Backyard Improvements

Last year I posted about the playset we bought for Monkey girl and the landscaping plans we were working on. Step 2 of the plans is currently in the works. Last week our contractor finished building the deck and it's beautiful. I can't wait for the warmer weather to return so we can take advantage of it.

It was a little more than we had wanted to spend on it so to save money we decided to stain it ourselves and complete the bottom. I'm still confused as to why the estimate of the deck wouldn't include completing the bottom. Our contractor told us it would be another $800 to do the bottom and he could recommend a guy to stain it, but that would be another cost of about $500. I have better things I could do with that money and the work/experience is good for us, right?

We have yet to decided if we're going to attempt to skirt it or take the easy route and put up lattice. I like the look of the skirt better and our contractor encouraged us to do that to better complement the deck. We're leaning towards buying a few cedar boards and attempting it on the side people won't typically see. We'll see how that goes in the next few weeks. We're not in a hurry to do that part.

We wanted to protect it as soon as possible so the past few days Dadda monkey has been researching the process and different products. This morning we headed to Lowe's and bought what we needed for just under $200. As soon as we got home, we put the monkeys down for their naps and started working on the deck. Most of the credit has to go to Dadda monkey since all I did was some taping and pulling out the aluminum balusters. It turns out 2 cans wasn't quite enough though, so the bottom stairs aren't done yet, but the rest looks great. For the next 24-48 hours the dogs are going to go crazy (which in turn will drive us crazy) with not being able to go in the backyard while the stain dries. I'll post some pictures after we get the stairs done.