Okay, so I had a short work day today, and instead of sitting around on my butt all afternoon I decided I’d stay active and see if I could get some real work done.

Anyone who spends any time with me knows that my backyard is my little piece of paradise, but unfortunately, the front yard has never looked all that great. Actually, I should correct that: it looked great while Lori was taking care of it, but since then has fallen into disrepair.

My biggest complaint with the front yard is its seemingly endless growth of weeds… it is simply unmanageable.

But no more. At least not after this week.

My goal for the week is to do a complete overhaul on the flower beds that front the street. Yep, it’s gonna’ be a helluva’ lot of work, but when it’s done it will be sooooo worth it. No more weeding!!!

So I started today, and I thought I’d post a little “before & after” for you.

First step –– pull all of the weeds. I finished the section on the left this afternoon, and hope to finish the area on the right tomorrow.

Second step –– install composite edging along the outside of the flower beds.

Third step –– lay down 30-year weed barrier.

Fourth step –– mulch, mulch, mulch.

Now, I have to admit, I’m not a big fan of mulch… it’s known to negatively effect native bee populations that burrow underground, and that’s something I take very seriously. However, since I’m letting the entire backyard go to bare dirt––and I already have a very healthy population of bees in my yard––I will make an exception to save my sanity.

I wouldn’t mulch my an entire yard, mind you, but this strip pretty much requires it… and when it’s done I swear I will sleep better. My cruddy front yard absolutely haunts me… wish me luck!