On May 1 of 1992 we had come back home following our Exodus from Indonesia after being robbed and we thus quit instead of going back a few more times for 2 months. See links below post.
That meant that here on May 23 of 1992, we both started developing our Estate.
Me in my SWAMP UNIFORM... Haha!
Dumping load after load, that got dug up by husband Pieter. To fill in this really SWAMPY PART around the gazebo where you would sink into before.
There seem to be several underground springs that caused these excessive wet spots.
Also keep in mind that both of us were the very first human beings ever cultivating this lot. Nobody ever had lived there and we never found any native American artifacts either...
So we really did some land reclamation!!!
Pieter was digging up some dirt here, where the pipe from the pond overflow would end into the creek.
All I had to do is wheel the wheelbarrow uphill and dump it around the gazebo.
Lucky Pieter, for being able to work in the shade but I got exposed to the sun and hence my SWAMP UNIFORM
Ready to go uphill again.
Wearing the hand knitted socks done by my Mother–in-–aw!
Putting them to very good use.
Wearing my Campbell cap...
As you can see on the table in the gazebo, we did stop for a break in–between our hard labor!
On May 27, a pallet with square exposed aggregate concrete step stones lay already waiting to be worked in...
First on May 29, Pieter had to build a little patio at the end of the stairs from our veranda for starting the walk towards our gazebo...
Yes, he also was digging in all the piping for the lawn and garden for being able to use with hose and portable sprinklers. Since we live on a slope, fixed sprinklers would not work.
A short break after I did bring him some refreshments to enjoy...
Hard work and mostly back breaking!
Working in the square exposed aggregate concrete step stones...
And making sure they were all level!
Now on May 31, it was my turn for getting on my knees and washing them in with sand...
Step by step we accomplished all the heavy jobs!
July 17, 1992 Pieter started painting the ginger bread from Vintage Woodworks, high on a ladder on the driveway side...
Fighting the elements in a subtropical climate is not easy.
Here you see that our pond is too high, as the overflow into the creek is not working with the flooded creek, visible in the back.
Later, with the 60 tons of dirt dug up from under the house for creating the Rose Suite, we did fill in that low area behind the pond, for avoiding flooding.
😉Oh, those glamour jobs before you turn your land into an estate as shown on the video below in link...
Related links:
