Back Yard Renovation

The Back yard renovation

So this summer I have been pondering what to do with various issues with our yard. And especially the back yard. We have some obstacles to overcome back there. First is the kid's play area, second is the lawn, third is seating and having a nice area for entertaining, fourth is the fencing.

Well we have begun to tackle some of these in little ways. One of the biggest boons has been that Kim has moved to day shifts so we actually have more time in the evenings, once we actually dedicate ourselves to it. And now that our vacation is over and basically paid for, we can budget out some of what we want to do and make a plan.

One of the things that has bugged me for years is that we have had a hard time with patio tables. We bought a nice patio set a year or 2 after we moved in, and it worked for a couple of years. But then nature took it's course. The table was a glass top one and had an umbrella. Well one morning after a particularly bad windstorm I looked outside and the glass on the table had just shattered. Probably due to a combination of sun rain etc. making it brittle, followed by the umbrella putting undue pressure on it. Then I had a bright idea of sealing a couple of old folding tables with outdoor polyurethane and setting them up. Well it turned out the 5 coats wasn't enough, they didn't make it a year before rotting. Then last year we got an old aluminum table from Kim's grandparents. That got carried away by the wind. Last year I was looking at building a wooden picnic table but that was OBE. Well finally this year we arrived at a solution. Home Depot is selling these tables. Last weekend we bought one, and some stain. Took it home, Kim stained it and we assembled it, pretty much 1-2-3. And now this year we finally have what should be a durable, reliable patio table that should survive the test of time and the elements.

One of the other things that I have wanted is a new barbecue grill. We purchased our existing grill the year we moved into the house. And it worked quite well for 8 years and many many family barbecues. Including replacing the burners a couple of years ago. But it was beginning to show it's age, and also having trouble handling the increased amounts of food I was cooking on it. Well last year I determined what I wanted, but like building a picnic table from scratch that also was OBE. I did get an older, good, charcoal grill from Kim's grandparents, but a) Kim doesn't like charcoal grilling, b) gas grilling is really much more convenient. Well this year with Kim's work getting more settled, and no major expenses on the horizon Kim let me buy this for Fathers Day, using part of our stimulus check. I did an awful lot of research on choosing the grill, and making the decision. And after a minor hiccup (bad regulator, had to be replaced) it worked like a charm on Saturday night for dinner. I can hardly wait to test it out in a big way at a family barbecue.

So that it all for today, I will talk tomorrow about the Kid's play area and our plans for it.