Backyardigans: Part 18 (Rain Barrels)

Today Tal and I installed two rain barrels...one in our front yard and one in our back yard:

We'd been having problems with water from our downspout washing

 away the mulch in our flower bed: 

Now the rain water will flow into the barrel instead of into our flower bed.

Plus, we can save money by hooking up our hose to the spigot on the barrel 

and using the rain water to water our shrubs:

We bought the light-weight 50-gallon brown rain barrels

 from Home Depot for $80 each:

The rain barrel blends in nicely with our house and landscaping:

In fact, you can hardly see the rain barrel from the street:

In our backyard, we installed the rain barrel under our master bedroom window  

to prevent the rain from washing away the mulch in Savannah's play area: 

Next weekend, Tal and I plan to get a truckload of mulch 

and spread it in our front yard and back yard (for weed control)!

 Before starting our 2014 backyard makeover, Tal and I saved $3,000. 

Here's a breakdown of our expenses so far:

$1,600  Playset

   $400  Plastic Playground Border
     $60  Landscape Fabric and Stakes
     $56  Mulch (4 truckloads)
     $70  Sod Cutter Rental
     $30  Dump
   $446  Sod, Compost, and Delivery
     160 Rain Barrels
-------
$2,822