Sunday Was A Day of Work

Sunday was a hard day. After a very quick breakfast, DH and I were in the backyard working at a fast pace. There was a lot to do to shore things up in case of rain. With bare, steep banks on the creek side, a rain could wash all of that soil down - erosion in action. DH had already done serious repair work on the bank once. He didn't want to do it again. So in addition to putting topsoil on top of the packed sand, we also needed to lay sod. 

Looking to the north, the darker green is sod that
we laid today. The longer, greener grass at the
bottom left is sod that we laid at least six weeks ago. 

Apart from a quick trip indoors to watch the final three laps of Le Tour around the Champ Elysees, we were outdoors working from 8:00 am until 6:00 pm without pause. While I hardpacked a large part of the flatter back yard, he did what he could with shovel and black dirt, creating a soil more friendly for grass. At 1:00 pm, we started laying sod. That required one more layer of black dirt sculpted in the appropriate shape, then one roll of sod at the top of the bank and at least two more either across or down to reach the bottom of the slope. 

Looking south, you can get a good idea of the stretch of land
we were dealing with. We needed to stabilize the bank and
hold any erosion to a minimum. It was a real chore, but we
managed to get it done. 

It was backbreaking and dirty work, and late in the afternoon we needed one more trip to Home Depot to pick up another 12 rolls of sod. The second batch wasn't quite as good as the first, but we ended up using all of it except one roll. It's currently happily soaked underneath a tarp next to a large pile of river rock that we still plan on using later on in the project. 

We adore "Endeavour" because we're big "Inspector
Morse" fans. We were so exhausted after our
labor, DH kept falling asleep. Good thing
I've got the DVD already ordered. 

After late showers, we got the grill going, tossed on steaks and corn, indulged with a couple of margaritas, and we ended the day with the final episode of Season 5's, "Endeavour". It was a backbreaking day and an exhausting one, but at least we can breathe easier if we get rain. 

The winners of the 2018 Le Tour de France. In the center,
Geraint Thomas - winner, on the left Tom Dumoulin,
in second place, and on the right, Chris Froome in
third place. Chris almost lost his podium position, but he
rode a brilliant time trial, making up for some hard
times in the Pyrenees. 

Le Tour de France is in the record books for this year, with Geraint Thomas (Sky) in the Yellow Jersey - the first Welshman to win; Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) in the Green Jersey; Julian Alaphilippe (Quick-Step Floors) in the Polka Dot King of the Mountains Jersey; Pierre LaTour (AG2R La Mondale) as Best Young Rider; Movistar as Best Team; and, Dan Martin (UAE Team Emerates) as Most Aggressive Rider. Lawson Craddock, the injured American raising funds for the Houston Velodrome, ended up placing 135 out of 146 finishers. CONGRATULATIONS to all of the riders, it was a wonderful Le Tour de France and I'm looking forward to next year's race already. 

Happy Monday to all, I really need to stretch out my overused muscles in the pool, so I'm heading out soon. Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow. Oh!!! And today is my BFF's actual birthday...so HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHARON!!!