Relaxing in a gorgeous gazebo

Forget about running endless errands. Forget about mowing the ever-growing lawn. Forget about everything. It is a perfect Ferris Bueller kind of day to spend lazing around outside instead of doing chores. Especially when your gazebo beckons.

Carol and Paul LaPorte know well the persuasive powers of a gazebo; it's the backyard escape they discovered while shopping for a playhouse for their grandson. They came across a variety of preassembled gazebos at a shop a few hours south of their farm near Traverse City, Michigan, and decided that they deserved their own backyard retreat. Although the couple's home sits on 40 rural acres and they had outdoor living space, neither the front porch nor the backyard patio were screened in. The screened gazebo provides the perfect place for them to take in the outdoors without fighting the pesky bugs.