Our wall was finished up today, so I thought I should follow up on this in case someone finds it later so this isn't just left "hanging". I also wanted to share pictures because we're so excited about it. Now, ever since we moved into this house, we have had serious flooding issues out front due to the poor street paving work we were left with (Thanks, City of Atlanta!) Then there was the stupid mound in front of the house which didn't do much of anything worthwhile except collect weeds. Any time we rec'd any significant downpour (more than a half an inch in 1-2 hours), the result was a "lake" in front of the house that left us unable to park. It would fill up until it reached our sidewalk, at which time it would overflow down the sidewalk, right down into our beds, which resulted in the death of several salvia last year due to waterlogging. When I say "lake", I'm not kidding....this is at least 6"-8" deep: Well, after posting this thread, we (unexpectedly) got a solid contractor lead from it, and the real green light was a solid reference for this contractor we'd received from another member (thanks, GGG, for everything!) The contractor we chose was GW member 'vroomp', or Brad in real life, and his company DCR, Inc. I was not kidding about the previous contractors we contacted above over the past couple of years - if we got a call back, most wouldn't show up, and this led to so much delay. It was amazing - out of probably three dozen phone calls to Brad, the only time he didn't actually pick up was on a Sunday at 9pm, and, really, I wouldn't have answered either! He was literally at our house within a day or two to walk through the plans and give us options, hash out ideas, toss out suggestions. It was quite refreshing, a huge change from what we were accustomed to. What started out as a small 30'-40' wall wound up finding its way up to 62', and then almost 75' .... our fault, of course - the neighbors wanted to join forces and have the wall spread between both yards. I imagine we were the nightmare customers from hell - changing lengths, changing shapes, took us a while to pick out the stone, we couldn't decide on lighting or drains, etc. Through the process, Brad was really communicative and very sensitive to issues and changes we needed to make along the way, and *incredibly* respectful of our budgeting desires, and held his cool even when our neighbors and I couldn't get our crap straight on budgeting (again - thanks Brad!!) We got everything sorted out. He even tossed in a couple of extras including sealing the back of the wall and adding an additional drain for the neighbors, which was not in the original plan. The end result is bigger and better than we'd expected, and the wall has already become a fixture to hang out on and chat with the neighbors and relax with friends, rivalled only by our deck. For pictures of our flooding issues and the mound itself, in all of its (ha ha) glory, check out this gallery page For a couple more pictures of the mound, and the wall before and after it was veneered out, check out this gallery page Since the wall was constructed, we have not had a single issue with flooding, in fact, the drain works like a champ and the sea outs we have growing at the base of our rather steep yard's slope (back/rear of the house) couldn't be happier about the additional water. All in all, the pictures speak for themselves, but I really felt it was necessary to come in and share my experience. I know this was a small job for Brad in comparison to what he's accustomed to, but we're really grateful for his taking it on, and regardless of how small it was, he treated us as if we were spending ten times what we actually did (and again - if you're reading this - THANKS.) We've already sent two of our friends his way, and they've had good experiences as well. I'll post more pictures of the wall in this thread as it gets planted out. We're waiting on stone to revive/refurb the original granite curb that exists throughout our neighborhood, and some fill dirt and mulch to bring the soil level up just a tad. The ultimate goal is to fill/amend, landscape mat, then plant with edibles...cherry and plum trees, blueberries, cranberries and several natives for the fill-in between. The end result:

Where can I find information on how to build a deck over an existing timber retaining wall. Its would be about 6' x 24'. Wondering how to dig concrete pillars for 4x4's. There are three tiers. Each has about three feet of dirt space, it was a planter.

^In both plans immedialy above, you could change the swing on the front door so you have a better view at the entry. You could also put up a small wall, half or full, to get that foyer entry. Something interesting.

Yes, exactly. Sorry, Bethany, I didn't mean to derail at all. I just also don't want you being discouraged, and I don't appreciate being insulted. Have you considered replacing the current outside door with a French-style door? Those extra glass panels will let in more light, and I think those doors always look so pretty and welcoming. (I'm planning to replace the sliding glass doors in my kitchen with a single French-style glass-panel door myself.) Are you planning to put a TV in there? I always like to have a TV for my guest rooms; it encourages guests to take some time for themselves a bit, and it's just a nice amenity to have (sometimes I'll go hang out in there and watch something on my own, as well, so my kids can have the main TV). Or maybe a bookshelf, in a bright or light neutral color? For the kitchenette, you can buy unfinished cabinets, already made, at any HD/Lowes. I'd paint those white (or bright) to lighten up that nook some. Or hunt around at second-hand/surplus stores and find, say, a vanity that fits that space; build a countertop out of wood slabs--surprisingly easy!--and give it a couple of coats of acrylic or polyurethane. (When my parents converted our basement and added a kitchenette, my dad cut and finished a wood door to use as a countertop, which worked really well.) You could install a "rail" around the space to set the countertop on, with just a couple of 2x4s; then you won't have to worry about attaching it to the cabinets etc. below. Or paint it whatever color you use as your secondary--you don't really need full-on kitchen cabinets there if there's not going to be a lot of cooking going on, and vanities often have more interesting fronts and details than kitchen cabinets. (I know someone who used an old dresser for their kitchenette, actually, and painted all the drawers different cheerful colors; it looked really cute, and they just put melamine plates/cups/etc. and a few snack items in the drawers, and filled the other drawers with linens and things. Your minifridge can fit under that countertop as well, so it has a nice cohesive look, and if you get a flat-front one you could use construction adhesive to glue a panel front to it, for more color and cheer. Or use a spraypaint made for metal, in any color you like! Above it, maybe a nice beachy picture in a white frame? Something to bring a little more interest into that little recess--shelves are good, too, of course. Oh! And in our previous guest room, we made a little feature out of the mantel (it had a small non-working fireplace) using a string of fairy lights with glass beads etc. attached to it, and some votive candle holders (I basically just wound the lights around the candle holders). When the lights were plugged in and the candles lit, it looked really lovely--and much more expensive than the $15 or so I paid in total for the lights and holders. You can get battery-operated lights to use until your outlets are installed. And speaking of lights, are you planning to put in regular floor or table lamps as well as the ceiling lights? I also think you should paint the trim a nice bright color, and maybe that "beam" the runs across the ceiling, too.