Rude Awakening

I awoke one morning to the sound of chainsaws and tree limbs falling. I had been sleeping peacefully and my summer alarm clock (aka: Noah) had not woken me up yet. To my surprise, Thorntons tree service starts bright and early with no regard for those of us on summer vacation (Geez! How rude! Don't they know I'm still slumbering without a care in the world!). My neighbors were having 3 trees removed from their yard, and it all started before 8:00 in the morning. So, like the good Mommy I am, I got myself out of bed and went to get Noah up also. I didn't want him to miss out on this learning opportunity. Noah and I paraded outside in our pajamas without so much as stopping for breakfast in order to see the goings on. We hung out in our front yard for about 2 hours watching the work (although it took much longer than that for the job to get done). It was actually quite intriguing to watch these massive trees being cut down. There was a lot of planning and maneuvering these guys had to do so that everything around the trees remained safely in tact. I would say the largest tree was about 5 stories tall and loomed over not only our neighbors home but ours as well. It was a beautiful tree, and until I realized they were taking it down, I didn't know I cared so much. I felt like it was part of our home. It provided shade, comfort and aesthetic beauty. I'm really going to miss that tree.

The tree service had to use our yard in order to get to the tree. We had a huge crane parked in our front yard for much of the day.

While watching the men working, Noah decided he wanted to "work" also and asked if we could bring his excavator outside. He donned his helmet and gloves and told me that when he's a grown-up, he wants to cut down trees too.

Yes. I know it's sideways, and it cannot be fixed. I wasn't thinking when I took the video. Just tilt your head sideways and watch it anyway. Hold out till the end, and it's pretty cool. At least, I was impressed.