I need to dig into the planting beds, now that a month of growing has passed by, but I did get to spend a little time making the back a little tidier.

I've been giving myself excuses like bad weather and sore muscles, to avoid the digging and dirt moving I need to finish to get my planting boxes filled with the former planting beds. I'm lame, and I know it.

The kiddo wants to invite a bunch of friends over to hang and "celebrate" the end of the school year in our yard, weather permitting. Our yard is still a mess from the garage construction and my aforementioned excuses.

Today we spent a little time moving some of the deck planters off the deck, placing them over by the other dirt intended for the planting boxes. They hadn't been moved or used for their intended purpose in a couple years, so we discovered the abundance of ants living inside them as we slid them from one side of the deck to the other. As I hadn't finished the planting box area on the south side of the house, the weeds have come back in abundance, so I had to chop them down. They're now covered with Spectracide Triazicide and have the planting boxes atop that, to help curb another rebound of either ants or weeds.

We also spent a little time moving the fence debris out of the grassy area, to a spot along the unused side of the garage where I hope the future fence replacement includes removing those fence parts. We rearranged the temporary deer fence to block the opening left in that corner, and placed all the currently unused tomato cages as an additional barrier, to help keep the dogs from trying to chase rabbits through the gaps.

I hit the weeds that had sprung in those planting beds with the whacker, and called it a day.

I will mow the grass tomorrow, and probably start thinking about getting busy with a hoe and shovel to level the ground left uneven by the garage floor excavation. Also to fill the built planting box, build the other, and fill that, too. And add mulch to the then-cleared dirt areas around the boxes, and probably to the other areas that line the fences and sidewalks, that also need to be weeded.

But this week I have few excuses. My aches have abated, and the weather is supposed to be fantastic. We'll see what tomorrow brings!