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Backyard & Patio Reveal

I am so excited to finally share our backyard makeover!  This has been a long ongoing project, but we have enjoyed this space more than any other yard we have ever had.  When we moved into the house, the backyard was the last place I wanted to spend any time.  It was overgrown and a frog and mosquito breeding ground, and the pool was a mess.  If you want to see more about our pool makeover, you can read about it here!

Here are a few before shots of the yard the day we moved in:

The biggest eye sore was the chain link fence around the pool.  It was rusty and old and not even serving a purpose for safety.

Then there was the sidewalk that led to nowhere…

Some neighbors have told us that the previous owner was a hoarder of sorts and the backyard was filled with vehicles.  So who knows what this sidewalk was intended for.

The first thing we did was go around and clean up everything.  We got rid of the kiddie pools they used as a garden, yes, kiddie pools, and cleared out all the weeds and overgrown bushes.  Next was the chain link fence, just having that fence gone made such a huge difference!

The next project we did was the patio.  It was a small slab of concrete and we wanted to expand it and make it larger.  Taking out the concrete was the most labor intensive part.  I was pregnant at the time, so I was absolutely no help during this.  My husband tore up the old patio and sidewalk so we could start fresh.

We wanted to make a larger patio and had a very limited budget, so we decided to use pavers and river rocks to attain the size we wanted.

The hardest part was just loading and unloading the pavers and bags of rocks.  We opted to use bags of rocks instead of getting a truck full so it was easier to spread how we wanted it.  Below are all the things we used for the patio.  The decision to use pavers and rocks was also to help with drainage problems we were having.  

• 80 pavers = $125
• 30 bags of river rock = $110
• 60 retaining wall blocks = $110
• Total was around $350 for the patio!

After the patio was done, I really wanted to add some landscaping.  The grass was so spotty from tearing up a lot of the yard, so I wanted to add some color and make the backyard feel more tropical for when we opened the pool up.

I was so proud of this little area!

I was about 7 months pregnant, and I spent the entire day working on this.  Luckily, my best friend was in town visiting so she was a HUGE help too!

Funny side story: I started this landscaping project while my husband was at work and I was trying to surprise him with it.  When he got home, I was not close to being finished and the yard just looked like a bigger mess than when I started.  He seemed irritated with me for starting this, but I just thought it was because I was pregnant and he did not want me working so hard in the heat.  Well, I finished and he seemed more relieved and told me how nice it looked.  Fast forward to the next afternoon where I came home to a surprise birthday party he had planned for me!  He was just stressed about the party and me tearing up the yard the day before did not help!

Picture of the flowers I planted after about a month and a half!

I was so impressed with how well my flowers did!  The lemon grass grew bigger than I expected and all the flowers filled out the area so well!

We bought this patio set from Big Lots!  The whole set was around $200.  I cannot find it on their website this time of year, but when it comes back, I will be sure to link it here.  For the price, it has been a great addition to the backyard, and it is really comfortable too!  The umbrella is also from Lowe’s.  One of my favorite purchases for the yard.  It has solar lights and is huge!  It is available in store in the summer, but you can find it online here.

 

One of my favorite shots of the backyard one summer night.

This past summer we spent so much time outside in the backyard.  We had a lot of pool parties and made lots of memories here.  All the hard work has been so worth it and the yard has quickly become one of the most used spaces.  What do you guys think of the transformation?  Would love to hear your thoughts!

 

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