When Brice and Lynn Holland’s 5,600-square-foot home was built in 1996, it was touted as one of this area’s first “smart homes.” The high-tech home offered the owners capability to electronically control everything from the heating and air system to security system.

“We could call on the telephone and change the thermostat if we wanted,” Mrs. Holland said.

Yet for all of its state-of-the-art conveniences, the Ringgold, Ga., home’s greatest pleasure is found in the quiet, pastoral backyard setting of the Hollands’ pool/patio entertainment area.

Mrs. Holland said after the couple married in 1995, they lived in Heritage Landing while building their dream home on 102 acres in North Georgia. Lining the driveway with oak trees a year before they moved in, they named their new home The Oaks at Creekside.

The peaceful, rural setting of the property seems to belie the fact that the hustle and bustle of Battlefield Parkway is only two miles way.

“We wanted privacy,” Mrs. Holland says. “We think we’re out in the country, but right over the treetops is Wal-Mart.”

The Hollands’ home is built on a knoll, situated at an angle so there is a pentagonal feel to the house and pool layout. Two wings extend from either side of the front entryway — much like first- and third baselines extending from home plate in a ballpark.

At the rear of the house, the pool/patio area fans out between the two wings, surrounded on its three sides by an iron fence.

“We knew we wanted the pool to be seen from more than one side of the house,” said Mrs. Holland.

At each wing’s end is a small brick building flanking each end of the patio — one a poolhouse, the other a kitchenette/bathhouse.

The fence length running parallel to the pool is hidden behind a thick Loropetalum Chinese (razzleberry) hedge over 5 feet in height. Beyond the fencing, fields ripple downhill to a line of oak trees.

Behind the tree line, Chickamauga Creek follows 3,400 feet of the property’s boundary, according to Mr. Holland. The creek serves as more than a natural property line; water pumped from the creek irrigates the Hollands’ property.

A 20- by 40-foot, oval pool centers the outdoor entertainment area, surrounded by stamped concrete. On the poolhouse’s end of the patio, four beds of Knock Out Roses flourish beside a patio table and chairs. On the opposite end, adjacent to the bathhouse, is a stacked sandstone water garden.

More than two dozen types of flowers, bushes and trees soften the angles of brick flower beds and ripple around the area’s perimeter. They are layered in height and color for visual interest. The couple sat down with their landscaper to handpick each plant. Mrs. Holland points out the red lace leaf maple just outside the breakfast room as her favorite.

Both Hollands play golf, and love of their hobby is evidenced by a backyard putting green.

“Brice built a tee box down at the barn with a 200-yard driving range,” Mrs. Holland adds.

Mrs. Holland said the pool is a favorite destination of their nine grandchildren. The location of an outdoor refrigerator, sink and restroom in the bath cabana eliminates water being tracked into the house. Plenty of seating area around the pool is conducive to family cookouts and pool parties.

“We just love the privacy,” Mrs. Holland said. “Nobody can get in to bother us, and we don’t bother anybody.”