One of the benefits to the downfall of online poker is that all of sudden projects around the house are getting done with ninja-like efficiency.
We've been in this house for five years now, and every time the weather warms up we lament about the state of our patio. Our house came with the standard small slab patio. Just enough room for a grill, and maybe a chair or two, but not much else. We dreamed of something different and bigger, so that we could enjoy the beautiful Indiana summer evenings and maybe even entertain every once in awhile.
We even went so far as to get a quote once. I think we got in a little over our heads with our definition of something "different and bigger." Between the landscaping, brick walls and pergola, upgrading our little sad slab was going to cost us thousands of dollars. Yes, that would be the plural of "thousand." If you've ever driven around our neighborhood, you realize how insane that really is. I love our house, but let's just say you won't ever see the Parade of Homes in our neighborhood.
The perfect storm of no poker, me and the kids going out of town for a week, and a well-timed tax refund resulted in Project DIY Patio. I have to say, Mike did an amazing job. For a guy who didn't start out our marriage handy in the least bit, that guy can rock a DIY project these days.
We ended up leaving the original slab instead of tearing it up and adding pavers around it. In addition to some landscaping, Mike dug out a medium bed against the house for me to plant some vegetables that won't fit in our raised bed.
Note the rain barrel at the end of the bed, courtesy of the Fishers Stormwater Program. It excites me way more than it should.
We've already used the patio more in the last month than we did all of last summer. It's a great spot to enjoy a glass of wine at the end of the day, and maybe work on that honey-do list. It doesn't look like poker is coming back for awhile, and a woman needs to keep her ninja busy.
Nice article, Angie. One question… who will be eating the vegetables in the Six household?
Ok. That is awesome! We just have a slab as well and I have recently been pondering what we could do with it. The landscaping is the perfect touch. And yes, I noticed the water catcher in the pic and wondered if that is what I thought it was. Too cool.
Pretty much just me and the rabbits.
Har Har Har
It looks great! I agree — great idea to leave the existing concrete, we might have to look into the same thing.
Do you loan him out?
I know I’m a really terrible awful commenter but I just have to let you know that I get really excited when your posts come up in my feed. You always make me laugh.
That’s all.
I do, but you have to pay him in boxed macaroni and cheese.
Funny, I feel the exact same way about you!