The drama is over!!

The back yard is finally done!! What should have taken 2-3 days took nearly 3 weeks. Now that it is over, I am not that upset, but during the whole process, well, it was not good times. Had I been told that the project would take up to 3 weeks, I would not have had a problem. I would have been prepared. But we were told over and over, oh it will be done tomorrow...this weekend...by Sunday. Guess we should have specified which Sunday.

We missed out on 2 planned BBQ's, had muddy flooding from 2 rains, and basically had to keep the dogs out of the back yard in fear that the yard would somehow get messed up with them back there, pushing the completion back that much further.

After 2 weeks of stress and anger (we let the first one slide), the contractor finally put in more than 1 hour of his time and got the project finished.

Before pictures: This is how everything originally looked. Jim put in temporary paver stone "stairs" so that we could get to the top of the hill, in the event that we needed to. Also, the wall had not been installed yet, so the bottom level was much smaller.

Obviously, the yard was a big thorn in our side. We really wanted to make it more of an outdoor living space. Initially, we were going to hire a contractor to put the wall and stairs in, but Jim decided to take on this project - with a good amount of help from friends and the fathers! For awhile, this was sufficient. But, we began to have a lot of flooding in the back, so much so, that the patio would flood and the grass died. Even if we were able to plant grass, once a big storm came, that was it. And with no grass, we had a huge mud pit to work with - meaning no dogs in the back yard!!

We decided enough is enough. We knew that drainage was needed. Jim and I do not know the first thing about drainage or the options. We were also nervous about hitting wires. So, we decided to let the professionals take over. At the same time, we decided to expand the patio so that we would have more outdoor living space. Lastly, we knew the yard would be dug up, so we decided sod would be a good alternative to watching grass grow! We received quotes and decided to go with a recommendation.

The project included:
1. Address the flooding with irrigation from the right hand side of the new patio, all the way around to the front of the house.
2. Add paver stones in a half circle around the existing slab.
3. Cut down the dead tree at the top of the hill which would have surely fallen on our house (or someone else's!!) in a strong wind storm.
4. Plant sod.

Easy right? I think that any contractor could finish this project in 3 long days or 5 shorter ones. Not our contractor. He managed to stretch the project out to 3 weeks by not showing when he said he would (what excuse is it today???), and when he did show, it would be 1-2 hours. I won't go into too much more, but it was getting to the point that we were ready to bring someone new in.

So, week one consisted of giving our deposit, marking the new patio and taking down the dead tree (which happened to fall into the next door neighbor's fence, taking down 3 rails).







Yard stayed like that for a few days. We wondered if that was that?

Then week 2 came around with the digging of the trench, laying of the drainage and digging out the foundation for the patio addition. The trench ended up needing to be re-dug...
The pattern for the paver patio was also laid out.








And then...nothing. Just when we thought it was time....well, it was done!!! So on Wednesday, July 15 at 8 p.m., we had a usable back yard. This is a little over 3 weeks since we handed over the deposit. Although the dogs can't go out there until the sod takes, we are so happy with it.

Lower-level shots of new patio and new sod! Also, the wall Jim built as well as my pretty flower bed:

Stairs Jim built leading to the top of the hill. Dead tree wood cut up and ready for it's camping trip in 3 weeks! Stone flower bed with no flowers in it yet:

Where the tree used to live as well as what is left of that tree:


View of the lower level from the top of the hill:



Jim telling Mike that the project is finally done!

I don't know that I would want to go through all of this drama again. I think if this ever happened again, I would be more forceful. But we live and we learn, and the guy is coming back this fall to take out the dead tree in the front yard and replace it with a live one!! Let's hope it goes better...

Whats coming up?
Well, we are going to buy a nice little outdoor living room set as well as a fire pit. That will be nice in the fall. We also need to address the top of the hill, which will also come in the fall. We just need to grow some grass up there.

I am so glad that this is all done. Now I can focus on my upcoming honeymoon - T minus 9 days!!

Updates...

So a lot has happened around the time of the wedding, and in the 2 months following. It doesn't really feel like we have been married for 2 months!!

I was accepted into the Elementary Education program at UNC Charlotte for the fall of 2009. I have managed to get all my ducks in a row and am all registered now. I have even begun to read the required book for the class! I am really excited to get the show on the road - lets just hope that by the time I graduate, we will be out of this recession!

I have also accepted a new position at Vanguard. Since Jim and I are now married, we can no longer work in the same department, so I left Jim behind to take a position in our high-net-worth department in Quality Assurance. Its a totally different job than I have done before, and so far, I am loving it!

We are now 13 days out from stepping foot on the Carnival Legend. We are leaving for Tampa, FL on July 25 and staying at the Intercontinental Tampa overnight. Our cruise takes us to 4 ports, and we have already planned out our excursions.
July 26: Board the ship and leave Tampa
July 27: Fun Day at Sea
July 28: Grand Cayman - we will be swimming with the stingrays, as well as snorkeling at 2 different locations
July 29: Cozumel, MX - I am so glad this whole H1N1 stuff is behind us!! We will be visiting Paradise Beach for some food, cervezas, snorkeling and water toys! A nice, relaxing beach day.
July 30: Belize - Our plan is to go zip-lining (yikes!!!) and Cave Tubing. If we ever make it back, I would LOVE to go to the Jaguar preserve and snorkeling, since I have heard its amazing here.
July 31: Roatan, Honduras: Another relaxing beach day at Fin's 'n Flippers. We plan on some more good food, beer and some amazing snorkeling.
August 1: A well deserved fun day at sea.
August 2: Debark and back to reality.

I am so looking forward to this cruise as well as our now annual trip to Jefferson to camp and tube the new river. That will happen the weekend we get back from our cruise, so we have some busy times coming up! After that, its all about getting ready for school!!

Lisa, Ryan and I have also signed up for a weekly wine tasting/learning course at Trader Joes. Last week was Sweet Wines. Tonight is Red Blends. I have really started looking forward to Mondays. Way to go TJ's!! You have taking the case of the Mondays out of Mondays!! Lastly, the back yard project has begun. Word to the wise - DO NOT (!!) start a new project around the time of your wedding!! The stress is not worth it. And that is the topic of a whole new post!!

Stay tuned for new installations about:
The Back Yard - complete with pictures!!
A full review of the Cruise - complete with pictures!! A
nd anything and everything in between!

May 12, 2009: Goodbye Jamaica

So, our time in Jamaica had come to an end. I really wanted to get up early this morning to see the sunrise, but alas, I was sick again. I guess I'll just have to wait for the cruise. For now, I can live vicariously from others.

I did manage to make it to the breakfast area to start saying goodbyes.






And off we went. The trip to the airport was way more somber, and I managed to sleep most of the way. We did make one final "Goodbye Jamaica" pit-stop on the way though.






The flight home was fine, and we had the nicest homecoming...





Having a destination wedding was one of the best decisions that we made. It took a lot of hard work and planning to make it our own, and we did miss a lot of very important people since we were so far from home, but you can't beat the most beautiful decorations ever - the ocean, the colors - everything was just perfect.

We thank everyone who made it out to spend our wedding with us, and hope that we were able to give you the best vacation possible! For those who could not make it, we hope that this blog gives you a peek into our special day, and the days surrounding the wedding.

Thank you everyone who has either uploaded your pictures or who have provided them to us for uploading. There are so many that could not make it into this blog, so please, visit all the pics at: http://flickr.com/photos/jimandjulieacuna/sets

Please also stay tuned for some videos (crossing fingers), and new posts, as Jim and I start our lives together as Mr. and Mrs. Acuna!

May 11, 2009: Margaritaville, Ocho Rios, and Michael Jackson (RIP)

Today, we finally decided to go into Ocho Rios. We really thought that we would need a whole 4 hours for this, but once you are there, especially when not busy, you get through it pretty quickly.

We said goodbye to those still in the lobby, and those that wanted to head into town boarded a small bus together.


We arrive at Island Village, where a very tall dude gave K a gift.




So we have been to Margaritaville many times in Vegas, and really love the food. The service in Ochi was slow, and the food was sub-par, but the water slide was too fun!

Dana:



Me:



Jim (Rock on!!)


Ayal:


Jeremy:


Whatwhat:


Time to dry off...


Food time...



And some relaxing...






And then we said goodbye to most of the crew and headed to shopping. The Island Village area is really geared towards the cruise ships that come in, and so the shops were pretty much the same. We couldn't buy alcohol there, but managed to get some t-shirts and a really nice photo album.




Mom, Jim and I decided to hop back in a cab earlier since I was pretty much done with the who shopping thing, but not before we got this pic. This will be us in just a few weeks (although not in Jamaica)!


I was really ready to get back to the resort. The sun, heat, stress and exhaustion were finally getting to me, and I was really trying not to get too snippy. When we go to the resort, we decided to finally check out the "party pool." The guys played some volleyball while mom, dad and I relaxed.



In true Saltwell family form, Jim lost his ring playing volleyball. Yes, his one-day-old-ring. I guess he was trying to be like Marta? Ayal finally found it across the net on the other side of the pool.

After some final fun times in the pool, it was time to change for dinner. Tonight, we had a farewell dinner at Sir Johns, and the food was fantastic. I really enjoyed spending that last time with the fam and remaining friends.

Tonight was also the last show for us...and it was a good one - a tribute to Michael Jackson. Since the show was such a spectacular, there was no pre-show, but there was some dancing.



Michaelllllllllllll!







And with that, we had to wrap up the night.