I was going to post a picture today of the new additions to the front yard but we've had something unprecedented here in central Texas--two days straight of rain. I was able to get out for about forty-five minutes this morning to dig the outline of a bed and lay down clear plastic for my second solarization project but when I finished the rain had started. By the time I went upstairs to grab the camera (and realize the batteries were dead and wouldn't recharge any further), the rain had started up again and so I'll postpone the pictures until now:

The view from above (more photos after the break including blasts from the past).
Here's the scoop in words of what I've done over the past few weeks. As mentioned above, I've started two solarization projects--a method of killing off grass and weed seeds and roots without using chemicals. The first project is my fifth and final front yard raised bed (using the familiar and oh-so-attractive cinder block method)--I took all the sod and dirt from the pea gravel path I'd dug out between the beds and piled it in the new bed, soaked it all down real well and covered it with thick, clear plastic (6mm). In theory, the plastic creates a sort of super-hot mini greenhouse that over the course of 6-8 weeks will kill the grass etc. and start the composting process. This is different from the Lasagna Method I've used in the past, which has worked very well but I wanted to experiment a little this time. The second project is a ten foot extension of the herb bed I've dug parallel to the sidewalk in front of the raised beds--I've currently got rosemary, dill, basil, cilantro, peppermint, spearmint, marigolds, zinnias and a couple of other things going and I'll probably do some more herbs and a few ornamentals in the new bit.
Recent plantings on the other side...