Dreaming of a back yard oasis!

We have been in our house for 4 years... and in that 4 years, we haven't done a whole lot to our back yard, except put up a shed for extra storage. Our backyard is a fairly decent size, and when we bought this place it had a nice large deck that I was really excited about. The first year in the house we received our patio set as a wedding gift, and we loved it, but by the fall of the next year, as you may recall, the wind blew our table off the deck and smashed the glass top to pieces. Since then the deck sort of lost its appeal, as it seemed like more of a hazard in our back yard, than an asset.

For the last few years I have had many ideas rolling around in my head about how I want our back yard to function, but I am having a hard time deciding whether just to make do with our outdoor situation for a few more years, or to sink a few thousand dollars into it for the time being, knowing that in 5 years time I don't want to be in this house.

Sometimes I wonder if my time line is realistic... 5 years isn't that far off, so maybe in my head I should say 7 years... just to give myself a buffer, so if that's the case than for the next 7 years I would really like to have a back yard we can enjoy.

I would really like someone to come in to our back yard with a vision that matches the vision in my head (anyone know a psychic that does back yard makeovers!)... and tell me the magic number to make it happen. I want to know what 3 or 4K looks like in a backyard. Is it everything I am dreaming of, or is it a piddly cement pad with some nice lawn furniture on it? Perhaps I will need to this backyard design in stages... to make it affordable.

Our deck needs some work regardless of whether we sink money into any other part of the backyard or not. It's a PVC deck, but was built poorly under the direction of the previous owners. It needs some attention... especially by the time E becomes independently mobile.

In addition to the deck, I would also like to put up a PVC fence that would give us some privacy... for our rear neighbours, but again, if we aren't going to be here in 5 to 7 years time, I would rather put the money into a nice fence at our final resting spot, and just build a suitable, but not dream-worthy, wooden fence for a third of the cost.

Oh what to do... ? Since this summer is unique, I doubt we will do anything, as we will be at the cottage for a good chunk of it - but by next year... I want to make some changes... which means I have less than 12 months to get my plan onto paper, cost analysis completed, and the peeps lined up to do the work. I think before I even get that far, I need to get my better half on board... as sometimes that can be half the battle!

I think I will need to give in on something PC has been dreaming about, if I am going to get full cooperation on his part. Perhaps I should plan a trip to Vegas with a 'P.S. PC' note attached ... you got your Vegas trip... now I get my backyard oasis!