First and foremost I cleaned out the backyard. From the patio project there were a lot of stones and a massive pile of dirt just sitting in the middle of the yard. I picked up all of the stone pieces and distributed the dirt pile throughout the rest of the yard. In the end, it was probably good I reused the dirt to level out the slope away from the house.
In the afternoon I tackled the stairs. They took longer then necessary, but it was mainly due to the fact that I was experimenting with paint colors. In the end I went with all gray. Any area of white was too much of an attention-getter...and quite frankly, the last thing I want to see are the stairs. Since I painted it the same color of the house it kind of blends in and you don't notice it. Eventually we'll add some color, but the stairs weren't the place to do it. I went with the composite treads for wear and maintenance. I hope they last a long time. The stairs turned out well but not perfect, which is why they needed to be hidden. The patio needs to be the focal point anyway.
So, during the week I'll put down the landscape edging in preparation for the grass and mulch. We're getting really close to finishing the major aspects of the backyard....
