Pride!

I'm proud of my daughter.  She means the world to me.

It all started when I decided to build a retaining wall for our front slope. It turned out so well that I decided we needed a walkway from the sidewalk to the front stoop.
The new walkway set off the perfect area for a little desert garden. I put in unique desert plants and rocks. It's pretty.
Water rationing because of the drought had killed all the grass, so I converted to a xerascape. Essentially it's dirt and desert plants.
Welcome El Niño! Rain and rain and more rain. We discovered the irrigation drains were clogged with tree roots. My front yard was washing away. The specialist told me it would be between $5000-$10,000 to redo the drainage. I looked at him and said "You can forget that, I'll do it myself". He gave me his card and advised I get it taken care of soon. I got on it.
Between rains, I dug out two drains. I discovered that the joints had not been glued or taped. The tree roots slipped in through the tiny cracks and grew. I pulled over 150 feet of root from the pipes. Pulling them out was really cool and very gross.
I replaced 20 feet of pipe, glued the joints and taped them. Let's see those roots get past that!
Drought resistant plants do not need a sprinkler system, so I converted to a drip system. Through trial and error I think I have it figured out.
The front yard is done. Now for the back.
I'd like to say special thanks to YouTube and the internet as well as the man at the irrigation store for his help. Thank you to the very handsome Dr. T and my functional trainer for keeping me strong enough to do this. Thanks for my son and husband for bringing me food and making me to stop and come in because it was getting dark.

I am so proud of my daughters...

The oldest at 26, has two degrees, and works as a nurse. She is married & lives in Germany with her husband, who is in school. So now in addition to speaking English and Spanish, she is now learning German.

My youngest, at 20, is in her second year of college majoring in Biomedical Engineering. She has made only one B in college so far. She is sweet and kind to everyone.

Both of them are beautiful, intelligent, and wonderful women. I am so grateful that I am able to be part of their lives.

Awesome flashjohn!
I too am proud of my children. Our daughter graduated from Fordham Law and is employed with a fortune 100 company.

The amazing child is our youngest son. He was born bipolar. His childhood was traumatic. He required all the support we could give him as he struggled through social situations. He knew he was different and wished he was like every one else. This is a child that was teaching himself to read at age 4 and was reading at 6th grade level in first grade. Due to his social immaturity, he couldn't advance a grade. I stayed home and became his advocate in school. My husband would sit with him every night and help him talk through his day and advise him on tricks to handle his emotions.

When he was in high school we had him assessed by a psychologist. The very one that analyzes contestants for the show "Survivor". We were able to get in on a referral. He is an amazing man. He told us that our son was the most mentally and emotionally healthy teenager he had ever assessed.

Getting through college is a slow process, but he arranged his 504 education plan and made the deans list. He handles his illness himself, arranging doctor and therapist appointments and managing his medications. He has an active social life now. We believe there is a promising future for him.

Thank you so much. And thank you for starting this thread. It's the best therapy.

And good for giving us ideas of possibilities!