Backyard Patio Progress + 5 Tables I Considered

I wouldn’t say that this post is so much as a “backyard reveal” as it is more of a “here’s where we’re at with our back patio” post. 🙂

From birth, our kids have been soothed by the freedom of the great outdoors. Sadie was born in April 2016, and all summer long she basically lived in her little bouncy seat outside in the shade while big sister played with frisbees, her water table, etc. while I painted my heart out (remember when we did our exterior trim and shutters?) It calmed down almost every scream fest (and ohhwweee was she a fuss pot!), so from there on out we all got used to spending every morning and late afternoon/evening outside. The fresh air was literally good for everybody.

Knowing that we realistically will probably spend as much time as we can barefoot outside in this home as well, I tried to throw together our covered patio area accordingly (i.e. comfy, practical use of space, long-lasting, and easily cleaned).

We’ve been needing a new dining set after the four-top set we bought from Walmart when we were newlyweds bit the dust (the table was destroyed in a storm and the chairs all ripped). We’ve been without one for about two years, so any time we’d eat outside, Jamie and I would sit in some conversation chairs and the girls would sit at the little table portion of . This worked great, but I knew I wanted to get an actual table sooner than later.

Jamie said that he didn’t have any type of table in mind, so he gave me free rein to pick what I wanted within a certain budget. (In full comedic disclosure, I actually went a itty bit over the budget since I knew I had a paycheck coming in two days later that would cover the remainder, but OH ME OH MY – that was a “funny” convo when he asked me how much it came out to be. “You spent how much?!” “But you have money from which company coming in?”  “Okay, thank you for buying us nice things.” “But seriously, what was wrong with a $500 table?”

LOL.

Jamie sits down at table. Jamie smiles. Jamie realizes that this is why I didn’t buy a $500 set. DIS IS NICE.

I looked high and wide for tables online and at six different stores around town because I really had no idea what we wanted or needed. The only thing I knew is that I wanted somewhere that people would come to eat at but want to stay to comfortably settle in and converse at. Basically, I knew that washable cushions would be involved!

I liked a ton, but didn’t love any until I saw our set at Lowe’s. I fell head over heels! Please note when you look online that the chairs are sold as one item and the table is sold separately. It was all set up together at the store, but online it’s not obvious that this can all go together this way.

I could see us doing exactly what we have been doing since we got the set two weeks ago: spending hours and hours lounging with friends and family over breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks, and dessert. It’s just such a comfy place to be!

The cushions are covered in Sunbrella fabric, which I know from the hand-me-down chairs we got from my in-laws that Sunbrella is worth EVERY PENNY. Go an extra step and spray on them before use and after washes, and the cushion covers will last forever and ever, amen.

No kidding, we plan (hope) to get at least 10 years out of this set (wait until you love it and then “buy it once, buy it right” is the name of my game). It’s seemingly that well-made! I know I’m not credible at all since we’ve only had it two weeks, but I’d highly recommend it if you’re looking for something that’s conversation-like but also functional for eating at. Oh, and those stools! SO comfy! They might not look like great seating options from the picture, but I promise they’re a great spot for anyone’s caboose to park it.

The other side of the patio is a little smaller, so here we have the aforementioned chairs, a rocking chair, and a bench that my sister refinished years ago. We had all of this is our previous home (including the two rugs), but not together, so it was fun to mix and match what we had and create this intimate hang area.

That little bench is affectionately known as the “popsicle bench” in our home since we’d rather not constantly wash the cushions if we can help it. 🙂 It’s perfect for two cute little booties!

I was a bit underwhelmed by the size of our backyard when we did our walk-through the week before closing. We have a drainage area behind our house that cut into our property line that decreased our backyard by a few feet, but that few feet made a difference when the backyard isn’t very big to begin with. Jamie’s the kind of guy though that likes taking care of his own grass but also doesn’t want it to take up much of his weekend, so if he can “escape” to mow and then workout in the garage all in less than two hours, he’s a happy dude. (I’m happy too because I don’t want to lose him to hours worth of yard work every weekend.)

But back to the size of the backyard. It’s working out great. It’s small but totally fits our needs. We have swing set on it’s way this week, so we can’t wait to put that on the other side (near the table) and enjoy our time out back even more.

And if you follow me on Instagram, you’ve probably already noticed (or will notice) that sometimes our backyard resembles a junk yard when the girls’ outdoor toys are all over. For now, we’re storing them in that large green Rubbermaid but would eventually like to get something like . We’ll see!

Oh, how we love this area so much. We know the brutal Alabama heat and humidity are coming, but thankfully our home faces south, so our back patio is totally shaded in the afternoons. We didn’t know the builders were putting in a fan in this space, so that was a very pleasant surprise during the walk-through.

Oh, and PS, are you wondering where our grill went? We didn’t think it ventilated too well under this covered area. We have an extended portion of our driveway, so Jamie moved it to the far side of it and set up a little conversation over there for guys to hang while he grills. Whatever, man!

Are you looking for backyard patio furniture? Here are a few sets I saved online during my big search for the perfect set.

-Shop items mentioned or seen in this post-