Here are some pictures from our work day.

This is the deck, pre-demolition.














Dad and Aaron came with lots of fancy tools. Dad started with this battery powered saw, but it wasn't strong enough.














So he broke out the big one and soon the deck was being cut into neat little strips.














Prying the boards off the house. Man, was it DIRTY and icky under there.














This is where our hydrangea bush was. I dug it out myself with hardly any trouble. I also pulled out the bricks that had been lining the garden and the stepping stones from the deck to the hose. I used those stepping stones to lay a path from our back section and under the gate. It was poorly done and would have been hard for the guys to wheel concrete in, so I leveled it, set in the stones and packed in gravel and dirt around them to make it stable. It looks so much better!














Ethan caught throwing some stuff into the crawlspace. Luckily it was just some old toys, but he didn't realize that once they go in, they ain't coming out!














Had to put this in because his face just cracks me up! We had lots of pilings under the deck.














Gwen was cold most the day so she stayed in her rocking chair bundled in Daddy's coat.



















Ta-da!



















Someone needs to analyze why I do this. After the event last night, then hauling and lifting and digging all day, I am sore from head to toe. I mean, I cannot take a step without some serious pain. Yet instead of crashing on the couch like I should, I make a pie from some frozen blackberries. I hope it tastes ok. I didn't have a recipe for frozen berries so I winged it. The pie has turbinado (Sugar in the Raw) over the top for a pretty and crunchy texture.















While THAT was cooking, I prepped a meat loaf, mashed potatoes and gravy for dinner. The meatloaf is in the oven now, and I'll start the garlic potatoes in a second. And now I'm even more exhausted and sore! Why do I cook when I'm stressed or tired? I wouldn't say that I feel better after cooking. Weird.