Our front yard started as an unlevel mess, scared by the loss of two trees to death and disease. To make it manageable, we decided to install a retaining wall around the entire yard and grade the yard to one consistent level. So far, that's involved cutting out a nice chunk of reinforced concrete, removal of a pesky root left by the fir tree, excavation, pouring and leveling of a sand and gravel foundation, and setting and leveling bricks. After nearly a year of stagnation, we finally had to bring in some help to finish the job. Now the wall is done and grass is in.