2012 -- The Year in Review

Well, we did it.  Another successful year under the belt.  And as we prepare for some much needed (and well-deserved) down time, I thought I’d take this opportunity to summarize and wrap up our 2012 season.

Thanks to an incredibly mild winter last year, we were able to kick off the season about 3 weeks earlier than our typical seasonal start-up.  We started in about mid-February with a sidewalk replacement project and never looked back.  Our early-season included a number of exterior landscape carpentry projects, including several fences and a number of deck projects including both new decks and extensions and a number of wood step projects. 

The 2012 crew -- Nick, Russ, and Josh

By the end of April we were full into hardscaping mode, including a few paver stone walkways, several stone step projects and a few more sidewalk replacements.

And once Memorial Day hit we were fortunate enough to work on a couple of really nice, large (700 sf+) flagstone patio projects to complement some grand residences.
 
The large patio projects carried us straight through the bulk of the summer, with some more large patio projects coming together as the kids went back to school.  We sprinkled in a few more walkways, fence projects, a nice modular block wall project, and finished the year off strongly with a stone veneer wall project and flagstone walkway project, which we were just able to squeeze in before the Holiday break, wrapping things up earlier this week.

On the business side of things, the company has continued to grow, maintaining three full-time workers for the bulk of the season.
 
And so, as we wrap things up for the year I’d be remiss if I didn’t share a few pictures of a sampling of our projects from the year, and offer a few quick “thank you”s to everybody who helped make the year a success.

First I’d like to thank my crew of Josh, Nick and Russ for working hard to turn the designs and concepts into reality.  It was your manpower that made it all happen.  I’d also like to take this opportunity to wish Josh farewell and best of
luck as he prepares for the next chapter of his life when he reports to Ft. Benning GA in March to enlist in the US Army and begin Basic Training. Josh has been with me nearly three years and has been a key player in all of our projects during that time.  I know he’ll do just fine as long as he can still keep up with his beloved Flyers (if the NHL lockout ever ends).  Stay safe my man. (continued below)

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Composite Deck Steps

Wet-set Flagstone Patio -- Linear Design

Paver Walkway with Bluestone Steppers

Dry-set Flagstone Patio with 6' Bluestone Steppers

I’d also like to thank my valued suppliers, most notably the crew at Galantino Supply Company.  I’m not sure just how much business I did directly with Galantino’s this year – I’ll tally the numbers come January -- but it was a sizeable amount and Carl, Anthony, Vince and the rest of the crew over there have always been a sincere pleasure to work with.

And most importantly, I’d like to offer a HUGE thank you to each and every one of my clients for the year.  Whether your project was a small sidewalk replacement or an enormous patio install, I can’t thank you enough for your business.  Without your business, none of this would be possible.  I’ve enjoyed getting to know each of you during the course of all of our projects, and I look forward to continuing seeing you around town, at the Co-op, the pool, school events, little league, and all the other opportunities we have to see each other here in and around Swarthmore.

"Overflowing Vase" Fountain with Rock Garden

Terraced Hillside -- Modular Block Walls

Wt-set Flagstone Patio -- Irregular Design

Stone Veneer Wall, Bluestone Steppers & Belgian Block

So again, thank you to all who helped make 2012 a success.  I’ll be taking a week off next week from my blogging duties as I spend some downtime with family and friends, but I look forward to returning in January with more weekly blog posts and beginning to gear up for the 2013 season.  

Happy Holidays to everyone, and best wishes for a happy, healthy, safe and prosperous new year!!!