Back to Work, Kinda

Today was a sloppy, muddy nasty day. This black dirt is the worst to work in with just a sprinkle of rain much less four inches of melted snow on top of it. You walk ten feet and your six inches taller.

I got tired of looking out the window so I decided to do something about it. I was able to install the rest of the patio bricks and situate the outdoor furniture on the brand new patio. Tomorrow I plan on paving the path from the porch to the patio to keep our feet from getting so muddy.
The iron furniture in the picture was the first brand new furniture my wife and ever bought. All the couches and chairs we have gone through over the years were all from garage sells or given to us. We were at Sam's one day and decided a set of outdoor furniture was the best thing for our house, and it was. The kids couldn't break metal and when the cushions would get dirty or stained all we would do was wash them with the garden hose and let them dry. If you had people over and it was nice outside, just carry the set to the front yard. If you have small kids, outdoor furniture for the house is the way to go.
I plan on covering the patio for shade this summer.

Since I have been playing and not able to work for the last couple of days, I had to burn today. I do not have a burn pit yet (number ten on the list) and for the past month been using the little patio fire thing. I was able to deconstruct my composting barrel and use it this time. It made all the difference. I could burn a whole box instead of cutting it up in little pieces. The barrel worked great and the door on the side made a great air baffle. Cold night, cold beer and a warm fire. Now that's living.