Freaking out . . .

September 29, 2016

I had this after church on Sunday. This picture is kind of a bait and switch, because what you're about to read is not pretty.
It was a long, hot summer.

The cooler temps we're experiencing now are such a refreshing change. I was thankful when we got to turn off the AC and throw open the windows and enjoy the fresh air. I especially love to have the bedroom window cracked at night.

So for a week or so we enjoyed blissful sleep as the gentle autumnal air wafted through the window screen.

Except that said screen was not properly inserted into the window frame. And a small army of stink bugs, unbeknownst to us, were filing in, apparently night after night, and making themselves right at home. 

I can't even tell you how much these things have been freaking me out.

The first time I noticed them was when I pulled off our bedspread preparatory to changing the sheets, and saw two of them high-tailing it right up the middle of the bed!

They were in the blinds, on the walls. I picked them off, one by one, careful not to squish them in the Kleenex (they're called stink bugs for a reason!), and flushed them down the toilet. And thought, finally, after two days, I had got rid of them.

No. I had someone over to help me do some cleaning the next day, and she found probably 50 to 100 more hiding behind a dresser. We even found one in my sock drawer! We spent a whole afternoon hunting them down.

Everything, and I mean everything, is out of my dresser. We washed the whole thing down. I have towels at the base of our closet doors at the other end of the room. (If I see one in my clothes. . . ) And in front of our bedroom door to prevent them from getting anywhere else in the house.

My husband and I are sleeping in a guest room. Until we take apart the bed and check the entire frame (I found one hidden in there), I am not going to be lying on that bed. The first couple nights I was clinging to my husband like he was the last lifeboat leaving the Titanic. I was sure one of those pests had followed us down the hall and would be joining us in bed.

Really, I don't know what's wrong with me. A friend of mine has bed bugs in her house, and she's as cool as a cucumber, just matter of factly taking care of things. I would be insane. Now stink bugs do not bite or spread disease or cause damage. They don't lay eggs in a house either, unlike bed bugs or fleas, only outside on leaves in the summer. (And you can be sure I googled that six ways to Sunday so there was no mistake about it!)

So I was kinda calming down. And then I found some downstairs. 

Freaking out.

But we only found five downstairs; I think they got in when I was filling up the bird feeders and left the screen door open. But I can tell you I have been going around with a flashlight, checking every nook and cranny to make sure those little beasts aren't hiding anywhere. They are really good at sidling up to the dark edges of things. And they are really kinda big and ugly.

I will not post a picture because I can't stand to look at another one. I thought you'd like the stuffed waffle instead.

 I haven't seen one in two days now. But you never know, they could still be hiding. 

I tell ya, it's like a horror show over here. 

23 comments

  1. I've been living with a toad for a week. He rode in on the dahias that came in one night because of a frost warning. I feel your pain. At least, he is only one and not a hundred. Good luck with it all and may you get to return to your own room soon.

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  2. YIKES! I don't even know what stink bugs are but they sound kind of creepy...
    we have a fruit fly invasion in our kitchen...one of the nectarines had a blemish in the skin and they made themselves right at home before we discovered them. Good luck getting on top of your unwelcome guests - pests!

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  3. I'm sorry you're going through this, Deborah. I would be freaking out too! Hope you've seen the last of these stinky buggers.

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  4. Oh you poor thing... I hate those stink bugs! So glad your really getting to the bottom of where they went and where they might be hiding! Hopefully you have a comfortable bed in the guest room!!
    xo Roxy

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  5. Last year the stink bugs were bad around here. They were in the zinnias and on the roses. This year I didn't see any at all.

    Last Fall my little Fuzzy Pomeranian pointed out to me the first stink bug that came into the house. He was extremely concerned about it, showing it to me, then running away from it, and then pointing it out to me again. I recognized it as a stink bug and managed to sneak up on it, gently put a couple of tissues over it and very, very gently carry it outside without it going off like a stink bomb. The next day there was another one, which I found before my little dog did. I tried the tissue trick again. It didn't work, and Man Oh Man!, it stunk up every room between where I found it and where I tossed it and the tissues out the front door. If the neighbors saw me tossing wads of tissue out the front door onto the lawn, they probably thought badly of me. The stinkbugs smell a bit like horribly intense mothballs, only much worse. My little dog, with his sense of smell, must have really suffered from the stench, I know I did. If you squash them or even touch them too roughly, you pay the price.

    It would have driven me and my little dog crazy if there would have been more than two of them. It would have really freaked me out if there would have been an army of them, or even one, in my bed. I read about them after seeing the first one in the house and sprayed insecticide around all of the windows and doors and anywhere I thought they might come in. I guess that stopped them in their stinky paths. Fuzzy and I went stinkbug hunting all around the house every day for several days and didn't find any more of them. Fuzzy thought that was a delightful new activity we were going to do forever more. Luckily, we didn't have to continue stinkbug hunting for too long. I hope you can get rid of every last one of those little stinkers very quickly.

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  6. Oh, gosh! I feel for you. That sounds like a real infestation. I had no idea what stink bugs were until we bought our place in Michigan. Never saw one ever in my life. And just randomly. Like most bugs I just use a tissue and toss them out to go their merry way. And until I read your post, I didn't know how they got their name. Seriously! I'll remember this.

    I truly hope this is the end of your problem. I always thought that if a bug or rodent wanted to get in your house they could. Wonder what attracts stink bugs?

    Jane

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  7. Me again. I just Googled stink bugs. They come indoors in the fall through small cracks in screens and doors, etc., as they like the warmth. Best advice is to vacuum them up and dispose of the vacuum cleaner bag. You can Google them if you want more info...I'm a Google nut!!!

    Jane

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  8. That's unpleasant! I had a couple of earwigs come in with some dahlias and you can be sure I squashed them immediately. Bugs - yech! Hope you get rid of those stink bugs soon.

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  9. I am not sure what they are, but it doesn't sound good. Hope you manage to get rid of them and quick. Take care.

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  10. How AWFUL! I'm glad you've seen less of them and hopefully, the last of them.

    Have a nice weekend ~ FlowerLady

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  11. Yowza, stink bugs sound AWFUL! I've never heard of them before, but your description makes me very glad I DON'T know what they are! It looks like you have things under control, so try and relax. We've been going through an ant invasion in So CA. I had to empty out my entire pantry and wipe everything down with vinegar (also left cotton balls soaked in vinegar at entry points). I absolutely cannot use bug spray of any kind (highly allergic), so I'm glad the vinegar has seemed to control things for now. It seems the only problem with the magical change of seasons is that bugs get on the move to find more hospitable locations before the colder weather hits! Take care. Rosie @ The Magic Hutch

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  12. Oh no Deborah I'm so sorry to hear about the bug problem. I hope you will get that all sorted out! :(

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  13. Okay, first of all, I thought this was going to be about how you totally freaked out on calories. Bait and switch, lol.
    I can so totally relate to you, and I'm sorry you have to live through this. It's the stuff illnesses (stress-related) are born from, dealing with these kinds of things, for people with temperaments like mine and what sounds like yours. It makes my BP go up, and freak out, yes. When we returned from 3 weeks vacation, somewhere along the line we had a total of about a dozen flies (but it felt like hundreds), one after another, come through our home for about 5 days (the source still a total mystery). They're gone now, but I feel for you. I wouldn't sleep a wink. It's like when a kid gets head lice. Only 1 of mine did, but I literally did not sleep one iota, trying to clean the entire house in that first night....and I was in a very demanding job then. Good luck ridding yourself of the stink bugs. I have seen them before, but not in hoards.

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  14. Hi Deborah, I'd be freaking out too. Those are the worst. I sure hope this gets resolved quickly so you can rest assured they are gone. I hope you can find the nest that is breading this little critters. They have to be coming from some source. Maybe it will get cold and they will die off. Thinking of you and praying you can see better days ahead with these visitors gone!!!
    Try and have a great weekend. Blessings xo

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  15. We have them here too...crawling all over the screens trying to get in. The thing is that they always just seem to appear out of nowhere!

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  16. Yikes, I Googled stink bugs to confirm what they are and would be freaking out too Deborah. I've not had them in our house and see very few outside so maybe they're not too prevalent here.
    I can't stand a single mosquito buzzing in the bedroom at night so an army of creepy crawlies would be enough to send one over the edge. Hope they're all gone now!

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  17. I'm going to have to do a google search to see what they look like, Deborah. You poor thing! You've been through the wringer, haven't you?? Thank goodness, at least, it wasn't during the wedding time. Will they die out with a freeze? I hope they've left your home and good riddance to them!

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  18. Oh, I can imagine how you must feel! Thank goodness they are harmless, but still, it does give you the willies. xx K

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  19. Oh. My. Goodness. Gracious! You poor thing! I have only seen a couple of them this year in the house and I do cringe whenever I see one. I can only imagine having a room full! So much for fresh autumn air. I hear it's highly overrated :) I hope you never see another one as long as you live!

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  20. Hi Deb. We've had stinkbugs in WV for years and they're disgusting. In the beginning I discovered a swarm nesting behind a very large picture, so be sure to check behind all of your wall hangings. We also replaced every window screen which made a HUGE difference. There are chemicals you can use around the perimeter of the house but I have mixed feelings about that, although we used it during our two worst seasons. Check your attic. This is the time of year they're looking for a warm place to hibernate for winter. They are fewer in number with each passing year and I can't wait until they're extinct!

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  21. It's back...hope that you didn't have to re-create it.

    Upper Michigan is so pretty. Looks a lot like my corner. Oh, I see that you folks are going to be in a bit of a mess for a few weeks...right into Christmas? How exciting. ☺

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  22. Ahhh - I was hoping for a story of that waffle, which looks delicious. Now I'm hungry for a waffle.
    Stink bugs are awful :( And they do smell if you kill them! Are you talking about the little ones that look like lady bugs (but aren't), or the ones that look kind of angular and as if they're wearing armor? Well, whichever, I hope they leave soon. They're probably trying to get into a warmer place. So maybe if you turned back on your AC for a couple of days...?

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  23. Dearest Deborah,
    Thanks for visiting me so I again had the link to your blog. For some reason my entire blog list had disappeared from my sideline... Bit by bit I've managed to get them back on.
    Oh my, what a story this is!
    Both, my husband and I never leave the doors or windows open. We don't have screens on, except on the small windows in the Rose Suite downstairs.
    Having the airconditioning on has two reasons, one is for cooling or heating and the main reason is for de-humidifying the home for living in a healthier environment too. Lots of people don't understand that this is the link between the AC.
    There is a good reason for keeping doors and windows closed as there are all kinds of bugs out, seasonally, that love to get indoors. We only once in a while find some lady bugs that get in when we slide open the balcony doors. Yep, it takes only a brief moment...
    Glad you got rid of them and hope all is found by now.
    Oh my, what a lot of catching up after the trip to Europe.
    Driving the 4,135 km also did the trick for me, I got exhausted. There were only three days in-between, when staying with my best friend, that I did not hit the Interstate! Back home I had to really unwind.
    All the planning and everything weighs on me as Pieter is not up to that anymore. He's spoiled rotten with having always his right hand there, his former secretary, that takes care of everything!
    But so glad that I got to see my 95-½ year old Dad and all siblings. It was worth arranging the trip this way, via The Netherlands. Also visited two friends in Germany on the way back. We got a lot covered!
    Sending you hugs and may God bless our Nation!!!
    Mariette

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