Creating our sanctuary

When my wife and I bought our house about three and a half years ago all I could think about was the amount of time and money the yard was going to need. It was basically dead grass, overgrown juniper bushes and a collection of weeds. My wife could envision what it could be with a little sweat equity, a beautiful sanctuary for us and a great play area for the girls. I could not! While I do love working out in the yard, this was going to be a monster job, the likes of which we have never seen before. Could we really make this pile of crap look not only decent, but nice enough that we would want to spend any time out there at all? Would our marriage survive the constant back and forth I knew we were going to be dealing with? How will I convince a woman that believes she will be able to make a bed frame for us someday (it's true, but that is a story for another day), into just hiring out the work we want done so I can enjoy my summers like any American Dad should?

I could see no suitable answers for myself, so I just had to live with the fact that I would be spending most of my summer, and a fair amount of cash, fixing up this goat pasture we just bought. Damn, my golf game is really going to suffer, and forget about those spontaneous 3-day weekend trips....oh, and my back, my poor aching back. How am I going to get through this and still be able smile at the end of the day?

That was three and a half years ago. Last night my wife and I enjoyed a glass of wine on our back deck and we both agree we have the sanctuary in place, with only a few more items to take care of. I love it. Somehow we managed to share common design ideas and not bicker about our different opinions. While some of the work was hard, we made it fun and involved the whole family. We took each project one step at a time, always looking ahead to the final product and never rushing to fast to just get it done now. I don't know when my wife became one with the force and starting using her Jedi mind tricks on me, but some how she got me to buy into her vision without much fuss or fight.

So this summer there are a couple more things we want to do, but I think I'll get to relax and enjoy more this summer than I have the previous three. So pass me a beer and turn on the Jimmy Buffett!

PEACE OUT DADS!!!