I should mention first off that hubs nor I know much (okay, we knew absolutely nothing) when it comes to the yard. Well, let me step back. Hubs is great at mowing the lawn. Alright that is the extent of our knowledge, combined. Not much of a green thumb developing here, eh? But, we felt the pressure weighing upon our unkept flower beds/dead pinestraw/weed-overgrown-threatening to cover our house-lawn from living on a street wherein all of our neighbors keep immaculate yards, and I mean that. I know, I'm biased, but I would venture as far as our mailbox and be able to declare that we have the prettiest street in the neighborhood. Azaleas here and there, grass that's green even in winter nestled up to perfect pinestraw edges, and cherry blossom trees that really make me swoon (added bonus for me considering that is my favorite tree- and we bought the house in fall- so I had no idea the neighborhood housed so many of these budding beauties).
My neighbor let me know Pike Nursery was having a 20% off sale last Friday from 5-8, so hubs and I rolled up our sleeves and jumped into another project. Knowing nothing. No plan. I think clueless is the word to use here. Luckily, the lady assisting us at Pike was very knowledgeable, which was good, because we weren't. We came home with a dozen or so plants (yeah, I know, what were we thinking?).
So the next day was spent with our friend Emmanuel Labor. That's code for hard work getting done only by the grace of God. More than just elbow grease. This is a step or two closer to unbearable physical pain only endured through countless prayers of patience and strength. Ok, maybe I'm exaggerating a touch, but it was tough hanging out with Emmanuel Labor. He finally went home around 5:30 and our yard looked a heck of a lot better, too. 12 yard bags later....
But, we did manage to get everything done that we wanted to, all in one day. My back has finally ceased throbbing (what is this, day 4 afterall?). All in all, yard work is not as bad as I thought it would be, and it is totally rewarding. I guess it is safe to say the Houstons are not afraid of a little (or a lot) of effort. As my neighbor says, your yard is an investment, and you get to see and enjoy the results for years to come. She's right. That is, if I don't kill everything first (the jury is still out on whether my thumb is actually green).
And to top everything off, last night I discovered that we have a really awesome sprinkler system (how was this not on the for sale listing when we bought the home??), and I figured out how to get it up and running. Those spray heads came up from the ground, hubs shouted "You gotta be kiddin' me!", and I commenced to running and skipping up and down the driveway, startling Blakely with every gallop, and causing my neighbor to run outside to see what the fuss was. H20 baby. Who knew I'd get so pumped over a little gushing water...
