Transformations

This is what we started with - it looked a bit sad and neglected.

Half driveway, half crushed rock and grass that had grown in.

And there were too many trees - you couldn't even see the house.

We've pulled out 26 so far, with our eye on about 20 more that need to go.

We hired Lester to come tear everything up, and pour a LOT of concrete.

Lester is good at tearing things up. He's also good at figuring out drainage so the next whopper Texas rain storm we get, the rain should run across the driveway and onto the yard, rather than into the garage...

We didn't want the driveway to look like a Walmart parking lot, so we included two big beds, with curbing to make water go the right way.

Very exciting to see the forms going in, and be able to see what it was going to look like when Lester was done.

There's the 'tree bed' in its beginning stages - high hopes it'll turn out pretty!

Old concrete - meet new concrete! Join hands and be friends, please!

Thank you, previous owners, for leaving us crape myrtles, irises, daffodils...

Plain, but we've got plans to make it charming.

There - much better. A nice little spot to sit in the evening and wave at neighbors driving by. Or read a book. Or drink morning coffee and watch the sun come up.

Mixing up concrete for a lamp post base.

A bit of wiring. It's D.A.R.K. out here so a lamp post close to the house will be wonderful!


Last touches to line everything up just right.

Pretty, pretty. Just needs some ground cover and it's good to go.

Next - biggest bed in the front yard.

Before: WAY overgrown, falling down, and a perfect hiding spot for snakes.

After weeding: much better, but the retaining wall fell apart.

Another project we weren't planning on. But thank you,

previous owners, for that bed of cannas!

Back to the home supply store for 3,500 lbs of blocks.

"Hello Dan. Would you like to come be our slave, and learn how to build a retaining wall?"

He looked like he was having so much fun...

I decided I needed to learn to drive it too!

After: much better, and manageable. And not scary.

Hard working men - thank you Dan for being our slave for the day. xoxo

Soooo much better! Makes me happy to come out and see it in the morning!

A bird feeder next to that crape myrtle, then a bit of mulch and we'll call it good - one BIG project knocked out.

And we beat the Texas heat too!

I'm heading indoors for a bit of stripping wallpaper and painting kitchen walls (and pie safes). I'm thinking Don is going to hide out in his shop and try to avoid me for awhile.

And I can't say that I blame him. He's lost enough weight, working so hard, that he's going to need a pair of suspenders soon. He's told me, so far, retirement is harder work than work was!

Pardon the Gore

But we had our first snake event at the lake today. Don was busy working on putting in some wiring for a light pole in front of our house; he left the electrical junction box for a bit, to assemble the light, and while he was gone I wandered by. There, curled up and around and all over the electrical box, was a S.N.A.K.E.

In retrospect, now that our hearts aren't beating quite so fast, we are sad to think that this was probably a harmless rat snake of some sort. I, being the thorough type, have a book called very appropriately, "Texas Snakes". But when the snake is curled around the electrical box you don't run in the house and get the book. You grab the camera and take a step or 10 back, while you watch your husband whack it with a shovel.

So - we ordered a poster of poisonous snakes that we'll put up somewhere in the garage for future reference. While I don't really want to adopt any snake for a pet, we also don't want to kill a harmless snake. Instead, brave Don will lift him with the pitchfork and carry him across the yard, setting him loose in the vacant lot next door. Even knowing he might well come back for another visit. In the meantime, is anyone out there up on their snakes? Anyone who doesn't have a queasy stomach?


I know it's not the same snake that showed up in our daughter, Sarah's barn yesterday. Hers definitely looks different. This one was two to three feet long, sort of skinny, tried to get away and only tried to strike when it was clear it was in danger.

My guesses are: Great Plains rat snake, Texas rat snake or Prairie King snake. Can anyone tell me definitely?