Just ran across Bambi chomping on leaves in our backyard.  Too cool.

Nat didn't have long to enjoy her surprise birthday bash.  We got to work early Sunday morning on our front "yard".  Following in the footsteps of Mom's nice backyard showing, we knew we had a tough act to follow.

We enlisted the help of a few nurseries to find plants that can grow without much sun.  Hopefully we chose wisely …

Before

       

After

       

Ok, I'll admit, the pic I took two weeks ago was pretty weak as far as snow goes.  But let there be no mistake now.  The recent dumping has completely made up for it.

Our home has been invaded by painters.  Nat and I decided to go with professionals to repair the basement walls and give the whole thing a fresh coat of paint.  Things are looking great so far - amazed at how much spackle these guys use!

Mom outdid herself this weekend!! Working off of a digital pic of our unfinished backyard, she planned out the landscaping and went to work this past Sunday and Monday. The results speak for themselves.

Rick and I had a chance to relax outside with the help of six Citronella candles (yes, it takes that many to keep the mosquitos at bay). Next stop: patio furniture...

Between our last post and now, we spent the 4th in Hotlanta where we ran the Peachtree Road Race along with Matt's mom while Rick cheered us on -- even though we were hard to spot in the 50,000+ crowd -- visited friends (helping a few of them move), ate fantastic Cindy-prepared and Atlanta institution meals, saw Jordan and Mike off to Colorado with a super-packed U-Haul and generally relaxed.

Once we were home, it was time to pack up our Tysons apartment and get ready to move into our first home, which meant hauling things from Tysons to Reston just about every night for two weeks and eating dinner around 10 p.m. Before we knew it, it was time for the movers to arrive. My parents came down for support and to do a little painting, loaded with snacks, toiletries and other essentials like a basket of wine. Well, they ended up painting the guest room, living room, hallway and dining room! They seriously have wings or something.

Since then, we've been busy switching out blinds, hanging pictures, hanging out at Home Depot regularly, enjoying finally being able to grill out (if only Matt and I liked meat at the same temp). Although we still have lots of work and shopping to do, here's a peek at the transitions already in our homey home (which is ready for visitors!) and a pic of our pro painters.

And, here's some post Peachtree Road Race pics with our soon-to-be gardener. :-)