Don't fence me in

Here's where we are with the fence now...the structure is done, but we won't stain it until next spring because the wood needs breathing time. These pics are taken from the upper level of the yard so the fence looks small, but it's not. It's 8 feet tall. The maple tree is in both pictures--I don't have panoramic capability on my camera, at least that I'm aware of, so it took two shots to show the setting.

More is going on today--the boys are putting river rock in front of the fence and brick trim around the rocks. We'll add a couple of trees in the open space to the right of the fence and a couple more elsewhere in the yard... but don't expect this all to happen quickly. We're waiting for better tree planting weather for that part of the project.

I admit without guilt that I like having other people do this kind of work rather than Larry/Paco/Dad/Grandpappy and I doing it ourselves. It's especially nice to go away for a few hours, like I did this morning, and come home to see the results of three guys' labor. While they were hauling rocks and bricks, I was at the Amboy Cottage Café in (guess where?) Amboy with my book group, enjoying breakfast and discussing a good book. One of the book group members reads this blog, and I'm sure she'd agree that breakfast and conversation were a great way to spend a warm summer morning, right Mary?

Later today...

I went to meet a friend for coffee for a few hours this afternoon and came back to the rocks and bricks all in place, and the area near the fence looking good. This is a switch on the Field of Dreams "build it and they will come" idea. I like the concept of "leave and they will build it."