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| Thank goodness for lifts! |
Since we’re mostly done with the house prior to selling our house, we had to turn our attention to a couple of the nearby trees who’d died from the emerald ash borer (I seriously loathe those insects and the devastation they spread). The once tall, proud, full-canopied ash trees were reduced to dead timber in a matter of years once they were fully infested.
Before we had considered moving, we had toyed with the idea of knocking down the two trees because they were ever-so-slightly leaning toward the house. Though it’s unlikely anyone would have been hurt because the distance of the tree from any bedrooms, it would have done a number on the roof, a job that I would not have enjoyed doing again so soon.
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| Henry and Holton LOVED hearing the growl of the chainsaw. |
Jack did a bit of research and decided renting a large, mechanical lift and investing in a bigger chainsaw, along with more safety gear was the way to go. I whole heartedly agreed, seeing as I’m usually the one who can’t swallow the large bill to pay someone else to do something we can do ourselves.
It took a good eight hours to safely get everything down and though there were a few hiccups, no one lost any limbs (except the trees, heehee) or were crushed by falling tree trunks, I consider the day a success.
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| Getting a ride back from dumping sticks. |
Though the kids couldn’t pick up many of the cut up limbs, they were good for raking up and picking up sticks in the neighbor’s yard where some of our tree fell. They were rewarded with several rides in the pull-behind wagon, a popsicle, and of course, a swim in the pool.
All that’s left of the once-noble trees are their stumps and lots and lots of firewood. Sad to see them go but they will be put to good use, keeping us warm come winter. Now that all the hard work is done, the splitting and stacking will be a breeze (and you’d better believe I’m toting that firewood with us!).
