We did it! We did it!

After coming over both Thursday and Friday afternoons to help me scrape and paint the end gable of my house (which had to be done prior to this project... see my post on Handyman forum), my "BESTEST" friend ButterflyChaser came BACK over today to help me install my water garden!!! It is beautiful!! AND she brought me a van-load of water plants, including about 8 water hyacinths (one even has a bud about to open!), probably a dozen water lettuce, a couple of water lilies, and several other plants (she'll have to remind me of their names). The project took about 6 hrs to complete, and we had a BLAST! Had the boom box out playing a BeeGee's #1's and Earth, Wind, & Fire CD's while we played in the dirt... literally!! I'll post pics of the stages of our 3 day project below.

It's amazing what two buddies can accomplish in a day! DH helped a little patching a couple of cracks (my BIL gave it to me because he wants a different one and didn't want to mess with patching this one... aren't I lucky??).

Next.....

Then...

And again....

TaDaaaaa!!! DONE!!
Gail

Sounds like you had a lot of fun and made a lot of good memories. Looking good. Dixie

Thanks, Dixie. It WAS lots of fun. I meant to post pics of our painting project, too, but they're on the other thread... The memories would be better if she'd let me have DH take our pic together! I'll get her! When she least expects it!
Gail

Now, I'm planning the landscaping around it. That's going to be fun, too! I've already got some stuff, and a friend is sending me a bunch of her daylily seedlings to grow for her and I'm going to put a bunch of them on each side and line the front edge with hostas. I think it's going to be SO cool!!! I'm so excited!
Gail

Wait till the frogs and toads find it. It is so much fun. my daughter and I have one in a wooded area. We enjoy it so much. We do have a lot of trouble with the d-- squirrels but we havent quit feeding them. dixie

Sounds like it was a great time! And the results look fabulous. Please keep us posted on your new, and quite lovely, pond.

Well, my 3 yr old grandaughter came by with my daughter a minute ago and she said "are there any fish in it?" and I said "no, not yet. Do you think mom should put some fish in it?" and she said "you gotta have fish in it" so now, it looks like I'll be getting some fish LOL (she calls me mom, just like my daughter... my daughter is mommie, even though I've never referred to myself by anything except mamaw).

This spot is on the west end of my NW facing house, so it gets morning shade, mid-day sun, and afternoon shade. But since the brick is so dark, it's a really warm microclimate on that side. Tomatoes have grown roof high on that side of the house!

You guys did a great job! Your yard is really coming along. I was inches from getting a used preformed pond for $35, but of course I was to late
=(. I am just using a kiddy pool for now until I can get a real pond together. I started out with only a few water hyacinths, and since it's been so hot they have multiplied like crazy.

I was just about to try that or just get the black liner and make my own when I noticed my BIL's sitting out unused (sister doesn't "do" yardwork). I just said for him to let me know if he decided to get rid of it and how much he wanted for it. Within a couple of weeks, he called and GAVE it to me, pump and all. I had to call him over so he could see. He liked it too. Now I get to landscape all around it. That's going to be fun... I already have a "plan" in my head.
Gail

I see you over here braggin Gail. You two did an excellent job! Looks great! Be sure to let us see the landscaping when you are done. Tanarae

Thanks, everybody! And don't worry, Tana, I will post pics! I already have 2 'Burgundy' Lorapetalum waiting to be planted, 2 pots of variegated monkey grass that I'll divide and plant around, and several different hostas I got on clearance at w-mart that I've been trying to keep watered until planting. I'll also transplant and divide my running ee in 1/2, 2 silvery artemesias that I'll transplant, and I have those DL seedlings coming from Deb that I'll fill in with. Gotta get out there and do some grass killin' today!!! The DL seedlings will be here next week and I don't want to have to pot them up!!
Gail

I got a bloom! I got a bloom! ButterflyChaser is the greatest!! Not only did she come and help me with ALL that WORK, brought me plants for the new water garden (LOTS of plants), she even made sure I had a bloom the very first morning! I went out with my coffee to admire and plan landscaping, and voila! I had an open bloom on my water hyacinth!! Take a look....

Great job Gail and NancyAnn. A lot of work and love went into that project and it really shows. How nice to have a bloom on your first morning out to look at the pond - but that's NancyAnn/ButterlyChaser for you! If someone's going to do something nice it will be NancyAnn.

You are SO right about that, pirl!! And thanks for the compliments! I know we had a lot of fun and that girl can work me into the ground! I've never seen anybody work as hard as she does! I still can't believe we scraped, painted, and installed that WG in 3 days' time!
Gail

We worked our heinies off didn't we? Uh, no wait, I see mine is still tagging along! Guess we didn't work hard enough, so what's next??

I can't think of anyone I have more fun with than you Gail. No matter what we're doing, we end up laughing our way thru it, even with that dreaded, despised task of weeding! I am still laughing over your imitation of your neighbor. That just cracks me up!

So now we gotta make some benches to sit around the pond. It's going to be our most favorite spot to sit you know. You're gonna have to make the entire area a patio. No way around it. Can you think of any other place you'd rather sit and chat? No you can show off when the Garden Party guests arrive! Girl, you are stylin and profilin!

Arlene, thanks for your sweet comments. You are sweet to come out and post them even on a day that is difficult for you. If you'd just move down here with Gail and me, just think of the fun we three spunky ladies could have together. Then we could pack up, grab Edenawaitsme, and head off to Tana's house for a while. Now THAT would be a dangerous crowd! TX would never be the same once we breezed thru town. LOL

NancyAnn

Ditto to you, Nancy!

Oh, yeah! A road trip! Wouldn't that be a blast ? ! ? !

As for the "patio" I like the idea, the only thing is I have to leave about 2-3 ft of grass along the side of the driveway, since it's not quite wide enough for 2 cars... you know how we like to park along the edge (1/2 on the driveway, 1/2 on the grass) so other cars can get by? I'm going to go lay the water hose out where I think I'd like to make the bed and then see how it looks. I'll post a pic when I'm done....

G

Gail

Just stopped by looking at all the threads I've missed lately. WAy to go Gail and NancyAnn!

Hey NancyAnn, my cannas are blooming! Yahoo!

Thanks, pixydish. I am just loving it! I spent this evening helping Nancy at her house.

Don't you just love cannas? Mine are doing well and I'm enjoying them quite a bit, too!

Gail

Hi Pixydish, glad the cannas are wowing you. Life without cannas is like life without chocolate--not worth living. LOL OOOOOH, speaking of chocolate, Gail you know what I got in the fridge! I'll save some for you for Fri. We hummingbirds must have our sugar fix! LOL

Isn't it a beautiful pond? I'm so jealous. I tried to trade her something for it, but she stuck to her guns. No way would she part with that water garden. It looks so cool, like lava rock.

I got tickled at Gail's husband. The pond had a small crack in it about 5 inches long and about 1/2 inch wide. Gail's husband bought a fiberglass patch kit to repair it. So you'd think he'd use a strip of repair fabric about an inch or two wide and 6 or 7 inches long, right? Nope, OVERKILL!!! I nearly freaked out! He cut a strip about 8 inches wide and about a foot long! So now there's this big "clearish" plastic spot right on the front lip of the pond.

Now had it been my pond, I would have been screaming, "no no no!!" But Gail just very quietly stood and watched. She didn't a say a word but "Thanks, honey." She's lived with him long enough to know it's a man "thang". She's decided she'll plant a plant at the edge of the pond to cover up the big spot, which is pretty visible. But, hey, it doesn't leak! LOL

NancyAnn

My Knight in Shining Armor!! My Eagle Scout. Isn't he great? How many other husbands do you know that would spend all that time and energy trying to fix something that he knew meant so much to me? But, alas, he does tend to "overdo" things like that. And yes, I've found over the last 9 years that if I can tolerate that, I will be rewarded with a bubble bath, a gardening magazine, my cigs and an ashtray, a glass of super-chocolate milk, about an hour to relax in the tub, and then.... well... you know. lol And as you said, all I have to do is plant something at the edge of the pond that will camoflage (sp?) that place. I think I can do that!

Here's me and my DH.....
Gail

I really think it's that glass of chocolate milk he makes for you that has hooked you. What a guy! He does dote on you. You are lucky, and I'm jealous ya know. A beautiful water garden AND a husband who makes a mean glass of chocolate milk--girl, you are sooooo rich!

Now, we just gotta find a plant big enough to cover that spot... A Sum and Substance Hosta should do the trick, don't ya think? LOL

N.

OOoooooo!!! Yeah! That would be JUST the thing! Guess I need to make a run to Robbins' or find someone with a start for trade.... hmmmm.... wonder who that might be?
Gail