on earth do you plan to put all of them). But like I told them you may not always have access to the internet.  
20. Farm Journal's Country Cookbook 1959 This is my go to cook book it is old and has a lot of old recipes. How to render lard make butter, cottage cheese, sour dough starter, It even has a recipe for Raccoon,rabbit and squirrel  ( please don't let me be so hungry I want to eat squirrel or raccoon, I know some people like them I just don't really want to do that haha). It has so many old, from scratch recipes.

 Now for some of the books I need to get.

1. I used to have a real good book on plants and seeds it had everything from seeds to garden, berry bushes, and trees. I think I accidently donated it to the library so I need to replace it.
2. I would like to have a book on spinning and weaving. I got a drop spindle with a free lesson for Christmas (have wanted to learn how to spin forever now) and I have a small Navajo rug loom that my Dad made for me many years ago (It is in storage and I need to get it out and learn how to weave on it) push come to shove we could make a larger one to use. 
3. I would like to get some school books for the different ages. If I have to help homeschool my grandkids or any other kids I would like to have something to use.

I am sure I am forgetting something to add to this list.

I really think books of all kinds are important even pleasure reading. When I go to second hand store or garage sales I am always looking for books for all age groups. I have several boxes of books stored away. If we don't have internet or television books are a great thing to have around. I even buy books that I am not that interested in just because I don't care for it don't mean some one else won't. 

So what books do think are important to have a round and what books would you like to get.

 

 

 

 

Why I don't use Coupons

I had someone ask me the other day if I use coupons, and if they are worth it. I know I am going to have a lot of people disagree with me on this, but I don't think they are worth it. Here is why. But first let me say that when this idea came out many years ago, I did do it for a while and  there was even a couple times I got a huge basket of groceries for just a couple dollars. 

1. They are very time consuming, to make it really work you have to spend hours clipping and looking, I don't have that kind of time.
2. They are almost always for name brand items. I very very seldom buy name brand, generally you can get the store brand for the price of the name brand with the coupon or for a little cheaper.
3. You have to shop all the stores around, and find the sales to make the coupons worth the effort. Once again I don't have that kind of time.
4. I would have to either subscribe to several newspapers or go to town to get the papers to get the coupons. I can't see spending all that extra money on extra papers that are not going to get read. And since I live over ten miles from town running in and getting the papers wouldn't be worth it. I know now you can get a lot off the internet but once again time is a factor.
5.  Since I make most all my stuff from scratch not many of the coupons would benefit me.
6. Coupons entice you to buy things that you wouldn't normally buy. That is one of the reasons they put them out there.

Now I am not saying I never use coupons, If I see one for something I am already planning on buying I will use it.

I guess for people who have a ton of time and use a lot of name brand items it might be ok. But for me I don't have the time, And I feel my homemade is far better then then store bought. 

So do you use coupons and if so why, and do they benefit you? I would love to hear from you, and if you don't why do you not?

My New Back Yard

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last spring when getting ready for Joleen's graduation I wanted to do the party here at the house but may back yard was a disaster.  

This was my inspiration picture, It was from the Faerie Magazine. I know mine looks nothing like this but I do have the lights and eventually I want to have the lights hanging down more with some  beads and flowers also hanging,(maybe a fairy or two hidden in all of it.)    

 

Every year we put back a little money to do remodel and repairs on the house. Last year I was going to do the laundry room but after looking at the back yard and wanting to do the party there plus I want have to have Katie's graduation party this year decided to put the money into the yard. So glad we did I just love it.

 

 

 

here are a few before pictures. On this bottom level I had planted grass a few years ago, the slopping area, I had planted mint but we have so may noxious weeds I couldn't keep up with them and they over ran everything.

 

 

 

 

 

The thing that looks like a big brown bush is a silverlace vine covering a tank that I run the washer water in to in the summer, to use to water some of the plants in the yard.

 

 

We put in 9 cedar post that we already had, we did have to buy the 2x4's to put on the top. Andy made the braces to hold them up and we had some long screws to put in them. 

 

I put down two layers of plastic then covered it with sawdust we have an unlimited supply so I figured that would work just as good as anything and it didn't cost anything. I had already used rock to outline the slope, so I just rearranged them. I had some pots that trees came in so I dug a hole and put them in then filled with potting soil and planted lavender in them. Figured that would be a good place to stick the teki torches. I did have to but some mulch.

 

For the  railing I had some 4x4's that we used, then used some pig wire that we had a bunch of. I took all our house Christmas lights and strung through the roof. Then I went and cut a bunch of willows at a friends house to put on the bottoms and on the roof. 

 

 

This was the old sand box the sand was packed down hard and full of weeds so I pulled all the weeds and dug a fire pit we had an old tractor tire rim that we used for a fire ring. Put two hooks on one side to hang lanterns and put a row of solar lights on the other side.

 

On the other side I put some wood panels up along side the dog kennel and hung a wreath and some flower boxes

 

Then I strung some lights on the arches down the sidewalk.

The empty spot on the right is where the faerie garden it going to go. It rained so  much this last spring and summer that I never got to get it set up. I have most of the stuff for it and can't wait to put it out.

 

I hung some shears and we bought new patio furniture I found some stuff at Wal-Mart for fairly cheap that looked real nice and fit with the decor. It's hard to see but the silverlace bloomed out and is all green, looks great on the side.

I didn't get pictures of the front and the front side of the things I did there, maybe this spring.

 

I love it even though I don't get to spend much time out there.