Center of @ttention: yard projects

We needed to put a weed barrier down under this rock bed in the front. But first we had to get all the rocks up. It's been a much bigger project than we expected. We got as much of the gravel up as possible, got the barrier put down, and then spent a while cleaning up the rocks (didn't want to put the dirt and mud back down). We found we didn't have enough rock to cover the barrier, though, so we have now been attempting to collect more rocks, and washing them up. Then we can put the big cool rocks back down and finish up this project.

This is the corner mound that still has those crazy ugly pipes sticking up. we have found out that they are comcast cables - and since comcast has decided they will not offer service to our little subdivision, they will not take responsibility for them. so we are stuck with them. But you may notice that they are not the same color as last year. They were originally Orange. but I spray painted them green. much nicer. They almost sorta blend in now. The reason I did this, though, is because the little tree - that was supposed to help hide them - did not grow this year -we killed it somehow :( (can you see the dead sticks there? - we still haven't had the heart to tear it out yet)....
My idea is to plant some mammoth sunflowers around the pipes, in the hopes that they will hide it. But I had to wait until the last frost date (which was the middle of may this year) before getting sunflowers into the ground. So watch for updates on how that turns out.
Oh, and I also made a little lighthouse/birdhouse tower thingy (I don't know what it really is) - to hide the ugly utility box that sits there - it's only 3 sided, so it slides right off to the side, if they need to come do work there.

And this is the backyard - I have been working on cleaning up the back corner. Since it is what I see when I look out the window, I decided that is not where I want the ugly compost pile, and the overgrown weeds LOL
We got a pile of gravel a while back, for the boys to play in, its surrounded with my "redneck deck" of pallets to keep the boys out of the mud. but yet they still manage to get muddy LOL - that mud is not just normal mud, it's like quicksand mud - VERY sticky, impossible to get off.
I want to create a bigger sand pile back there, but first we need to cap off a few sprinklers.
and I also have lots of work to do with putting a better weed barrier under the garden section. See I put down the black cloth the first year. I put it directly on the dirt, but it was not able to keep the weeds from growing under there. And now that it's been 2 years, the weeds are coming up thru it. So my more permenant solution is some heavy duty cardboard then the weed cloth, and maybe rocks or pavers to help hold it all down. But being pregnant has really prevented me from accomplishing what I wish I could do this year. And it's good that I already know that I am not doing much in the garden this year. With baby due at the end of July, I knew I would be much to busy at harvest time. So we are keeping it simple. I have my 2 tomatoes. The Strawberry patch seems to be doing well. We are attempting raspberries again - last year None survived - we are still unsure about the transplants so far this year.... and when the weather warms back up again next week, I will plant the corn with green beans, and the pumpkins. But that is about all for this year.