Decked out a little more...

It's all deck talk, all the time around here. Or at least that's what it feels like. For the last month, I've been working on, thinking of or talking about our deck. Don't get me wrong, it's not because I don't like it. In fact, it's because I have so many ideas swimming around in my head that I can't wait to have it all finished.

As I blogged yesterday, we finished up the staining last week. 

So, over the holiday weekend, it was time to furnish the deck. Two months ago, we bought a Martha Stewart dining set from Home Depot and this weekend we put it together. And by "we," I mean Ryan. In full disclosure, I wanted to help but he wanted to do it himself. Who was I to argue? So as he toiled away in the 95 degree heat, I watched from the window in the cool, cool air conditioning.  

One thing we hadn't purchased, however, was an umbrella base for the umbrella I got at Kohl's on super-duper sale. Kohl's sale + Kohl's cash + Kohl's coupon = $199 dollar umbrella for $57! So off to Lowe's we went and in addition to beautiful granite base that passed Ryan's sturdiness test, I found an awesome patio rug. We hustled on home and put it all together. 

Boom! Our finished patio:

I love how the striped umbrella plays off of the swirls in the rug. 

The dining set fits perfectly on the bay window side of the deck and leaves a clear path from the back door to the stairs. 

However, the other side of the deck has lots o' space to fill. 

We have two wee chairs holding court right now. But I want to put a couple of oversized club chairs with a side table and ottomans to create a more relaxed lounging area, something like this: 

I am thinking either emerald green or royal blue accents. But even without the lounge area of the deck, we are super happy with the results of our hard work. It's an interesting sense of pride that I haven't felt before. Is that the joy of homeownership everyone speaks of?! 

Can't wait for our first summer party!