The Patio!

When Grandma Kay and Grandpa Dee moved to Provo, they had a lot of things to downsize. They generously gave us their patio set with table, 4 chairs, and big umbrella.  It was awesome and motivated us to finally do something about our teeny little concrete pad.  After MUCH deliberation we decided to do it all ourselves, which meant pavers, because we're afraid to pour concrete.  We were worried that would look weird with our existing patio but my friend Katy found plenty of pictures of similar projects that assuaged our hesitation.

This "before" picture is actually after we ripped out plants and pesky monkey grass. I am still haunted by the giant spider I found.

Cutting out the sod was probably the hardest part, and took 3x longer than we thought. But that's when Kyle started getting really buff and tan. And I helped a little!  And the bugs we unearthed will frequent my dreams forever.

Kyle, I learned, is amazing. Ok I already knew that, but I was so impressed with his skills!  He did so much leveling and measuring and stuff!   He figured out the right way to complete objectives with research and then did it. No shortcuts.

The majority of time on this project was spent on trips to Lowes, loading pavers and sand onto the cart, unloading into the car, and then unloading into the backyard.  KYLE IS RIPPED YOU GUYS.  I helped on all these trips too but am less ripped.  I struggled with each paver but Kyle could easily take 2 at a time!  He's so hot.

Once we were almost done, we REALLY wanted to finish.  It's also incredibly hot out and we have no shade (next year's project), so that meant that we started after the kids went to bed and worked until we couldn't see anymore.

For the final part, we rented a plate compacter, which is an incredibly cool tool.  And another example of Kyle doing things the right way.  I was amazed at what a difference it made!

The finished product!  We got a kid table, a comfy swing, and cute side table for my Diet Coke.  I went from spending zero time outside to hours outside.  I love sitting on the swing and watching the girls play, and every evening before bed we go outside and sit and eat popsicles.  Sometimes after the girls are in bed and it's not super hot finally, Kyle and I sit outside on the swing and just talk for a while!  It's heavenly.  I now love my backyard, even though we have a lot more to accomplish out there!