Yard Progess

Our front yard is almost finished! All that is left is the sod to be laid once we are back from Ohio next week. Joe has spent four to five hours a day these past two weeks digging up the area where the sod is going in. The soil was extremely hard with a clay, stone, and rock mixture. He broke up the soil, removed the rock and stones, and then mixed in compost we got free from the local recycle facility.

The photos today are of a small area of the front yard that will be watered by hand as needed. 

Joe's labor results - after rock.

Joe's labor results - before rock.

As Joe gets closer to completing the backyard and setting up the raised garden beds, he has been collecting materials to fill the beds before the soil is added. We have small branches of varying sizes, mulch, and today we got free hay. A local farm family harvested hay yesterday and before they could get it all in the barn it rained. They were giving away thirty-five bales; we only took three. Megan saw the announcement on a free Facebook site and notified us immediately. 

I caught Joe in the act of using his hay hooks to bring the bales to our car. 

Joe moving hay at a farm in Rockford.

Today's adventures included a trip to Runnings, a hardware store in Monticello, to pick up landscape fabric this morning and then a trip this afternoon to pick up the hay near Lake Sarah in Rockford. We know how to have all of the fun!