Sunday, October 16, 2011

Preparing for dinner

My mom and dad have been planning a backyard patio remodel for some time.  The old painted cement patio has always been too small for our large family gatherings.  Offering their backyard for the wedding rehearsal dinner location pushed the project to the forefront and progress showed up in a big way this past week. My dad ordered redwood and my brother Tyler and his two older sons delivered it all the way from Murrieta (Riverside County), hauled it into the backyard and stained many many boards.  Dad has been finishing up on his own since they left.  I stopped by yesterday for some "before" pics, as the contractor's crew will arrive Monday to start building.

Beautiful long boards still wet with stain.

The deck stretches out quite a ways from the house.

Stepping out to the backyard will be easy once the deck is in place just below the threshold of the sliding glass door.  I'm glad the contractor will be the one to figure out attaching the long ledger board to the house, moving vents and wrapping the deck around the chimney! 

Some backyard flora.  This is a Meyer lemon tree--the blossoms are heavenly scented.

Love this chartreuse and yellow orchid.

This funny niche between the garage and house has had many lives.  An orchid garden seems to suit it wonderfully.  The bird feeder sees lots of hummingbird action--Mom says it is guarded by a particularly aggressive hummer.

Some plantings in the bride's colors will greet guests in less than two weeks. I've been sewing on my wedding outfit and expect a "backup" dress I ordered to arrive tomorrow.  Finding shoes is on the agenda as well.  Tomorrow we'll tour the wedding site for the last time and nail down the final numbers. The last minute has just about arrived, I think! 

6 comments:

Vivian said...

So many things to follow along with you -- the deck, your wedding attire, the final preparations for the big day.
And I suppose a little work has to be included in there somewhere. I hope you have plenty of time off when you need it.
Enjoy it all. The memories, ah, the memories.

Shay said...

It's all go with the Orts family!

The last minute hasn't quite arrived but I suspect all your minutes between now and then are going to be accounted for while you march towards the wedding.

Sounds like you have it all under control. Dont forget two pairs of panty hose just in case!

Carol said...

What an exciting time...those orchids are gorgeous! Good luck on the shoe search! ENJOY all the moments.

Nana B said...

Panyy Hose in California - I don't know Shay.....

The Myer Lemon tree must be amazing - of course the thoufgght of citrus growning in one's back yard blows me away.

The wedding looks like it is right on track. It is so nice when the family pitches in like yours.

Nana B said...

Sorry about the typos ladies - trying to squeeze in blog time before work
This is the first time in a week that blogger has allowed me to leave comments

antique quilter said...

love the stain color for the deck bet that will be a beautiful deck
great plantings, nice to see flowers again
although I am loving the fall colors in our trees now....
trade off for not seeing the flowers anymore!
Kathie

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