I have been hard at work trying to move the 7.5 cubic yards of dirt from the driveway in the front of the house to the yard in the back. It has definitely been a lot of work and a lot of sweat, and I’ve gotten dirt under my fingers in the process.

I secretly love it when my fingers are dirty. It makes me feel like I have accomplished something. I like to dig in the earth and get dirty. Hard work and sweat are the best cures to any problem.

The only problem is how dirt dries out your hands. I have to put lotion on at least 10 times before I start to feel like they are normal after digging in the dirt.

I am proud of our yard. We went from having a pretty sorry excuse of a yard to an amazing garden. I planted in my raised beds. I fixed up our grapes. I planted an apple, a cherry and a peach tree. I planted blueberries, strawberries, gooseberries, huckleberries and raspberries. I also put some hops in the ground as well.

Around everything, I planted a cool grass mix that was developed at OSU. It is Oregon native plants that make a great lawn. It has wildflowers in it and it does not have to be mowed or watered. I am excited to see what it looks like when it comes up.

This year, I will be spending as much time out in our new garden as possible because it is going to be an amazing paradise!