Patio Progress: Phase 2

We left you a couple of weeks ago as we were shoveling gravel into our patio area, with only the walkway complete. Only a few days -- and sore muscles -- later, it looked like this:

The next step in the process called for tamping down the gravel to make a solid and level surface for us to build our patio. But we decided it would be too hard for us to tamp our own gravel (which would require heavy machinery, a truck, and a healthy back - of which we are in short supply) so we hired it done. This is where I will spare you the boredom of looking at a photo of tamped gravel.

The following weekend we were again blessed with wonderful weather and the assistance manpower and guidance of the Piersons. We soon discovered that the most difficult and tedious process in the whole patio operation is in the prepping and framing. Thanks to Denny's ingenuity, we got 'er done.

We started laying our pavers by the gate in a herringbone pattern. Tessa and Leo headed up the brick-laying, while Evan stayed on top of those sport's scores (notice the background) ... ; )

The holes are where we needed to cut bricks to fit. That was Evan's job (since his bad back kept him off the ground).

We all had fun pitching in ...

Even Kate ...

And by the end of the evening, we had the walkway and the angled portion done!

Stay tuned for stages 3 and 4 ... I'm a little behind on recapped our patio progress. We are actually about 99 percent done right now!