Girl vs. Yard

As I've said about everything with our new house, it has great bones, but it had been a bit neglected. The house is only four years old, but it's barely been lived in. Somehow, the inside was beaten up even though it was lived in very little. Well, the outside was a little rough too. The front yard looked great. The gardens needed basic care and new mulch. After installing gutters, the gardens are doing better and not being washed out by rain. The backyard is coming along, much slower. I like yardwork and will win over the battle of the yard.

To start, there were vines that had taken over the back fence. I removed those. The lot behind us is about to be built on, which is why there is so much overgrowth on the fence. The trees were all hanging down into our yard. I pruned the branches in our yard this week, which has helped a lot too.

Now, onto the dirt...after the patio was installed, we had to put some grass seed down to get the grass growing where they'd been working hear the patio. I have been very patient with the seed. I know it takes awhile. The kids are another story. They've become obsessed with the dirt. They have literally been rolling in it. No pictures because I didn't find it funny, especially when I have to clean them and the mess up. So, after a couple of days of this, they just didn't seem to get it. They thought it was hilarious, despite my chats with them. So, I decided to do what a friend of ours suggests in certain situations, "Throw money at it and make it go away." So, I did. I went in search of sod. I called around to find out who had fresly cut sod and the winner was Lowes. The local nursery by my house had just sold out, but they will have more Friday. I may stop in. To Lowes we went to fix the dirt/mud problem.

I know, y ou are thinking it's not pretty, but neither was the sight of three kids covered in dirt/mud from head to toe. It was literally throughout their hair. I've cleaned them and the bathrooms too much the last couple of days. Now, Lowes only had a few pieces left, so I got 10. I still need a few more to cover up the major dirt areas, but it's start, and the kids haven't been able to roll in the dirt. It is the same centipede as the rest of the yard; it just needs to green up. I've been attacking the rest of the yard with a vengance, so it too, is coming along.

Next, I'm going to find out about my soil composition. I took soil samples for the NC Agriculture Extension Office so I can figure out the right fertilizer for this type of grass and soil. Yes, I grew up in rural Ohio, so I'm all over this type of stuff!