Thimbleanna

Unwelcome Guests

Did all of you Americans have a nice Thanksgiving? I can’t believe it’s already come and gone. We had a really wonderful Thanksgiving this year. We had a LOT to be thankful for here in ThimbleannaLand. Not the least of which is that CuteNiece1 was with us. She had a pretty serious car accident the night before Thanksgiving and totalled her cute little Blueberry.

Blueberry Crash

Poor, poor Blueberry. And lucky, lucky us. CuteNiece1 walked away with a few bruises and cuts and it was so lucky that no one was in the passenger seat, as there wasn’t much left of it after the accident. Definitely a Thanksgiving that we’ll remember!

We also discovered a few unwelcome guests on the day before Thanksgiving. We have a big tree in the backyard that is looking a little poorly, so we called in the tree expert.

Ash Tree

It’s very grave, indeed. It seems that we’re now hosting the famed Emerald Ash Borer. We’d heard about the EAB a few years ago when it was first found in Michigan. Back then, there was a lot of talk that wherever the EAB was discovered, people would be required to cut down their ash trees within a few miles, in order to try to stop the spread of the EAB. They must’ve decided that was too expensive though ’cause we never heard much more about it. And it’s too late now. ;-(

Ash Tree

Mr. Tree expert showed us 7 or 8 other big ash trees on our lot. Our sickly tree will come out this week (it’s too close to the house to do anything else) and the other ones will eventually die too. I hate having to cut down our trees!  This is a serious infestation, and sadly, if you’re in the eastern US, those little critters are probably coming to a tree near you soon. 

So hey — notice how I’m totally avoiding the big event coming up? It’s a strategy!

XOXO,
Anna

53 thoughts on “Unwelcome Guests”

  1. good grief! im so glad you Niece walked away from that accident, looks really nasty!!

    oh man…we have an ash tree too…fingers crossed tightly!!

    cute new Dept 56 up there!!

    you may wanna put a trip to Warsaw fabric shop on your to do list, I definitely thought it was worth my drive…with 2 kids!

  2. Wow! What a scary accident. I’m so relieved that she’s okay and that she was able to walk away from it. What a wonderful blessing. So, sad about your ash trees. We lost a tree to very strong winds a few years back and I miss it. Denial, eh?

  3. I absolutely ADORE your new header. You always come up with such cute and darling and creative headers. If there was some award for BEST HEADER you would win it hands down!!! : )

  4. OMGosh…so glad your sweet niece is ok. Amazing considering the condition of the car! EAB..so sorry about your ash trees. We also have an ash and have been keeping a close eye on it. Had the Extension office experts look at it. So far so good.

  5. Oh my goodness, definitely lots to be thankful for! Poor car, but it’s just “stuff,” right? Glad your niece was able to celebrate Thanksgiving with you in good health. Sorry about the trees, that does hurt…

  6. So lucky for your niece. That is a huge reason to be thankful on Thanksgiving for. Soooooo sad about your trees. Isn’t it because of some infestation in your area that Brittany doesn’t make walnut needles anymore? All of the walnut trees are dead or dying?

  7. So glad to hear that your niece is OK after such a serious accident – what a fright it must have given you all.

    Your new festive header is really sweet.

  8. OMG, it must’ve been scary for your niece. Lucky girl to be walking away from what’s left of that car.

    Hahaha! I’ll be in denial with you. The big C is a swear word around here, usually preceded with the big F. Oops, there goes my potty mouth again.

  9. Gosh, what a lucky niece. It’s almost unbelievable that she walked away from a crash like that. Certainly lots to give thanks for this year.

    Love you new thimble banner, Thimbleanna!

  10. Oh my, I’m so glad your niece is okay! How scary!

    We have the EAB here in SE Ohio, no moving firewood!! So sorry for your trees!

  11. What a miracle that your niece was fairly unharmed. I would not have thought that looking at her car! Good night above. I’m sorry for your tree. :( But, maybe you could plant a fruit tree in its place! You’d get a double bonus- shade and food. :)
    Your banner is adorable. I look forward to seeing what you come up with every month. Mine is so boring- maybe I’ll change it today.

  12. What a picture of your niece’s car. Thank God she is ok. I bet she was shaken up after that.

    That is such a shame about your trees. It is hard to lose such majestic mature trees. They add so much to a landscape. Maybe you could have the wood milled from the trees and make a piece of furniture with it?

  13. Good god, the car looks terrible, you realy can be thankfully that nothing serious happens to your nice. She must have felt terrible after that accident. I hope she will foget over that soon.

  14. OMG, what a scary picture! Having gone through this with Andrew this year, I know how awful it can be to get that phone call…thank God your niece was able to walk away. So much to be thankful for!!!

  15. Your family really does have a lot to be thankful for. I’m glad your niece is all right. When I saw that top pic my heart went to my feet.
    The poor car tho. I’m sorry about your tree too. I’ve never heard of that before.

  16. So glad your niece is fine. I’m sure she’s so thankful too.
    We have a tree that’s split like that in our front yard. It’s not an ash though. Do you think that matters? It’s our climbing tree, I’d hate to lose it.

  17. mydadlovesmebestsister

    Did you know that there is treatment for EMerald Ash if not too late. Did the guy tell you that? I can check at the extension because we learned about it-I just can’t remember the details.

  18. Oh, thank goodness your cute niece is okay! You sure do have lots to be thanful for.

    Sorry about your tree, that is very sad. It hurts to lose trees and have to take them down. The city had to remove a hundreds-year old oak tree in my town due to disease and it was painful.

  19. Thank goodness your niece is ok! From the looks of the car it could have been much worse! As for the trees…22 years ago we planted 75 green ash trees around our property before building our house. It was our son’s 4-H project. And you guessed it…green ash borer has set in..we are just sick. The trees are just starting to look beautiful and will have to be cut down!

  20. Much to be thankful for in your neck of the state! But it is sad about your tree!

    (don’t look now but December is coming at us fast!)

  21. Your poor niece – you must all have had a terrible shock – even more so whe you saw the state of her poor little car!! How sad about your trees. We can only have small trees in our garden, but I would be upset to lose them ….. we lost our olive tree in the severe weather last winter.

  22. Gasp! Sweet niece is a very lucky girl. The tree…not so lucky. I keep watching my big pine tree for beetle infestation. Those beetles have made their way into my western MT forest/backyard. YIKES! They seek and destroy like no other. I’m hoping for a really cold winter. That is the only way to get rid of them. You know it’s serious when I hope for cold weather!

    And what big event is coming up? Is there something I should be preparing for? No. Couldn’t be. ;-)

  23. OMG! So glad your niece is okay, so sorry about her cute little car.
    Darn diseases, we have been treating our tree for a couple of years now, the neighbor had someone out and we were told ours was infected. It hasn’t gotten any worse. Hang in there. xoxo

  24. Yikes. That car is scary looking. Holy Cow. Miracle really that she is ok. Poor ash trees. I love them. That one is a beauty, or was….sad.

  25. So glad CuteNiece walked away! A reminder of how precious life is! And the ash borer… ick. We had some trees damaged in our neighborhood and the township sent out scientists to check them for the EAB, but luckily, none yet… Poor big, beautiful trees. :(

  26. Oh my what a blessing your niece is ok.. I hate bugs that kill beautiful huge trees and I love your new blog header!!! Very creative Miss Anna.

  27. Oh dear, I’m glad that CutNiece is well after a collision like that! Someone was looking out for her.

    I’m really sorry about the ash trees too. Trees take so long to mature (at least in our country) so I totally empathize with your loss.

    Looking forward to the unspoken surprises.

    Jody

  28. Oh such sad news!! I’m glad your niece was alright. The trees, oh how sad. We have a cottonwood we need to take out soon, and I would love to plant another tree nearby but I don’t have one picked out yet.

  29. wOw…. there is not much left of that car! Your niece is very very lucky!

    And I am sorry about your trees… I always hate to see a nice big tree cute down :(

    SheilaC

  30. Goodness, my heart skipped a beat just from seeing the picture. What a scary ordeal for your niece! I’m so glad to hear she’s ok. That is a lot to be thankful for!

    So sorry about your trees too.

    I like to avoid the big event too. :) But now it’s Dec 1, I’m knee deep in projects, and so my denial must end. :)

  31. I couldn’t even think of what big event you meant – had to read back to see if you were about to have a birthday or something. But then it dawned – THAT one.

    You can see that I’m in denial also.

    That car! Goodness me.

    The tree – fewer leaves to gather up next year…

  32. oh…phew…when i first saw the pictures i instantly had horrible scenarios in my mind…i’m glad that your niece wasn’t hurt too bad…hug her twice next time you see her…she must have had a guardian angel!

    i’m sorry for your trees…it’s so sad to remove them…! hope it doesn’t spread further…

    hugs, julia

  33. OH my Anna- so glad that your niece is alright – her car is definitely not. It must have been quite frightening for her.
    Sorry to hear about your trees- I love our big trees in our yard and would be very sad to lose them too.
    Hope that December brings some lovely things to you and yours.
    Warmest regards,
    Anna

  34. Ooooh, your poor niece!! How amazing that you can come out of something like that with just a few bruises, isnt’ it? We had a really bad accident a few years ago and even though everyone was fine, I felt kind of traumatized for weeks.

    And your poor tree! I would just hate that. My very favorite tree on our farm is an ash. The farmer has been treating our 2 ashes with something-or-other to keep that nasty borer away, I just hope it works.

  35. What a lucky escape for your niece…looks like a horrific crash!..Glad to hear she is ok physically, but give her extra hugs on the psychological side..I bet it will take awhile to get over it all!

    Sorry to hear about your trees…It is awful having to chop them down, but hopefully you’ll can have a tree planting party in the spring to replace them. (((hugs)))

  36. So sad about your ash trees Anna.
    I can’t believe that car and that cuteniece2 is okay.
    My youngest offspring totaled my Volvo recently and CHP said he wouldn’t have survived in another car.
    I towed my car to the dismantler this week. They paid me 250$ for my baby. It was a donation though, like an organ donor. Little parts of hervwill live on in other little volvos driving all about town. I wonder, when one drives up beside me, if I’ll know…
    Ok, I clearly should have gone back to bed this morning.

Comments are closed.