Stay at Home Mum tackles unique new DIY project

"Impossible" just another challenge for popular Gympie couple, who have already built a house and hugely trafficked website.

GOING SWIMMINGLY: Jody and Brendan Allen are delving into a unique new DIY project - building their own pool. Picture: Renee Albrecht

HAVING built a house and a hugely popular website themselves, Jody and Brendan Allen are now diving into a new, very unique DIY project - a pool.

The couple, who are behind the hugely popular Stay at Home Mum website, said the decision to grab a shovel and start digging was born of six years of delays.

"I've wanted a pool for ages but other things keep coming up," Mrs Allen said.

"I thought bugger it, I'll just make it happen. I'll start digging.

"I got sick of waiting.

"If you don't start and make it happen, it will never happen."

Jody and Brendan Allen digging a pool in their back yard. Picture: Renee Albrecht

So far they have managed to dig a hole about 3m wide and 50cm deep; but there is no sense of urgency for the Allens.

"Who cares how long it takes us?

"We get out here and think: it's happening," she said.

And their sense of belief is catching.

"A friend of ours bought us some blow-up swimming toys the other day.

"People have been fascinated, it's so funny."

Jody Allen. Picture: Brendan Allen

While there is only an inch of water sitting in the hole at the moment, Mrs Allen looks forward to the day it's holding 105,000L.

For that to happen, the Allens will need to shift about 105 cubic metres of earth.

And they are already on a roll.

"We do about 10 barrel loads a day, every day," she said.

"We're just going as quickly as we can without killing ourselves."

Asked why they chose not to save themselves from aching limbs and sweaty days by buying an above-ground pool, Mrs Allen said it was an issue of style.

"It won't suit the house."

"That's too easy, and we don't go easy. We do the impossible and go 'how hard can it be?'"

And by digging it themselves, there would be a high level of satisfaction at every milestone.

"We built the house ourselves, we built the website ourselves," Mrs Allen said.

"The more people that tell us we can't, we're like 'yeah, we can'."

Originally published as Stay at Home Mum tackles unique new DIY project