Moonfly Kids

My annual pilgrimage to Atlanta is something I always look forward to, every year, without fail. For one-or sometimes two-weeks during the Thanksgiving holiday, I pack up everything and head to Georgia to visit my sister and her brood. We have been doing this for many years, and with each passing year, with the addition of each new baby, it gets more and more chaotic. But still, we persevere. 

On days like today, when it’s cold and rainy, and we’re surrounded by restless little people, I crave a dose of perpetual sunshine from the desert.  I start thinking about my backyard, a little oasis where I can escape when things get hectic.

My yard wasn’t always an oasis, in fact, when we bought our place, it was just a fenced area covered in rocks.  And, yes, in the desert, rocks totally count as landscaping. But it needed some personality, so I designed a cool space where the dogs could run wild, my son could play, my husband could whip up some mean BBQ, and we could entertain family and friends.

I get a real kick out of the before and after photos, I hope you do too!

Since I took these photos, the plantings have matured and offer more shade and colorful blooms. There are even more toys scattered around, and a sandbox for Nick in the back-a gift from Granny and Grandpa. By far, the backyard is the most popular area of our house.

One of the questions I get most often is about the turf. Let me tell you this, my prerequisites for the yard were that it had to be low maintenance, and it had to have native desert plantings. Since grass is neither one of those, I opted for a high quality turf. I had my doubts, but I decided to try it out. And, the verdict? I love it. It’s preternatural greeness is a little disturbing at times, but over all, it was a great choice for us. It gives Nick a place to play barefoot. The dogs treat it like carpet, so they wouldn’t dare pee on it. There’s really no maintenance, you just rake it or hose it down. It also serves as a thermometer, if the turf is too hot to stand on, it’s probably too hot to be outside anyway!