Day two. My back is counting the days until this is done. It is very unaccustomed to spending mornings shoveling rocks, and spends the rest of the day complaining about it.

Unfortunately I didn't do as much today as I would have liked. I am reminded of the adage to go easy at first before ramping up into serious work; I know this adage, so why did I forget it? Instead, I went at things full-tilt, as I always do.

But, the end result: The big bed is about 2/3 shoveled out. What's left are the areas around the two fire-ant hills, and the area where most of the irises are. The irises and tulips I don't want to dig out until right before we're ready to rototill, and so they don't need to come out of the soil until Friday at the earliest.I've got to call around and get prices on compost—as well as getting an estimate from Sean of how much we're going to need—so that I can pick up the stuff on Friday. I'm thinking that if I got the stuff on Friday, then we wouldn't have to worry about retrieving it on Saturday.

On Saturday, we'll have enough to worry about without having to deal with picking up the compost/topsoil.

Today: two more wheelbarrows-full of rocks taken out to the back of the lot and dumped. Another crepe myrtle planted. The minimum I want is one more in—for symmetry. I would love to get three more in, but I recognize that I cannot do it by myself. I will have to ask Sean or Kat for help, as there's no one else around that I can ask to help me.

We're scheduled for rain tomorrow, so I get a day to rest. Jeff flies out for his conference early on Friday morning. Assuming all plans fall into place, I'll pick up the lovely tillable material on Friday and spend a good portion of the day yanking out the irises, tulips, and nandina. Then I'll probably open up the fridge, crack open a bottle of something therapeutic and alcoholic (though not necessarily in that order), and relax with a movie.

I'm proposing that if we finish out the flowerbed on Saturday that we open that bottle of apple pie back up and drink a wee bit of it. I'll definitely feel like celebrating.

(Mustn't forget to get film for the camera. I really need to document the carnage that is my front yard.)