Ow! OR I hate ivy!

Spent about 4 hours in the backyard this AM. Cleaning up weeds and all.
We have the world's ugliest backyard and absolutely no idea how to make it better without spending thousands of dollars on it.

You can tell it is spring, when there is green back there - cause it means there are lots of weeds!
So we got rid of that. Cut back a lot of ivy that is always growing thru our fence from the %&$#$#$&^ school behind us. Also pulled up a heckova lot of ivy runners.

Hubby dug out a bush he hates. And that took forever becuase it had the biggest roots I have ever seen - especially since the cirumference of the bush wasnt that big! That end of the yard had some of the biggest ivy roots I have ever seen.

We are going to build a container/raised bed for veggies. And then build out and up the narrow little bed along the back fence. I am envisioning some small rose trees (since we can grow roses very well) with maybe some sort of ground cover.

I reluctantly pruned my lilac bush - apologizing the entire time. The dog and the birds are still mad at us for taking out the old rose bushes that had run rampant. Not sure what we will eventually put over there - one idea at a time!

My hands hurt so badly and my neck and my back....