Better Home Challenge: Project for June

Sorry I'm a little late with this (story of my life these days), but the challenge project for June is #12 -- on my list, the front porch and back deck. With any luck, I can tackle this one with some help from my hubby and still play catch-up in the kitchen at the same time.

So here's the front porch, from the front of the house. It doesn't look too bad, but it's definitely time to repaint the rails and stain the deck. A little landscaping wouldn't hurt either.

And this is the view walking up to the porch from the driveway...

Yikes. The railroad ties supporting the walkway are beginning to rot and the whole thing has a definite tilt these days. My husband just mentioned this today, so hopefully I can get him on board to work on it soon...

(And I think the snowboard can safely be put away now, too.)

Here's the back deck, which gets lots of use -- and it shows. Coming up the stairs from the back:

View from the sliding glass door:

View from the opposite corner:

The ramp and walkway out to the garden. Looking pretty shabby.

Lots of scraping, painting and staining in my future...

I'm actually looking forward to working outside. We've had unusually early summer weather this year, so it'll be nice to get out and enjoy these warm, sunny days!

And if it rains... there's always the wallpaper to strip in the kitchen. Bleh.