becoming an outie

i wish it were otherwise, but i 100% prefer the climate controlled indoors to the elements outdoors. with all of its temperature extremes, creatures, allergens and noises, i enjoy nature the most when it is coming to me through a window (or DVD).

but i dont want to be like this forever. jesse loves nature, the kids go nuts whenever they get to play outside and i love the idea of the wild. so i am trying. as a part of this will to be different, i have entire pin board dedicated to the endeavor of making me more of an outdoorsy girl through various projects that would spruce up our back yard (first we'll tackle the yard, then the true frontier) and make it more "living space" and less "place that makes me itch."

a HUGE first step to this was the picket fence that we put up last summer which enclosed the area between our house and the chain link fenced-in acre of land that we own, but have been usurped from by our dogs. this awesome fency addition made the immediate backyard a place where the kids had lots of space, but were somewhat confined safety-wise AND it made the task of taming our little corner of terra firma a little less daunting.

last weekend we decided to cross off (take down?) one of these outdoor pins and declare a few more square feet of our property tolerable.

here is the back view of our house, standing at the dogs' fence. its a depressing landscape of forlorn toys, tools and unraked leaves (3 years and counting since we've raked!). grass is the most prolific life form on the planet yet somehow cant be persuaded to grow in our back yard.

this was the section we were giving a makeover to:

this little 10x11 foot quadrant of earth was once going to be our vegetable garden. that dream lasted about 40 minutes. its been a steady diet of neglect for this shady corner of the yard for at least 4 years though.

i saw a pin project that took an old freestanding firepit and turned it into a cool, sturdy brick one for very cheap. so several months ago i put out an APB on facebook asking our friends if anyone had an old neglected firepit they'd be willing to part with, and our friends tiff and jorge came through big time. so we got the firepit for free (well, in exchange for some cookies and a sewn-by-me dress for their baby girl...they aint fools!).

last weekend we decided to get the pavers that would comprise the new firepit and to create a little seating area around it off to the side of where we grill. we lined the square with bricks, filled it up with pea gravel and then built the firepit in the middle.

we love it! of course, now we are on the lookout for a great deal on outdoor sofas and chairs so that this will be more home and less "the ring."

slowly but surely, i will become earth mama. one day it will just happen and then, all of a sudden, i wont get BO from the georgia heat and my pheromones of nature-love will keep mosquitoes from biting me. believe in the power of the pin, you guys.