(Before and after shots of the patio.)
The majority of it is, at least. All the stones are cut, laid down and sand has been filled in between. It looks AMAZING if I do say so myself. Matt did such a fabulous job designing it, measuring it and cutting it. I'm VERY impressed. It looks extremely professional. Seeing it today and not knowing who did it, I would swear we had someone in to do it. It looks GREAT.
What's left:
* Filling in any sand holes that settled because of watering it and then watering again.
* Finishing the ambient lighting (3 more lights) and rewiring a bit.
* Hammering down the stakes that keep the stones in place (they are 1/2 way in as it is now)
* Cleaning up the dirt around the air conditioner/raking any leaves. Laying down gravel around it.
Extras:
* Make two screens, one for the wires/meters on the house wall and one for the air conditioner.
* Patio furniture, of course.
*Storage cabinet or shed like thing for the patio that extends down the fence line
Of course, this still leaves us with another project. Dealing with the dirt pile we had to dig up to level the area. It's full of rocks and junk. So we'll need to sift it, tear up any grass where we plan on leveling the yard, lay down the sifted dirt and then plant grass seed. This will be a HUGE and messy project on it's own. I'm pretty sure I want to hire someone to come in and do it. That's heavy stuff and I don't want Matt pulling his back out on it. Once it's all laid out and grass has grown in (easier said than done on both counts) our backyard will look GREAT and much more level, too.
Of course, by then we'll probably need a new roof, new heating/cooling unit, etc... But for right now? I'm going to enjoy the fruits of our labor.
I'd fill you in on what we did today, but that's pretty obvious. Matt worked on the patio all morning. I came out during Maddy's nap and we worked together for a bit laying down sand. Then Matt went in to take a shower and hung out with Maddy while I finished the sand this afternoon. We ate dinner together (ordered in) and then Matt went outside and cleaned up while I cleaned up toys and unloaded the dishwasher. Put Maddy to bed and now here we are. Busy day, but we got a lot done!
Tomorrow I'm sure Matt will want to work on getting the lighting in place. We do need to mow what lawn we have left in the back and also in the front. I also need Matt to sort through the rest of his clothes because we have a pick up on the 1st. That will be like pulling teeth and I'm sure he still won't go through all of it, but it's has to happen! I'm also hoping to hit church as well.