TIMBER!!!

One of the absolute top priorities on our to-do list was taking down a towering giant of a tree near the house. Now, I love trees, but the moment they pose a real threat of crashing through our roof during a storm, my sentiment changes to: “It’s time to go.”

As it turns out, the tree had been a source of anxiety for a long time. At the point where the trunk split into three massive sections, we discovered the previous owners had actually joined them together with heavy metal rods. Knowing someone else had been worried enough to bolt the tree together definitely didn’t inspire confidence!

The crew we hired was fantastic and highly entertaining to watch, though I certainly wouldn’t want to be the climber tasked with scaling the very top to clear limbs before the main trunk could be tackled. When the big moment finally came and the trunk was sawed through, the tree fell with a massive, earth-shaking thud that we felt right through our boots. The crew then brought out the grinder to finish the job, cleanly leveling off the stump. Unfortunately, we ended up losing a second tree on the property as well; it was clearly dying, and the crew advised it was best to take it down now rather than wait for a storm to do it for us.

On the bright side, we are officially set on firewood for a very long time—just as soon as Mitch cuts it all down to size and builds a proper wood holder! We also have a massive burn pile ready to go. Having a burn pile seems to be a right of passage here in Texas, but this one will have to wait until we return next fall. We already know we’ll need to notify the fire department before we light it up, since a pile this size will burn for a few days. We’ve been warned it’s going to be an absolute doozy of a fire!

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