Before and After

Well, we're at it again!  Digging, dumping, moving building...repeat.  Our backyard has been a work in progress since we moved into our house two years ago.  When one of our three boundary sharing neighbors approached us about sharing in the cost of putting in a nice fence, rather than the wire we have shared, we were prompted to make some decisions.

The driveway has never been wide enough for Hubby's SUV to turn into the garage and there have been some steep drop-offs along the side we share with this neighbor.  We knew eventually we would install some sort of retaining wall, but we weren't expecting to have to do it this soon.  Here are some before, during and after pictures of the project:

The North Side - this side was always cluttered with debris that got blown next to the fence.  If a ball fell over the edge, it was really a pain to get it and lots of thorny weeds seemed to love growing here:

 The north side of the driveway before -

 The north side during -

The north side after - a nice level addition that someday will be concrete.

The West Side - this was worse than the north side and everytime we drove in at night, our poor neighbors got a great spotlight from our headlights.

 West Side during -

 During

 The contractors use the scoops like hands with such small, exact movements. It was amazing to watch.

 Hubby helped pack some dirt around the boulders.

 After - another nice, smooth transition.  We will also concrete some of this and a new fence will be installed on top.  Our neighbors should love the privacy!

More of the West Side - Steep!  The garage and driveway are up the hill on the right.  Hubby's SUV had a difficult time turning into and backing out of the garage.  One wrong turn and it's over the hill!  so we decided to take some of the dirt from the back and make an extension.

 

 During - you can see the little tractor moving dirt up to form the platform.

 This pad will someday be used for a shed and storage.

 After the pad was done, we decided that we should go ahead and install the retaining wall.
The Back Before - you can see three trees in this picture.  We wanted to keep the tall one on the right but remove the two in the middle to make room for a pool someday.  We hate taking out trees, but found no way to save them.

 You can also see old pipes left from a house that had been in this spot years before.  You wouldn't believe all the debris that was under this dirt - parts of electrical boxes, pipes, plywood full of nails and roofing shingles. 

 During - the two trees are gone and you can see the little grove we kept in the back corner.

 During

 After - someday this spot will have a pool and a retaining wall like the rest of the backyard, but for now we might put in some more grass and a paver stone patio under the deck.  We'll see...