adventures of yard work

my grandpa and aunt Jessica showed up on a few days ago to lay sod in our front yard. I didn't have anything against the beautiful landscaping my Grandma did a few years ago, but apparently the realtor did. so, they spent the day creating a green front yard and preparing the house for spring and the yard work that I can see is now going to become my life. I was taught how to turn the sprinklers on and off, how long to water, how often to mow, what to pull and what not to pull, where the hoses, sprayers and sprinklers are for the backyard (yes, the back yard, which is much bigger, has to be done manually), which plants and bushes need to be sprayed and for how long, how to start the lawnmower, where to put the clippings, how often to weed, and where to connect the hoses.

until now, the most yard work I had ever done was driving my dad's lawnmower around as a teenager, and weeding the back yard of the townhouse we had in DC. when they left, I knew I had gotten myself into more than I had imagined. but, I was determined, and even a little excited! I love responsibility, and I love doing things that have a physical result. I knew I had it in me to keep the yard beautiful! the sprinklers in the front yard were easy - turn them on for 30 minutes every day. it was all good until this past Sunday night when I completely forgot about them until they had been on for 4 hours... oopsie! but, I had faith that we would recover from that mishap.

the weather was amazing on Sunday. I couldn't wait to turn up my ipod and mow the lawn while wearing shorts and a tank top so I could get the tan I have needed for way too long. I pulled the lawnmower out of the work room and the only think I could remember was that my grandpa said the rope had to be pulled. the electric start doesn't work. so I started pulling. I pulled while holding down the handle bars, I pulled while turning the key, I pulled while it was on turtle, I pulled while it was on rabbit, I pulled with nothing else going on. my arm was about to fall off. it was not working. I called my dad, he was no help. I called my grandma, and she informed me of the primer button the the front of the motor. I primed and primed and pulled. still nothing. I finally lifted the blades away from the lawn, primed and pulled. voila! I was up and running! after all that work it took a lot of energy to push that thing around the back yard, but the lawn looked amazing when I was done so I got a blanket and took a nice long nap on my greatest achievement of the day. a freshly cut lawn.

the next night when I went out to start the sprinklers in the front yard I noticed something big and dark pushing one of the squares of sod up like a huge dome. I thought it was an animal burrowing in our yard, which freaked me out so I called for reinforcement. Amber and Holly came to the rescue with flashlights and a bulb for the porch light. they snuck up on it, inspected it and informed me that it was a huge patch of mushrooms! gross! and amazing at the same time. they weren't there 13 hours before when I left for work. I never knew how fast and powerful they could grow. the next day I found out that it was because I overwatered the lawn those few nights before and the only thing I could do was dig them out and hope they didn't grow back. I don't have any gardening tools, so I put on some culinary gloves, grabbed a grocery bag and a metal serving spoon and went to battle with the mushrooms. there were more than I thought. they were stinky and slimy and had killed the sod that was in its way. I think I got them all out, but if they come back for more, I won't be surprised.