time for a margarita on the patio

Our patio is finally finished. We started adding flagstone about 2 weekends ago and Ian put on the finishing touches last night. We still need some rain to help pack down the crushed granite, but for now, we are done.


All these DIY projects are definitely a learning experience - particularly this one. Ian figured out the easiest way to do it after we'd already done over half the flagstone. He was tempted to rip up the first half and start over, but I think we'll see how this looks for the next month or so to see if we really want to redo any of it.

A few other things we learned during the 'experience'..... The particular rock we (i.e. I) picked out was extra thick which meant it cost more and was a huge pain to move around. We also dug out more dirt that we needed to and had to fill it back in. Poor Ian did all of the heavy lifting and rock placement since with my injured finger I couldn't do much else but fill in the cracks with granite.

Weekend 1: after digging out the area, we got the rock and crushed granite and began putting the puzzle together.



Weekend 2: actually leveling and filling in around the rocks.



Yesterday: finishing the last sections and packing down the granite.



Stay tuned for our next projects. I'll be working on turning the rest of our mud pit backyard into something a bit nicer and Ian is focusing on a fence that will provide us with a bit more privacy than the current chain length.

Who would dare build a pergola in the August heat?

we would.

Thanks to the planning skills of my dad, we were able to build a pergola on our back patio in a weekend. It was a serious family project since Bob also helped out. Thankfully we were able to work well together and no one yelled or stormed off:)

Last week I dug the post holes after work in the evenings. My folks came up Friday night and we actually put the posts in so the concrete could set overnight. Saturday started early with a hearty breakfast made by yours truly and then a trip to home depot with the giant trailer my dad brought.

Saturday morning

By the time Ian got back from his test (which of course he passed with flying colors) we had almost framed the top of the pergola.








Saturday early afternoon






We got about 85% of it completed by the time it got really hot around 1:30pm. The rest of the day was spent with a dip in the new Mueller Community pool, an early happy hour (of course), and then watching the American Olympic swimmers secure the first gold medals of the games.

Sunday morning

We just had to finish securing the rest of the slats which took just under 2 hours (the final one took some finagling).



Admiring our handiwork......



In about 2 months once the treated lumber has had a chance to dry out a bit, we'll stain it a rich brown color. Ian and I are excited to start extending the actual patio with flagstone and then finalize the top terracing level.