Hi friends, it’s me Stace, and this is Pond Part 3—aka my favorite part of this whole backyard mess. In this update I’m showing you what everything looks like after the mulcher came on Monday and cleared the wooded area behind our pond. It only took him about two and a half hours, and honestly… what a difference. We can actually see the backyard now, and he went right up to the fence line, so we’ve got a nice clear line to build our new fence. Of course, nothing is ever simple over here. To get that big machine back there, hubby had to pull the center pole from our chain link gates… and yep, he broke it. So right now the gate is wobbly (PVC, rope, chain—real classy), and I’m not taking chances with the dogs. Until we’re fully fenced again, the girls are on harnesses because Dina will chase literally anything, and I’m petrified they’ll get out. I also talk through our next steps: fence first, then cutting down 6–7 more struggling trees (vines everywhere, lots of poison ivy), then leveling the ground and dealing with that ugly pond. I want it to have water so it’s actually a pretty asset—not just a dry hole—so we’ll see who wins that debate. I’ll keep you updated as we go.