Saturday Snapshots: Sod is here! Finally!

We bought our house five years ago and did a lot that first year to make it "our" home. We repainted the house and garage (ourselves...never, never, again), painted every room inside (we like lots of color, no white walls for us), added wainsboard, switched out the light fixtures, etc.

After doing all the work (by ourselves...we saved a lot of money, but man oh man was it A LOT of work) we took a bit of a break. We had the best intentions to get the backyard ready for some BBQ action, but it has just never happened. So for the past five years, my pooches revel in their backyard oasis of weeds, that at times reach heights taller than me. I know...embarrassing! I finally got fed up with my pooches trudging in the weeds and dirt (I was sweeping/mopping daily-definitely not fun) and we hired someone to install sprinklers and sod.

Such a difference! We plan on planting a tree in the back for some shade and eventually (you know in five years...lol) we will landscape the backyard with drought tolerant plants. We've been in the process of overhauling our front yard with native, drought tolerant plants.

My boys (Hans and Buster) love their new grass. I catch them constantly rolling on their back and playing in the grass.

Linking up with Run! Miss Nelson's Got the Camera for another Saturday Snapshots!

Our Backyard Transformation

This was what our backyard looked like when we bought the house five years ago. This photo must have been taken during the spring based on the green weeds.

The looks of our yard this summer. Inviting isn't it!

A few of the weeds that are taller than me and I'm 5'5.

 The sod has arrived! Five of these huge stacks were needed to fill our backyard.

Prepping for the sod. Wow! Not a weed in sight!

You'll notice we decided to ditch the Salmon/cream and red house color for an olive green, black, dark brown, gray scheme. 

 Buster checking out what the landscapers have done so far.

Ta Da! Grass!!

So now onto the side yard. I planted these Desert Museum Trees about 7 months ago. They have beautiful yellow followers that bloom during the summer. Ours haven't bloomed this summer. Maybe they are still acclimating to the planting. Any suggestions on what to do with the empty space?? We would like to keep with the native drought tolerant plants/flowers. I definitely don't have a green thumb and any suggestions would be welcomed!

 Time for me to unpack! Yup, I went on another week long adventure. I was in Jersey City at the Mickelson ExxonMobile Teacher Academy. It was beyond AMAZING! I will hopefully post a write up tomorrow all about the academy, how to apply, and so forth.

http://missnelsonsgotthecamera.blogspot.com/2013/07/saturday-snapshots-winner-and-room.html