Contains sponsored links¦ Making our back garden more family friendly and suitable for entertaining has been on my to-do list over the last two summers. I was a lot more unable to do things than I realised I’d be when I was pregnant and I didn’t get anywhere last year due in part to SMP. Now that I have a toddler, it feels more important than ever to turn the garden into a place where she can run around and burn some energy. It would also be great to have a space where I can relax, but also feel comfortable inviting family for a BBQ.
Currently
I started sorting out the garden last summer, but over the winter it has got worse again. Weeds have sprung up from between the patio tiles and the tiles themselves need a good pressure wash. Not only that, but we have accumulated so much rubbish in the garden. We got a new sofa in October and a new radiator in November. The old armchairs and radiator are sitting in the garden by the French doors, as well as other junk that needs to go to the tip. My husband also has some car ramps in the garden. Everything is just a total mess. I’ve done a rough sketch of my garden, but tidied up the rubbish into bags for the picture!
As you can see, the garden is on three tiers. The middle tier has a medium sized storage unit on it and at the bottom we have a compost bin. The previous owners of our house had dogs, which is likely why the top tier is gated off. It has been almost 6 years since we bought our house, and I’d imagine the fences we haven’t replaced, the gate and tiles are probably quite a few years older than that. It was all beginning to fall into disrepair when we bought our house, with the lower steps cracking and paint wearing off of the weathered fence panels. Clearly, our garden needs some TLC!
The future
With a lack of time and money, who knows whether this will be the year I get it together. However, with Autumn being the age she is now it really feels like we need a proper garden space with lawn where she can play (if you’re in Virgina, check out Lawn Care Virginia). My parents-in-law recently bought her a sand and water play table as an early 2nd birthday present. It’s lovely and it doesn’t feel right for it to be in what it essentially a yard at the moment. We definitely need to tidy up now that there are brighter days and longer evenings!
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Once the rubbish is gone, I’d like to get rid of the patio tiles on the middle and bottom tiers and even it all out. I want it to be a grassy area Autumn can run around on and maybe play a little bit of football! My husband and I also enjoy playing badminton, so it would be great to have a lawn for that. I’d have a few pots of flowers to keep things pretty, but low maintenance. I’d move the garden storage up to the top tier but keep any patio and garden furniture on the middle tier as the top is usually in the shade unless it’s 7am! I’ve been having a little look on Groupon where there are some lovely things at the moment, for a snip of the price! I would love an outdoor sofa like the one I’ve seen on there.
I’d also like a shed, but unfortunately we’re working with fairly limited space so I’m not sure how realistic that is. The main thing is making the garden a space that’s safer for our daughter and ultimately not full of junk!
What do you think? Are you happy with your garden or does yours need a makeover too?
Disclosure: This was written in collaboration with Groupon. As always, all views and opinions are honest and my own.
Gardening and children go together so beautifully!