We’ve been waiting 10 years to tackle our yard.

It wasn’t that it was an eyesore or intolerable, we were looking for something more carefree and practical. We wanted something easy to mow. A fence that didn’t need to be raised after every wind storm. Garden beds to collect a harvest and a pathway to keep our feet dry during the prolonged Pacific Northwest rainy season.

We hired some of it out, but did most ourselves, including the toughest piece – a paver path and patio.

This was a family project. It involved all four of us – my talented husband, our two industrious and strong teens and well, me, who stands with my hands on my hips and points a great deal.

This was really two projects, a 100-foot long, 3 1/2-foot wide path from our shed in the back yard, through our swampy side yard, to the front sidewalk. It has two, approximately 3-foot arms that branch off to the patio and the side garage door. Through the years, we had worn paths in these areas trekking from the house to the garbage can, recycling receptacle and compost bin. Dragging the recycling, yard waste and garbage cans weekly to the curb meant wading through a spongy, mucky, nasty area of grass and mud.

The second piece was a patio and path off the front door. When we bought the house, any car door opened from the driveway forced the passenger to step into a flower bed. We’ve always wanted this change. We also wanted a wide path that led from the front door to the sidewalk. For years, we’ve had to scoot sideways between the cars in the driveway and Spike, our prickly tree out front, or trod through the grass with the mail or groceries.

When we first moved into the house, we laid bricks out front to help with the issue, but it wasn’t quite the look we’d planned. We also laid a few out back, but not with the success we wanted. We learned from that experience and this time around my honey did his homework.

The foundation was key.

The crew, bless their hearts, dug the 8-inch deep trench for both pieces.

We filled it with a level, 6-inch thick layer of gravel, 5/8-inch minus crushed base course to be specific, and another of 1 to 2 inches of concrete sand. Between the four of us, but mostly my son and husband, we shoveled 10 cubic yards of gravel and 3 cubic yards of sand.

There was no way to know we’d have picked one of the wettest springs in recent history to carry out this project.

We provided hours of entertainment for the neighborhood as we worked in downpour after downpour late at night after work trying to make the landscaper’s deadline.

Unlike our past venture, this time we staked plastic edging into the ground to create boundaries that would keep the pavers from scooching during installation.

Then we laid approximately 550 square feet of pavers – 350 square feet for the walkway and 200 square feet for the patio. Individually, that works out to about 511, six pallets worth, of 6-inch by 9-inch and 6-inch by 6-inch, stones and a bottle of ibuprofen.

Not as easy as it could have been, because we threw ourselves a curve. Literally, we wanted an S in the pathway and a little character out front. Renting a dry diamond saw with a vacuum attachment was helpful. The vacuum attachment meant there was no need to dispose of a bunch of nasty slurry. The bags were easily dumped into the trash.

The part we always hated about our past project was the weeds growing in the sand between the cracks. What we discovered this time around was a polymer sand the professionals use. We rented a plate compactor and shook it deep into the cracks. After it’s all settled, a little mist activates the sealant.

We finished it off with red, Mexican, beach rock in the back yard areas that are traditionally the most wet and the grass doesn’t like to grow.

Along the way we also found a need for patience and a sense of humor. Honestly, there is something funny, at least now, about hauling a wheelbarrow loaded with gravel in a driving rain.

I’m sure there’s a dollar number I could muster up if I found all the receipts, but I stopped keeping track after a time. The self-satisfaction in finishing a project, and doing it well, and the time we spent together as a family working, grumbling, joking and creating together was priceless.

We enjoyed visiting with our neighbors, and the nightly dog walkers, as they checked in on our progress.

I think it still needs a colorful Adirondack chair to give it that finished look and give us a place to sit, relax and beam over our accomplishment. Every time we haul the recycling to the curb or watch the dog prance proudly along his personal highway it brings a smile.