Backyard Update

Sadly, I can’t even get out in the backyard every day to finish my 27 projects.  Slow and steady wins the race. I know. I know.  But slow and steady also leads me into the broiling temperatures of summer in Phoenix. So the pressure is on!

The resurrected gazebo is coming right along…. other than being upside down, on the grass, and not painted. This is the one that flew over the fence and was a mangled mess of canvas and metal. 

My beloved royal blue lobelia are absolutely their happiest right now…. but they won’t last much longer in this heat.

The garden is coming right along…. beans are winning the growing race at the moment, but the zucchini is in a close second.

Lastly, for your viewing pleasure, I scored six of these lovelies at 50% Off Goodwill last Saturday… YES!  Rick scrunched up his nose too at the thought of candles in the backyard, but last night I lit them all and he did think it was lovely, even though he never used the word lovely.

Ga-nats!

Yes, it’s monsoon season in Arizona and with the unusual amount of water pooled in various low places the GNATS have swarmed here and multiplied. I cannot use the word gnats without thinking of the Veggie Tales movie where the giant pea keeps pronouncing it Ga-Nats.  And even though I’m a homeschool mom with loads of diverse information in my noggin, I do not know the life cycle or reproduction speed of gnats.  Although, from the looks of our back door collection, I would surmise the cycle is FAST!  I cleaned the bottom of the sliding doors yesterday and awoke to this:

My pesticide-company-owning-husband said, “Well, they’re dead!”  I guess that is good, but gross me out!

The other sad news in the backyard:  yesterday we awoke, went downstairs and looked out the back windows… and something was missing…. it was the gigantic gazebo!  Gone!  Poof!  Obviously there was some sort of micro-burst in our backyard to pick up a metal eight-foot gazebo that was anchored down and throw it over the six-foot block wall!  Rick looked over all the neighbors’ walls until he located it.  That house is vacant presently, so he went over, picked up the mangled metal and canvas conglomeration and threw it back into our yard.  He knew how much I loved my oasis of shade covering my patio swing… so he slowly disassembled it in hopes of rebuilding it.   No such luck.  It’s gonzo, baby.  Makes me sad.  Here are before and after pictures, which should help you to decide NOT to vacation in Phoenix in the months from May to October.

Gazebo, baby!

Here is my beautiful new-to-me gazebo from some friends of ours.  Seems they live in a communist compound five miles north of us and can’t have shade in their backyard.  So my 13-year-old son and I put it together today… without instructions…. and only put four pieces on backwards.  Of course they had to be removed and turned the correct direction for the cover to fit.  It was only 85* in the SHADE this morning.  So we were a bit glisteny and shiny.  I have always wanted one of these gazebos, but it was never high enough on the priority list.  Thank you, dear friends!

While Aus and I were holding our arms straight up screwing nuts on bolts for what seemed like 27 hours in the hot sun, my other two children were leveling a corner of the yard which had been cleared of river rock and prepared for two 6’x6′ garden boxes.  It was the logical place for gardening boxes…. but it was the ONLY place for a 10’x10′ gazebo.  So my rototilled dirt was compacted and the river rocks were put back into place.  The mosquito netting was hung and the gazebo was placed in the NW corner of the backyard.  We promptly moved the patio swing in there and it is oh, so inviting!  SHADE!  The number one commodity in Arizona in the summer!

We are approaching summer temperatures, so my petunias, lobelia, alyssum and marigolds need to be yanked out and tossed and Vinca needs to be purchased and planted.  I plan to move some big pots in the gazebo and then it will be complete.  Ahhhhhhhh.

After watching Food, Inc. last night, I’ve decided to DEFINITELY plant some veggies!  I pulled all my carrots this morning and there is enough for dinner!  Yahoo!  So no more 6’x6′ square gardening boxes.  The only two places in the yard now are two 10’x3′ areas along both side walls.  I’ve grown zucchini during the summer before and I plan to again… and pumpkins.  I’ll keep you posted.