Safety Palms

Remember this ledge?

A little closer...

We had to do something about that drop-off to the yard below. A person making their way around that side of the pool and spa could easily step off the edge and twist an ankle or worse.  The new patio was looking a little bare anyway, so mom and I ran out to Home Depot and picked up a few Pygmy Date Palms.  

We already had four large terracotta pots scattered about the yard looking messy and dejected:

Actually, that guy in the middle had one lonely elephant ear plant that suddenly came back to life after all the rain we've had recently.  My mom transplanted it to a smaller pot so we could use the big one for one of the palms.  After discovering, freaking out over, and destroying a giant fire ant colony in that pot on the far right, we ended up with a really great solution to the safety issue:

I didn't have them yet for these pictures, but I also picked up three solar path lights for about $2 each at Target and stuck one in each pot. They add a bit of ambiance and more warning that the edge is near when it's dark outside. 

It turned out that the fourth pot was a bit small than the other three, and it just so happened that one of the palms we chose was also smaller than the other three.  We placed that combo next to a storage bench on the other side of the pool, along with that transplanted elephant ear plant.

For now, this project is just about done. We have a few more candle holders and such to hang around the place, but until we round up some more budget, the pool resurfacing, concrete wall extension, and additional landscaping are on hold.  I'll take some final pics of the patio with our furniture, lights, curtains, etc this weekend.