Hi - I usually hang out over on the decorating forum but we are starting to work on ideas for landscaping the backyard (we just bought the house a few months ago) and it's time to come learn what I can from this side of the fence.

Right now there is no patio in the yard (and it's a small yard) which is mostly okay because we use the patio courtyard in the front for barbecuing and stuff (right off the kitchen). But we need to do at least a small patio

leading to some paths in the back. We want to do stone of some kind as the retaining wall (which right now is stacked pavers) will be a stacked rock wall.

The weird thing is that you go out through the sunroom which is built on a giant block of cement. They left a very narrow lip outside the patio door (the dog hovers on the edge). So what I was thinking is to extend that width

but top it with stone so we would have, in effect, a long wide first step the length of that part of the house and then step down to the main part of the patio which I see as freeform around the tree (the only thing that is staying

in the yard. Everything else will be California native plants.)

So I have a couple of questions - does that sound like a good idea and does anyone have any pictures like that (stone patio with a stone step from the house)so I can show my husband to help him visualize what's in my head?

See the link below for the pic of the yard now and the space I'm talking about.

Thanks!

http://pics.livejournal.com/fromhousetohome/pic/0000rffr

Here is a link that might be useful: backyard