This portion of the backyard design process was one that felt like a long time coming. Similar to our front driveway, it was something that we needed to have installed on our own after we closed on our house. We waited a few years to do this to be sure of what kind of design we wanted. We tossed around the idea of just doing concrete because it would be more affordable, but knew we really wanted the same paver look we created out in the front of our home around in the back.

This project was done at the same time that we did the backyard “park” area for the kids. We tied it all together to make it look like one big open space. Since our children are small we wanted the area to be very open and wanted no dividers between the patio area and the playground in the event that we would need to run over quickly to them. As we mentioned already in the post about the play area, we plan to incorporate the two spaces once the kids get bigger. At that point in time, we will take out the swing set, remove the rubber mulch and then lay pavers all in that space making it a large extension of this patio area. 

Since our backyard slopes away from the house so quickly, we decided to create a raised patio to keep the level at the basement door rather than having a step(s).  When Kevin installed this space he first excavated a footer and installed a solid base aggregate.  Then he installed and leveled the base block of the outside walls. Followed by each course. We chose a charcoal border block to tie in with the rest of our project which then was installed.  After that he brought the inside area up to grade with gravel and compacted the base.  Now it was time to start grading out the layer of bedding sand and installing the pavers.  Once finished laying the pavers he cut in the border. Lastly he locked everything in with polymeric sand.  

After everything was finished being installed, we got to work decorating the area and adding some furniture so that we could enjoy this sitting space while the kids played. It made a great spot to retreat from the summer heat during the daytime. The kids loved playing legos on the big table and reading books on the spacious couch. The area was also perfect for late night dates under the stars once the kids were sleeping.  It’s become one of our favorite parts of our home and one we look forward to using for many more years to come.