The basketball hoop!

Well, the long awaited moment is finally here! The basketball hoop is in and finished! Last week, Troy dug a 5 foot deep hole, about 4 feet wide. It was HUGE! I had to put a pallet over the whole for fear a child would fall in and die. We were tempted to put bait for a dog.......but resisted. After Troy dug the hole, he then had to figure out how to steady the pole while he filled it with cement. Here is what he came up with...

Yes, the various rakes and shovels are holding it steady. See all those bags of cement? Troy bought 65 of them. It took him 3 trips from Home Depot in the van to get them. Not because of space, but because of weight. Troy is standing in the hole, in wet cement, mixing it together. After the cement got too deep to mix with his feet, he opted for mixing cement in the wheelbarrow, and then pouring it in the hole. After Troy had been at this for a few hours, I told him I was calling his dad to see if he could come help, because he was going to be there all night. Doug came over, and wondered what on earth Troy was doing. There was a misunderstanding when Doug was explaining to Troy how to do it. Doug said the right way was to just pour all of the dry mix into the hole, then put water in the top from the hose. He said it would harden like that. So, Troy wasted 2 hours doing it the wrong way. I'm just glad I called and asked for help! Thanks Doug! After it had settled for a few days, it was time to put the backboard on. Doug came over again, backed his truck up, and they went working away. Troy and Doug are really good at doing this, because Doug used to install backboards in churches and schools throughout the country. When Troy was in high school, he would go work with his dad sometimes, so I'm sure it felt like the "good ole days". Here they are, working away...
You'll notice there is snow on the ground. Yes, it snowed today. All day, actually. It didn't really stick, but it sure was cold! Snow in September...something else to get used to!