OK, it might have something to do with a lack of exercise over the winter, but this weekend featured a couple long days of work. Today it was rainy and spent mostly indoors. Saturday and Sunday, though, were beautiful days to be outside. We got lots done and have a bit more to do.
My day outside started at 7:15 with some recycling. No big deal.
The backstory of the next task starts a year ago when we gave away our swingset to a family which had two, now three, preschoolers. However, they had wanted to wait on taking delivery of it. We had build the swing from a kit circa 2000.
Some friends from church came and helped disassemble the swing, trasnported it to its new home, and reassembled it. When the swing was down and loaded, Ilene and the girls had blueberry and cranberry/orange/chocolate chip-to-die-for scones and coffee ready for us on the patio. This was the first of several meals and snacks on the patio this weekend, including burgers on the grill and pork chops on the grill.
Underneath the slide tower were nine concrete blocks which were removed and replaced with sod from another area of our yard. The little shovel in the foreground was used to scoop out sand over landscape fabric which had been under the blocks: about 10 gallons worth.
Some of the blocks ended up in this stepping stone path. The existing stones had sunk, were overgrown with grass, and some were cracked when a big truck drove over them when we got out utility pole replaced several years ago (we had the fence out at that time and, noting that wood peckers had chipped half way through the old pole, asked to get a new one). My task was to dig out the old blocks, raise the level with sand, and then replace with blocks from under the swing set tower. The leftover blocks will likely become stepping stones in a new garden.
Our other backstory from a year ago involves the two tall spruce trees in the picture above from May 2008. Branches were dying and we had concerns about long term health and aesthetics of the trees. When we had our elm removed last fall due to Dutch Elm Disease, we made arrangements to have the spruce removed.
That left a large gap in that area of the yard, plus we missed the privacy the trees gave our patio. It probably didn't help that when the trees came down, our first view was of a middle aged, heavy, shirtless man (not me!) on a ladder a few houses down.
This is final result of the weekend with more work to follow. Starting at the fence, we have five emerald gree arborvitae which will grow tall and thin. We had considered techny arborvitae, even though they are more hardy, opted for something more aestheticly pleasing. Around the arborvitae is brown mulch. The first band of soil is our new vegetable and herb garden which still needs to be planted. The white is mesh cloth covering new grass seed and the remaining soil is where we ran out of grass seed.
Another issue we tackled was old tree mulch behind the raised beds, around the shed, and around to the east side of the yard.
New landscape fabric is being put in where needed along with new mulch. The blocks on the raised beds are in transit from the old swingset to the veggie and herb garden.
So this is the view from our bedroom window today: our "sentries", the arborvitae, lilacs in bloom, raised flower beds and shed, and then blooming crab apple tree. This is also a new, but much more pleasing, vista created with the removal of the spruce.
The raised flower beds include a row of marigolds followed by blue salvia, followed by canna lilies. 
Jack-in-the-pulpit is blooming, next to a maiden holding amathyst from a mine near ThunderBay, Ontario.
The fern peonie is blooming next to a little house made by daughter L in art class. This plant is an heirloom as my parents and mom's mom had then in their garden's as well.
Bleeding hearts and the little blue flowers are nice by the back fence. Crab apples are past prime while lilacs are still pretty good. This week we'll continue watering the seeds and watching for shoots to emerge.
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