Backyard Pirate Ship/Fort

Because we aren't yet sure how we will build the retaining wall to finish the patio project, Jonathan was able to get back to the pirate ship. We made some look-out portholes. The two on the right are exactly the height of Seth and Micah.


Here's the view from the top.

The slide is already very popular.


Entering from the back.

View from the kitchen window.

Great job, Jonathan!

Almost there!!!

The stamped border was poured yesterday and this morning at 7:00 the crew from Giordano pulled the forms off of the border. At just about 8:00 the cement arrived (9 cubic metres apparently) and the fun began! What a process...two wheel barrows back and forth with no breaks. Once this was all poured into place the real work began. The crew worked the surface and smoothed and leveled and then stopped! Once the concrete set up a bit the brown sugar got used. Yes...Brown Sugar!!! Sugar water slows the top of the concrete pad from hardening while the bottom continues to set-up. The pressure washer was the next critical tool in the process...the top 1/8 of an inch gets washed away and leaves the tops of the aggregate visible! Exposed Aggregate! Tomorrow they will cut, wash and seal the patio and then we're nearly done! As you can see I need to do a little work to build a retaining wall. This project is going to make a HUGE difference to the yard! Come on over and pull up a chair!!! Oh yeah, Micah also got a nice new haircut for summer. Clippers # 4 on top and #2 on the sides all blended...NICE!

Father's Day

Seth, up close and personal.

Soccer. Colton and Micah chase the ball.

The backyard pirate ship fort project has been put on the back burner until the patio project is complete.

Happy Father's Day ... to the best daddy ever!

Giving daddy his Happy Father's Day cards. He had so many - made at Dina's, Maureen and Jeanetta's (Gretzky Centre), preschool, and home. We enjoyed a lovely pancake breakfast before heading to church.

A Big Backyard WOW!

Jonathan has been doing the last few blogs about our backyard patio but I beat him to it this time. I just couldn't wait until tonight to post these pictures. Rob and the Giordano crew are doing an amazing job. They are very respectful, work hard, and really pay attention to detail. One of the guys even let Micah hold the end of the measuring tape!

I can't wait to see the final product!

We've got CONCRETE!!!

Well we got concrete today! Rob and his crew arrived early and poured the sidewalk beside the driveway! Now company will have somewhere to walk when they get out of their cars!!! When the Weather Network said that the storm wasn't showing up till late afternoon, they also poured the stamped concrete border. It's a bit hard to see the texture in the border but you can see the colour in the border. I also started to look into a retaining wall for the parts that have grade-issues. If the weather cooperates, we might get the exposed aggregate tomorrow! Moses is NOT a fan of the gravel under his feet. He moves very quickly from one soft spot to the next. Stay tuned!!

Patio Day #2....

Day two is gone...and much to Micah's disappointment, the Bobcat did not come back today...all of the digging was completed yesterday. Today saw all of the form work for the stamped border and roughly 18 tonnes of gravel put into place as the base....(and still not enough!) Rob, our contractor has only completed one or two patio's this size in his history, so we're good fun for all!! We also discovered today just how much retaining wall we are going to need. The reality of our backyard was pretty clear during the quoting process...the grade is all over the place and we're going to need a retaining wall to hold back the dirt. Tomorrow is going to see concrete poured!!! More pics to follow!!!

This Year's Project...

We've more or less completed the landscaping in the front yard, although we have some rogue hostas that need to get 'split' next spring. We've had in in the plans to complete some sort of patio in the back yard to give us more space to eat outside, and keep the sand in the backyard where is belongs. After gathering some quotes we decided to work with Giordano Construction to complete our backyard patio in a combination of exposed aggregate and stamped concrete.



Our before pic....patio stones...random grass, satisfactory, but nothing to get excited about.















And here's what it looks like today!!!







We now have about a 950 sq. foot dirt pit that is just waiting for a bunch of concrete. Some concrete is going to get poured tomorrow (Tuesday) and the rest of the cribbing for the stamped concrete border should get put in place!

Stay Tuned for the next update...

Busy in the Backyard

Click here to go to Jonathan's Canadian Financial Peace (Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University) blog to see pictures of the pirate ship/tree house/fort he's building for the boys. We're very excited about this and the new backyard patio project that is to start next week.

Ottawa May 30 Weekend

We certainly had a great time in Ottawa for my marathon. Seeing the entire Deighton gang REALLY made for a super trip. Can't wait to return! Enjoy the (many) pictures.

Is this beautiful or what? Amy is so talented. It's now in our family room!
Atkinson kids getting ready for school (with Micah in costume).
Batman x 2.
Ciara and Maura get the boys dressed in costume. Adorable.

The big girls watched the little boys.
Jonathan and Jacob chatting about life.
Two too cute two-year-olds.
Hanging in the basement. Micah just loved it.

Nothing like a nap in the Chariot after a hard day of cheering mommy on to win a National Championship!
The DuChene Crew.
The cameras after the race. Boys had a bit of stage fright.
Jonathan captured a great action-shot of me as I finished the 42.2 km in 2:39.

Comparing Saucony shoes while in the Chariot.
Morning of the race. I thought I could sneak out without waking anyone but Seth popped his head up at the first sound I made. So we played around with the camera for a while.


A Saucony family.


The boys just LOVED the bubbles AND jets.

What a big boy. Micah sure enjoyed the one-on-one with daddy ...
while on their amphibious ride together.
Enjoying the scenery in Ottawa.
Big, fluffy white towels. Who can resist?
Loading the luggage.

I really enjoy my time alone with Seth when Micah is at preschool. Building blocks and books are often what we spend our time doing.
Thanks, Ben and Eli for the matching outfits for Micah and Seth.
Sweet Seth snuggling with Moses.
Mother's Day, May 2010.