06-16-15 Working on the backyard & inside!

Since the BACK yard (that is fenced in from the rest of the property) was such a low priority before we moved in and immediately after moving in, I didn't do anything with it for a few weeks. So after we were settled into the house and the front grounds looked decent, I began itching to do something with the back. This is what it looked like.

There is this gap from the back of the house to a concrete slab partially covered by part of a pergola (most of it since removed) because there used to be a huge deck or sun room off the back of the house and it met up with that concrete slab. That part had to be torn out about 2 years ago due to extensive water damage. I hope to add a new deck in the future that spans across the entire back of the house and add french doors from the dining room out onto the deck. #futureplans

Just one of the few pillars left from the old pergola that somebody else (not us) tore down awhile ago.

Desert weeds galore! 

You can see in these shots patchy fence work. What it is is that a few years ago (maybe several) when the fence was originally built they put 2 feet worth of concrete blocks on the bottom and THEN built a wood fence inside or on top of that. So in total the backyard fence is about 7-8 feet tall. Which is nice for privacy but I've yet to figure out why they did it the way they did. Now last year a few of those panels fell down and so the unpainted portion is where they put up  new panels and none of it was ever painted. The old fencing is a light blue that was greatly aged by time, not intentionally. I haven't figured out what I'm going to do with it yet, if I will paint it all 1 new color or if I'll paint the new fencing to match the blue aged wood. I can't decide if I like it or not.

Some before and after collages. Cleaned up the yard and put in some outdoor seating and stuff.

It is far from complete and just the beginning but I wanted to setup a little grill area and since I have personally NEVER grilled the only one I own is this tiny one we bought for a day we spent on the lake last summer. And that lattice you see there is the ONLY remaining lattice anywhere on the property, lol! 

 And here is why I love living in the country! A day with rain in the distance, near farmers with gorgeous rows of corn and this is the view I get when driving to town! This corn field is just about  a mile from my house and I pass it every time I go to town. I love it!

Talk about a mail box redo. That little guy was so ugly and pitiful, much less you couldn't even see the number. So I just got some black spray repaint, sprayed down the ENTIRE thing and put new numbers on it. I want to do a whole new one in the near future but for now at least it doesn't look hideous AND it functions as the mail woman can now see the house numbers!

Another gorgeous Arizona sunset from my front yard! I couldn't love it any more if I tried! =)

To the inside of the house!

Things a little more setup in the living room (although the chase on the sectional was later moved)

Getting the essentials put together in my room. Love my old metal headboard and foot board and this adorable antique nightstand I got off of Craigslist. I didn't redo that one, someone else did, but they did aqua paint and applied a crackle finish on it after. I love it! 

Dining room progress!

Oops, almost forgot! A corner in my room where I have an antique chair, an old antique phone a friend gave me, an antique sewing box kit on the floor and my Ariat cowgirl boots! =)

The built in book shelf in the living room. I have many more books than that...

Dining room buffet all setup! =D

XoXo,

Elizabeth

05-26-15 Final grounds clean up before move-in!

Picture time! The end of May we spent another day at the house to clean up the grounds around the shop and driveway so that that area would be "cleared" prior to us moving in. Here are some before and after photos of that!

Standing in the shop looking out before...

Same view, before...

After the driveway to the shop was cleaned up!

Standing in the shop looking out towards the well into the driveway area before with all those weeds!

After! All the weeds got pulled or raked up and into a pile to be burnt!

Much better driveway/parking area!

Then for fun I really wanted to mark these walk way and driveway areas because it always felt odd that it was all just wide open, no shape or definition to the area. I did this purely for fun and for me to see visually if what I had in my head (and on paper) would look right in person. So I used black spray paint to create these lines. The picture above are the two lines around 4 tall trees, 5 pomegranate trees and the entry gate to the front yard. In the future I hope to a permanent border, water lines ran from the well and flowers and bushes filling this area inside the trees!

This is a shot of the two mature mesquite trees framing the shop that I love so much! For the longest time I've been envisioning a hammock between those two trees as a wonderful reading spot! I wanted to keep the walk way to the shop and the backyard gate open (as you can see by the lines) but have this rounded outline that compliments the canopy of both trees. So when I do put in the permanent border it will be in this shape and inside it will probably be mulch or something soft, other than just dirt.

This is the well and pump that sits right in the middle of the yard. Where I'm from well pumps have adorable little pump houses! Although I'm sure their primary function is coverage and preventing weather and sun damage, I also just think they're super adorable. So the goal here is to eventually have a Pump House that looks like a tiny 4x4 little shed with a door and window, maybe even shutters. Just something that covers this but looks cute. And the Pump House will have a few bushes around it. 

This is a view of when you pull up the driveway and you're facing the house but you look to the right, there is a big gate over there that goes into the open field. The gate needs to be repaired but I imagine one day when I'm using that field for horses or cows that having a gate on this side will be beneficial so I want to make sure that when I redo the driveway there is a pre-planned option to GO that way, as well as to the left to go to the house and shop.

Next blog post is about moving day!! Yay!

XoXo,

Elizabeth

05-23-15 Deck lattice removal & yard clean up

I knew we had some things to clean up around the property before we moved in because it had been on the market for about 6 months and the last time I had been there to clean up the weeds had been about 2 months before. On the day we actually were to move in I wanted my only concern to be moving in and unpacking. So Riley and I spent some time at the property before moving day working on some things.

From the first day I set foot on this property a couple of  years ago I hated this lattice on the deck on the front of the house. If you want privacy then I guess it's a good idea but I like looking out to the yard or the mountains and enjoying the view. So it had to come down! And Riley man is always up for demo work!

We brought our puppies out to the farm to see what they'd think about it. And on this first day that Riley and I spent about 4 hours there, our yellow lab Bella would not sit still. She ran her heart out around that whole property, all over the place and back and forth. Now Max, our pitbull mix, is much lazier! He would follow her and check things out but he'd end up on the porch with us before long.

The lattice is down! Yay!!!

A before and after of the same area! I can't imagine why anybody would ever put that up.

Riley helping blow the huge tumbleweeds after I raked them up.

Working away!

Side yard clean up done!

Here is a nice before and after of the small yard side! It was BAD before!

XoXo,

Elizabeth