It's FINISHED!

The patio!

WOO HOO!

And it's beautiful!

It's been the subject of my attention for the past 2-3 weeks - and I apologize for not posting for so long. I actually didn't get much stamping done for that period either, but have a few things to share in the upcoming days. Stay tuned...

In the meantime, how about a few photos of the patio process?

The Kidz had inspection duty every evening after the "crew" left - and they were fascinated over the numerous changes every day...

First everything had to be taken OFF the patio - here's Melie running away from all the plants under the sunshade.






And here is everyone inspecting the evening after the concrete was jackhammered up.

It looked like a tornado had hit back there!

Of course, they all had to check EVERYTHING!





After the concrete was hauled away, the crew had to layer gravel. Pavers will be installed...

Here are Mudge and Velvet, inspecting THAT aspect of the job.




Next came the layer of sand (notice the paw prints left over from the catspection of the previous night.

And then the pavers were laid.

After that, sand was swept over top so some could settle between the pavers. And after THAT, a vibe machine was used to pack more sand. It was noisy a couple of days last weekend!


Here's a wider view - the cat prints are on the right side...







And here's Mudge, giving the finished paving job her approval - rolling around on it to make sure it's at least as good (if not better than) as the cement we used to have!





Here's Aaron, helping Craig set the poles for the roof.

I'm not sure my back yard is EVER going to recover from all this.







Here are Melie and Mudge checking out the saw the guys used to cut the roof pieces...

Of course, they NEVER went out for inspection duty until AFTER the guys left every evening. Can't have the crew knowing the inspectors have been there, ya know!


Now I wonder whose legs those might be?

They would be Craig's...

And who is sitting on the boxes from the storage shed that's next on the list?

That would be Aaron.

Craig's putting the finishing touches on the patio cover.



And here's MUDGE inspecting the roof from the top...

I think she was up there before Melie - and that used to be one of his favorite places in the whole wide world!




And the final item to be added to the backyard (for now, at least!) is my storage shed.

The hope is that this little building will hold a lot of the "stuff" that's currently cluttering up the garage.

If and when I get to the garage project (again - you may remember my muttering under my breath when I tackled it last year about this time) there'll be lots of photos of that mess, too.

But, for now, the next thing on the list, after Craig gets back from his daughter's graduation from college (and assuming he doesn't get a REAL job), is the master bathroom.

So, it's time for me to think about paint colors, and vanity styles, and tile colors (white or ivory?). I have about a week before I'll need to have feelings one way or another about any of that stuff, though, so hopefully, I'll be able to show you some of the things I've been STAMPING lately.

Til I do, I hope YOU'VE been stamping!