My wife and I purchased our first home back in October of last year Just north of Atlanta, GA and have been puzzled with our backyard. It was neglected from the previous owners so I've spent a few months trying to clean it up. As you can see in the photos, I've removed a tremendous amount of undergrowth and cut down a lot of sapplings to give us a view of the creek which borders the back side of the property. Being new to homeownership and landscaping I've been stumped by the hill which leads down to my "lower" backyard. It's approx 75' wide and 30' long. I'd like to add some type of steps and plant a mixture of shrubs, trees, and grasses to help both stabilize and look more aesthetically pleasing. The hill is bordered to the right with Leland Cypresses which I don't particularity care for and wouldn't mind giving them the chop.

I've searched both this forum and google but have came up empty on anything I could possibly do. Any help with ideas, designs, or encouragement would be greatly appreciated.