Does anyone remember this from last September? Parking-not-fine
Well things truly got underway with the front driveway during the Easter holidays. Our eldest son D was home and with his help we knocked down the wall for the entrance and gates. Kerri had asked where the opening onto the road would be - good question! You couldn’t see it on earlier photographs as we wanted to keep the wall up for as long as possible - to contain the mess and keep wee S from going out near the road. Thankfully our daughter, M has helped look after S this past week so G and l could get on with the work- and that we did! The wall came down, we edged the drive with concrete slabs, l built small dykes (recycling from the stone wall), G built the steps and two pillars, l ordered the chuckies and coping stones, lots of sand and cement mixing, etc. Hubby and l work together really well and l am so proud of what we can accomplish. So, sitting here with the job almost complete, l feel utterly exhausted but also pleased. I am so glad it is the weekend and is pouring down outside- nice to be stuck in for a wee break.
The weather has been wonderful for April so there was really no excuse not to get stuck in out front. l have missed checking in with you all much but knew you’d understand that something was keeping me busy this end.
As we wanted to keep the job as tidy as possible (all the way through) we chose to recycle - no skip required and saved money to boot! First we raised the flowerbeds with the extra soil. You’ll remember my visit to the horse farm for manure to help enrich the soil. Who could forget that! Poor wee S falling into the ‘horse moose’! (story here)
Next we dug in our edging borders to contain the lawn and separate from the drive. When the wall came down we used the stone for small dykes and used the extra rubble for construction hardcore.
We still have plenty of good stone left for another project around back. Lots of measuring throughout the project to make sure the gates would fit and not drag on the slope. Digging enough depth and gradient at the gates for G to cement the driveway up to the pavement/sidewalk- also to hold the weight of the car and keep gravel from getting out. Always thinking about heights, depths, slopes, weight and levels-lol. Anyway it’s almost done- just to render the pillars, Hammerite the gates, paint the wall and Bobs your uncle*!! Slideshow of our project to come.
Hope as l visit with you all that things have been going well.
*Bobs your uncle
Phrs. There you have it; a catch phrase expressing satisfactory completion. E.g."Make sure you have primed and undercoated the wood. Then apply the gloss paint and Bob's your uncle! The wood will stay protected and look good for another couple of years."
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12 comments:
Hi orzon ~~ What a lot of hard work but you have it all looking good.
Glad that the kids were helpful too.
Thanks for stopping by, my friend, even a wave from you is welcome. We say "Bob's your uncle" here is Australia too. Wish it was all that easy. Very well done arah and G and D
with M minding wee S. Take care, Love, Merle.
oh - I thought you were sunning yourself in Uist!! (or Lewis)... ha ha
Wow what a project and you've been busy but glad you are back!!
Best Wishes
Kirsty
We've missed you, but so glad you've made such wonderful progress on this big project. It looks great!!
Isn't it fun to do a major job like this yourselves?? Yes, it's truly tiring, but very rewarding!!
xoxo
SOOOOOOOOOO glad you're back! ((((((HUG))))))
What a wonderful job ya'll did!!
Proud of you!
That looks just beautiful!!!
Alice
it looks fabulous! well done you all!!
So lovely to see you in my comments again, missy! Just wanted to tell you I know how you feel about the V-Tech shooting hitting close to home. I was working for the schools here in Portland back when the Columbine High School shooting happened in Colorado as a dinner lady and it seems like the Cafeteria and/or Library are the usual spots for these bloodbaths to happen. I remember the morning the news was breaking about Columbine...my son was a Senior in high school here but he called to make sure I was all right! I told him of course I was and he said, "But, Mom...so often it happens in the CAFETERIA!" He was terribly stressed and concerned. I told him if I ever heard gunshots, the first thing I'd do is hit the floor and crawl out the back door. But thankfully I never had to put that to test. I agree...what kind of world are wee Sam and Dylan growing up in?! Sigh.......
Well done Horizon. I remember the first picture you posted of this project and now it is complete and looking good. Isn’t it a satisfying feeling? I love to have a good project on the go.
It rains for the first time in weeks here, we’ve had a glorious spring, the garden was so dry it badly needed it. Its been good for me too, at last I can get on with things indoors instead of being continually tempted outside with day after day of sunshine. My ironing basket was getting higher and higher. Now its empty and we have a choice of clothes to wear again. Enjoy your week. Marion
Certainly looks great. It is a good feeling when a large projest comes to a happy ending. Congratulations on your un-noticed blogging birthday. I always have great pleasure reading your interestig an informative posts. What a nice present from your son, I think the best part of the present was that he thought nothing of waiting in line for so long to give you a gift that was special.
Cheers and Hugs Margaret
Horizon, I am so impressed with the job you and G. have done! Now it's all so clear with your great before and after pics. I wish you could've heard Ross and I trying to figure out just where the mouth of the driveway was going to be :)
By dykes do you mean the little stone walls that are edging the gardens and steps?
You have every reason to be proud of a job very well done indeed. It's beautiful!
You must be feeling chuffed :)
Hoping you get to finish this project this weekend and get also a chance to work in your garden, I will be thiking of you, too. Stay healthy and safe!
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