Dream house

I don't believe I've shown off the playhouse yet. How distracted of me!

Several years ago we pulled invasive holly and dying rhododendrons out of an alley corner of our yard. With access to light, a thick growth of seedy weeds took over. To tamp out the blight, I covered the area with an oh-so-attractive black tarp. Well, at least the weeds could no longer multiply.

I kept thinking we'd do something constructive back there. A hidden patio? A shed? A... playhouse?

We have an active alley life, and a neighbor finally broached the subject: "What's going on with that corner?" I told him that maybe, someday, perhaps we'd stick a playhouse there.

And thus began the 12-month journey of playhouse dreams to play-castle reality.

Steve loves to dream and construct. Using imaginative plans of his own, the back corner of our lot, and surplus lumber from another neighbor's project, he designed a two-story play structure, complete with pull-down covered stage, latching doors, summer shading, and safety protections.

I wasn't of much use in the assembly portion; I'm not terribly handy. I was happy to take direction, though, and put my efforts toward priming and painting. As of a couple of weeks ago, the playhouse was finally deemed complete:


I am proud of my recently-discovered mural talents. I projected a castle outline onto the stage cover and then added the scenery and colors. Again with the princess, I projected the image and filled in details. We all enjoy the final product.

Please, by all means, stop by and play with us someday!

Many thanks to:

• Steve, for his enormous contribution of parts and labor
• Wendi, for putting up with Steve's absences while he worked on the project
• John, for his surplus lumber and use of tools
• Patrick, for his lumber runs and spare paint
• Michelle, for her spare paint and painting arms
• Michelle's niece, for her artistic flair with faux stone walls
• Mike & Jerri, for moving their cars and letting us take over their parking spot
• Csilla, for her paint loan
• Mike & Julie, for rocks and truck use
• The neighborhood children, for letting us adults become children again for a time