It feels like this post should be called The Reckoning as that is what it has felt like clearing the yard over here at Locke Lee Manor. To be honest, if Matt's mom had not visited and shown me the way, we would not be as far as we are. I am not saying that I have done it all alone, as you will see, but I have definitely done my fair share of damage!
I also haven't documented as much because it gets so difficult to determine the before and after of an area when everything is a wall of green! But below is a before and after of our driveway. See that yellow wagon, it plays a part in the story a bit later.
So the first hurdle is clearing. We are still working on it weekly and have built up a decent set of tools to get the job done - and we are used to the fact that we will be soaking wet the entire time - but now we have piles and piles of things to burn. Mind you, we are a couple of city kids who have never been told to burn yard waste. In fact, in Denver, it is highly frowned upon to start any kind of fire anywhere outside of a fireplace or campground on a low fire advisory day. But, we are warriors, well, Matt drove this part, and I watched from upstairs like the supportive partner I am. And the first time it was a success!
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| A safe view from above |
But after that first adrenaline rush it, pun intended, fizzled. We asked everyone and Matt Googled like crazy. Pro-tip: diesel. We are now back on the burning train and have a bit to catch up.
The majority of the lawn can be cleared at our leisure even though, sneak peek, we are planning something fun so stop by the blog on August 7th for a hint! But the lawn back by the carriage house is a different story. As mentioned before, we are ready for utilities and to run electric, we need a clear path.
Here's what we were working with. If you look closely you can see the roof peaking out:
Along with the wall of green, there were also piles from the tree removal that happened earlier in this journey that allowed the rain to completely soak the inside of the carriage house (business plug coming at the end of this post). This job required the big guns but I didn't realize it yet.
On the backside of the carriage house is a pile of brick - it looks to be parts of the wall that runs the length of the property. Being the strong, independent female that I am, I thought that filling a wagon full of brick and pulling it across the 4.5 acre yard multiple times over would be an effective and efficient way to move an unknown amount of heavy material. I meticulously scoured the pile of rubble and selected pieces to fill my yellow wagon (remember it from earlier?) - so nicely organized to maximize the amount to lessen the trips I would have to make. Dripping sweat, because that is what happens outside, I pulled the wagon, with all of my weight and might and maybe got it 5 feet. Defeated, I called Matt. He advised me to call my main contractor (to be praised in a future post) I texted him that I felt like I was rebuilding Stonehenge and manually moving enormous slabs of stone one by one across the country which is no longer necessary as we have the technology and I needed Jedi training. He advised me to rent a Bobcat and we would conquer this mountain. Spoiler alert: the brick is still behind the carriage house but, turns out, I can drive a Bobcat LIKE A BOSS!!
But this was only step one! Our saving grace for tree removal, this time and before, has been Cavins Lawn and Tree. Cyle, Keri and Caleb have been outstanding. They came through and cleared the piles we left from the Bobcat, dug up the larger stuff we weren't able to, and helped with more tree removal around the carriage house. Can you see it now??!
And I don't want to leave out the man that has been keeping our lawn mowed through all of this. When we first got here all of the things were so overwhelming and Christian at Mellow Mowing has been a consistent and reliable face that showed us how to mow this beast!
Next up....bring on the plumbing!!