WE LIKE PUTTING ON SOMETHING our own stamp

Pat and Cindy, both Lehigh Valley natives, have the Palmer Park Mall in Easton to thank for the first chapter of their love story. Cindy (née Santee) was working at the mall during her college years when Pat came in to buy a gift for a wedding. The rest, as the saying goes, is history. They married in 1990 and settled in Wilson. Cindy was beginning her career with the Nazareth

Area School District, and Pat worked in a nursery and landscaping business with his brothers. They dreamed of one day building a new home, and eventually procured a plot of land in Bushkill Township, where those dreams became reality in the year 2000. Since they were starting from scratch, when they turned their attention to the exterior, they were truly working with a blank canvas. “It was just a completely vacant lot,” says Pat. Fortunately, both Pat and Cindy were eager to get cracking on turning that vast nothingness into an outdoor oasis. “We both enjoy doing yard work,” Cindy says. “Even though [Pat] did that as a career, he loves landscaping. He finds it very relaxing. I love flowers and plants, so we do enjoy our outdoor space.”

The in-ground pool, which was installed in 2007, was the first major addition the Rizzolinos made to the backyard. A lot more would follow. The structure they call the pool house went up in 2008. It’s more like a massive canopy, providing shade and protection from the elements for the generous seating area below. It’s just one of the many places on the property that invite reflection and relaxation; each spot has a cozy vibe and provides a different vantage point of the backyard. And many are adorned with personal touches that conjure up memories that are special for the family. Meaning, it’s not just “stuff,” says Cindy: “We like putting our own stamp on something so it doesn’t look like it’s from a showroom.”

A wooden play set, outgrown many years ago by the couple’s three daughters—Taylor, 30; Madison, 26; and Macy, 24— became the foundation for a potting shed. A nearby stone bench that anchors another alcove was made from a sidewalk that was being ripped up near Cindy’s childhood home in Tatamy. A milk can left over from her father’s days as a milkman is now part of the décor. “We feel like everything has a second purpose,” Cindy says. “It’s an eclectic mix of different items.”

The repurposing isn’t always personal, though. It’s not unusual for the couple to see potential where others may not. “I’ve been fortunate to be in the landscaping business for many years. A lot of material left over from jobs I’ve been able to reuse,” says Pat, who now works primarily as a property manager for his family’s real estate company, Rizzolino Associates. He also has a brother who works in demolition. “I drive him a little crazy when I’m working with him on a job because I’ll see something and put it off to the side. He wants to throw it in the dumpster, but I say, ‘no, I can use that,’” Pat explains. “I can just envision doing something with it. Some type of metal sculpture, or an old piece of farm equipment.” Adds Cindy: “Sometimes we just see something and bring it home. We might have it for three or four years before we decide where we want to put it.”

For example, metal triangular frames now play the role of trellises in one of the flower beds. In another section of the yard, concrete grinding stones once destined for the dumpster line a stone bed where a pond and waterfall once flowed. An old animal feed bin salvaged from a barn was transformed into what they kiddingly call the “love shack,” a covered porch with seating for two. The Rizzolinos added the roof and wooden beams, the latter of which are a unifying element in many of the backyard’s features. “I love that old wood barn look,” says Pat. “It breaks my heart every time I see a barn coming down, or an old barn falling down. I just want to go there and take out as much wood and stone as I can.” Some of that wood has made it inside the home as well,