Once Upon a Time...

My CityFarmer Hubby wants us to share our experiences as we make our house in the suburbs into a homestead.  We've lived on this plot of land for almost ten years.  When we bought it, the backyard looked like this...

Dirt.  Caliche, the dried compounded clay, almost hard as rock, "how can anything grow in that?" dirt.  We were lucky to get a cul-du-sac corner yard, with a much larger area than the majority of the neighborhood.  I liked that it was empty, it meant we could do whatever we wanted.

When we moved in, our focus was inside the house.  We put in tile, did a lot of painting, tore out a wall, moved some doors.  And, really, while the inside projects have slowed, there is always something to do.  When he finally asked me to marry him, we did some thinking.  Instead of using the money to rent a place for a reception or hire someone else to cook, we decided to put it into the yard and do the cooking ourselves.  Instead of spending the money on one day, spend it on the future.  Create a sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of the city.

We got a little carried away with the grass.  The gazebo was one of several we got because the clouds were threatening to let loose on our family and friends who came to celebrate our union.  This last set of photos was taken about 8 years ago.  It's going to take a few posts to catch up to the present day, but I thought it would be good to show you where we started.