I'm sure I would have really liked them

Today we spent a couple of hours working in the yard.  We bought this house in April; we came to stay (more or less) in June, and it was WAY too hot for any yard work for a couple of months after.

When we had the occasional cloudy day, I was always painting, which seemed more urgent.

Needless to say, the yardwork needing to be done began to accumulate.

Though it's pretty, it's not a no maintenance yard, for sure.

So we've been hedge trimming (not bad), weed pulling (not bad either) and digging up little redbud treelings that have popped up everywhere in the landscaping (VERY bad).  These little guys are tenacious.  While they may just be real spindly and a couple of inches tall, their roots go WAY deep down and seem nearly impossible to remove completely, even with a shovel.

The worst?  The little redbud treelings growing in the center of established shrubs.

Last week while working on one my husband dislodged an underground beehive.  He got stung three times, used an entire can of bee killer and still hasn't managed to eradicate it.

So it's not all beautiful fall walks and kayaking in tranquil waters.  Another property is a lot of work, too.

The house, with most of the yardwork completed.

I didn't think of taking before photos. If I had, you would have seen some seriously overgrown shrubs.  I imagine our neighbors are breathing a real sigh of relief now. 

But you know what was great?

Remember our first day how we found a fake snake on the doorstep next to some fake flowers?

This made me laugh before I ever set foot in the house!

The other day we had a guy here at the house to spray for termites.  He told me he the snake almost gave him a heart attack, but then he told me he thought it was funny.

Well, here's the thing: one night, as my husband was grilling, he looked up at a high ledge on the patio and found a tiny rubber snake looking at him.

Then yesterday, as we were working in the yard, my husband came to get me and told me to look at the floodlights on the font of the house.  I did.  "No, look really closely," he said.

So I did.  And here is what I saw.

The floodlights, at a glance.

The floodlights, upon further inspection.

I just love these people!!  I only met Brenda, the original owner, briefly, but I never met her husband, who I suspect was the snake placement person.

"Call me with any problems, if you have questions," Brenda offered, when we briefly met her at the house closing.  Then she paused, and said, "Well, I probably can't help you with your problems, but I can answer your questions."

Is that fantastic or what?