Success! (or How I Spent Mother's Day Weekend)

It's been a long while since I've had a Saturday at home to work in the yard. Or any day of the week for that matter. Our backyard is very formal - it's not really all that big, about 1/2 acre, but it looks big because it's divided into sections. The previous owners told us that the back was used for wedding receptions back in the first part of the 20th century and was featured in an issue of Better Homes and Gardens magazine in the 1930s. We can still see part of that in the back and we were told that doves were released at the receptions - we still see doves in the yard frequently.

In the center of the yard is a little square garden with a large fountain. When we moved in, the fountain didn't work and the owners told us they'd not been able to get it to work. As it turns out, it just needed a new pump. There's no telling how long it's been since the fountain was operational, and it was a mess. After talking with the experts at Lowe's, we chose a metallic finish in oil rubbed bronze and spent a good bit of yesterday cleaning and removing the old paint and repainting it. If I were a better blogger, I would remember to take before pictures before the before becomes the after, but I didn't so you'll just have to take my word for it when I say the fountain was a big mess. Anyway, we (and by we I mean Chris and Reid) put it back together this afternoon and what do you know? It works! We still need to work a little on the leveling, but the water is so nice and refreshing on this hot day. Next stop: refinishing the headless cherub fountain. Rumor has it that the head is somewhere in the carriage house, but I've been too afraid to look very hard for it.

Bonus picture: the ginormous piece of chocolate cake Brianna had at the Mother's Day Brunch at The Fox. Actually, we each had a piece - I think our family ended up eating the entire cake. It was good.