Swimsuit Season

Summer is creeping up and I can't wait. Hands down it's the best time of the year. For the past three years we have had a snapset pool from Intex in the backyard - the White Trash version of a luxury pool. We loved it and used it every day it was warm enough. The tough part is putting it up and taking it down every year - it wasn't one of those inflatable ring pools, it was a PVC frame pool that took hours to set up. So this year I've taken the plunge and have bought a "real" pool from the Pool People. It's all being delivered on Monday, and I've hired our friendly neighborhood handyman, Jason, to come install it for me, which should take him roughly a day or so. My backyard is too small for the 24 footer I wanted, so I bought the 21 foot round Doughboy - that way there'll still be plenty of room for the dogs and kids to play, and to fit the trampoline. After the pool's in, Jason is building me a deck, too - nothing fancy, just a rectangle off the house that I can put some furniture on for cookouts and parties. Right now, thanks to the dog, our backyard looks absolutely terrible, so I'm looking forward to the upgrade - and plenty of lunchtime breaks reading on my lounge chair in the pool!