That Stinks

Our first plague of biblical proportions was the ladybug. Actually, it was an asian lady beetle or something. Whatever it was, they say it wasn't a true ladybug. But it looked like it. And when those ladybugs came, they came in a swarm that blocked out the sun. I'm not joking. It wasn't dark as night or anything, but on that sunny autumn afternoon when they came, I was in the kitchen when I noticed it was suddenly much darker outside.  I thought that an unpredicted storm was coming. I went to the door to look out, and I noticed bugs climbing all over the window. But it wasn't just on the outside. They were already making their way indoors.

I called my husband on his cell phone and warned him to come in through the garage door entry  because there was no way I wanted the whole swarm in the house. I was already vacuuming up dozens of the bugs from the walls and ceiling.  If it weren't for the fact that they were in my house, I would say they were cute.

Each year the lady beetles came seeking shelter in our home for the winter. These bugs also found their way into every light fixture, every crack in a window, and probably other places I don't know about. Also, each year they found their way into the mouths of my babes, and subsequently found their ways into the diapers. Thankfully, each year they came in smaller numbers. Now I only notice a couple in the house each year.

But that was only the first plague.

The second plague is of the ugly creature pictured above. The insidious stinkbug. They did not blot out daylight. They did not make their way into diapers. They did, however, make their way into our home. It seems every year more find their way in. And they stay. Year-round. There is not a time of year that these pests don't crawl up the wall or flutter in the dining-room chandelier.

It's so bad that one of my 2-year-old's first words was "stinkbug."  She will now see one, grab some toilet paper, and run to me so I can nab the offending creature. My 5-year-old just grabs them bare-handed and flushes them down the toilet without blinking. I must admit that most days I just cry, "Uncle!" and leave them alone.

And it just plain stinks.