Backyards are a special place
Have you ever thought about what your backyard gets to witness in a lifetime? Like really gets to see you and your family experience?
When we moved into our house almost a decade ago, the previous owners had used our backyard primarily as a dog run, which meant lots and lots of mud for us to deal with. Yuck. We spent the first two years just trying to grow grass so we could use the backyard. When there was finally some green, we moved on to landscaping, mulch, a tree swing for the kids, three raised garden beds, and then So. Many. Plants. Each year, our backyard became a lovelier space to spend time in.
Making the space your own
I like to plant something new in my yard every year. A tiny rose bush from an arrangement from my grandmother’s funeral that reminds me of her with every bloom. A tropical hibiscus in the center of my garden that makes me smile when I see all the bees enjoying its sunshiny yellow flowers. A dozen colorful varieties of Iris that came from my mother-in-law’s gorgeous gardens. Tulips that match the blooms from my wedding bouquet a million years ago. Lilacs that smell like my childhood.
The backyard is a mix of all the things I love and has become the backdrop for all the time we spend outside. It’s the heart of our home. Forcing our kids to play badminton every summer, outdoor movies on the projector screen with half our neighborhood, kids jumping on the trampoline, climbing into the treehouse, and playing night games are all things this backyard has had a front row seat to. We’ve eaten countless family dinners on the patio, hot tubbed with friends and margaritas, learned the dos and don’ts of smoking various meats, and chatted with neighbors for hours over the fence. During COVID, our backyard became a classroom for our kids, the space where I did yoga on warm days, where we hung three new bird feeders and got really into bird watching, the place we could safely be with each other.
Backyard memories
This spring, as our backyard blooms to life, it will host the second Seitz kid’s graduation from high school. Our friends and family will come here to celebrate and mingle together in this space that perfectly represents the Seitz family. Someday, this backyard will be where I teach my grandkids how to garden and where their Papa will push them on the tree swing. Where our grown kids will come home to visit and probably beg us not to get out the croquet set in the yard because they never liked that game.
This backyard will always be my favorite place to sip my coffee and do the crossword on a cool, summer morning, and the best spot to soak up the late afternoon sun in my hammock while I read a book. Where I’ll probably lay there and reminisce about all the wonderful things that have happened back here over all these years.
Jamie’s greatest backyard idea may have been when she ordered herself a large inflatable children’s swimming pool during COVID so she could float on a raft and read all summer long.
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