Project: Back Porch

Living in a hot climate, I sure do love having a back porch.  It's just too hot to go out in the sun for at least two months of the year.  My kids love to play out there, and in the spring and fall, I especially love to entertain outdoors.  However, I've been wanting to make our back porch more of a cozy living space rather than a boring place to sit in the shade.  I've also wanted to add something for privacy, without adding curtains or blinds on the inside of our house.  So i'm starting a DIY project to spruce up our back porch on a very strict budget:  keeping it around $100.
Here's the before pictures: