Took a Plunge....Splash!!

YES.....We took a BIG plunge this summer and it has made a BIG SPLASH in our backyard!!!!  After 7 years of being members at the Southland Family Pool, we cashed in our membership and decided it was time to make a SPLASH in our own backyard.  Actually we had been contemplating it for a year or so but finally it is DONE and I will say once they got started, WOW, did it happened quickly!!!  What a backyard makeover!

Beginning of Day1 (June 14th): Nothing but flat surface when you look out from the back of our house, standing on our covered patio.

Side picture of our yard, before the dig!

 The first dig...keeping our fingers crossed that they do not hit ROCK!!!

Shortly after lunch, we'll you guessed it.....they hit ROCK......19 inches from 8 feet and they hit ROCK!!! We had two choices: 1. stop and make it a 6 foot pool which would still require adjustments to be made since the pool has already been dug and sloped for 8 feet, meaning rock would need to be brought in, ha! OR option 2. rent a jackhammer that would attach to the excavator and hope that they could bust through the ROCK.  I will say that the hole diggers were dedicated they work a LONG day in the HOT sun trying to make it through to 8 feet.  This is where we ended up on the first day.

End of Day 2 - All walls are up and the footer is poured.  They were able to BLAST through the 19 inches of ROCK, now the kids will have their diving board. 

End of Day 3 - This morning they came and finish the floor of the pool and put the liner in.  Both Phillip and I were at work and believe it or not both kids slept through all of it (after spending all of day one and two watching the process the choose the most interesting day to sleep).  Jonah work up around 1:30ish and they were starting to fill the pool.  Can you believe 3 days and we are this close to have a pool full of water??

Day four - we went to Holiday World so I didn't take any pictures plus all that happened that day and day 5 was filling of the pool which was a slow process and laying of pipes (boring). 

End of Day 6 -As you can see by the end of day 6 the gravel was around the pool and it was filling. 

End of Day 7 (1 week) - Courtney makes a splash!!!  Yes, that is dirt in the pool.  Because it was so DRY, every time the wind blew, clay dirt blew right into the pool.  Something we had to battle with until we got the sod laid.  One week after they started and the kids are swimming, unbelievable!!

The following week was a slow week as far as progress.  We had to wait on the inspector, then the electrician, but the water was cool and the little amount of time that the workers were there did not keep the kids out of the pool.  I am standing where the grill area is going to be looking out over the pool, which is off of the patio at the back of the house.

Two Weeks: Pool deck is done!  Hard part is the kids had made plans to do nothing but lounge in the pool on this day.  Had to keep everyone including the the four legged fury guys running around the backyard.

As you can tell by the picture below we are pretty much done, with the exception of the mound of dirt and one more small project, well maybe two.  Two weeks after the pool was started during record high temperatures, we spent the weekend laying sod, 4 pallets.  We were about to die, it was so HOT!!!!  That following week we had nothing but record high temps and NO rain but thank the Lord we are now seeing rain which the new sod and our water bill is appreciating.

   

"The LORD is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works."

Psalm 145:9

Blessings to all~