About Us

Here is a little information about us. We are your typical middle-class suburban couple. We live in a nice subdivision in the mid-west where I believe the weather is the most challenging for any sort of backyard life.

We are in our middle years always looking for a way to enjoy everyday just a little bit more. We are very passionate about backyard life and all of the elements that are a part of it. We have spent a great deal of time viewing garden walks, pond walks and botanical gardens. We have gone to some of the most spectacular resorts with regards to an absolutely perfect outdoor environment. I am especially good with plants and animals. I love to create new things that are just a little different than what everybody else has.

We have 2 dogs and 2 indoor cats. Everything we do both inside and outside takes them into account. Our dogs do not hesitate to let us know if they are unhappy with anything we do. Thier safety is always a consideration since we love them and try to avoid the soaring price of vet bills.

The area we live in is extremely difficult to predict. The weather is crazy all year long. We have extremely hot and humid summers and the winters can last forever and are quite harsh most of the time. Selecting plants that are tolerant can be a challenge and even those rated for this climate will often wither or die. Even the hard items like decks and structures take a nasty beating.

This year we had 90 plus inches of snow which literally smothered and killed large sections of our lawn. Then the spring brought huge amounts of rain followed by drought. Now we are in horrible heat and humidity with moderate rain. I fear the next couple of months since we have not reached the worst part of summer.

Our love of water is evident in the yard. We have 4 water features and would like to install a large pond. Our previous yard had a huge pond that wrapped around the deck and with waterfall and stream attached. We also had a smaller seperate fish pond that did very well. Here we chose to simplify our yard since we did not have the time to maintain it. We may be moving soon so we are holding off on any further improvements, at least for one summer.

I have been known to sit out in the yard and watch the same butterfly for hours. I appreciate any visitors of any species and I don't want to miss a single moment. Even my dogs understand the importance of a complete eco system. My larger dog, Spencer, was miserable here until everything grew in. He loves to just lay on the bridge and watch everything. He does not bother the wildlife unless they act up. When the red-winged blackbirds try to attack the sweet wroblers, he will chase the blackbird away.

As you can see we are very passionate about backyard life and all of the elements associated with it. We love plants, animals, structures, water, lights, fire, swings, gliders, chimes, music and everything else you can thing of.

This site was a way to express our passion and hopefully spark that same feeling in others. We offer advice and opinions from our years of viewing, learning and living outdoors. We also tried to help direct everyone to the appropriate places to purchase many items that can enhance the experience.