A Splitting Good Time

 It’s finally done!  The project that we started at the end of April is complete!  We cut down a huge maple tree that we feared would end up on our house but the trunk of the tree remained in the front yard all summer long.  I’m proud to say that our curb appeal has improved a great deal over the weekend and we have a lot more firewood for the winter.

I happened to be gone (working) on Saturday but my husband and dad got to work splitting those huge stumps.  By the time I got home they were all done and we had a nice stack of wood.   

We are always grateful for the help we get from my dad and it is usually reciprocated.  This time it just so happened that my parents also needed to split wood and we happened to have a day off to help.  So Monday (Labor Day) we got to work on their firewood.  They had much more than we did but my mom and I were there to help which made it go a lot faster. 

We each had our own job to help things work efficiently.  My mom ran the lever on the hydraulic splitter, my husband sat in front of the machine keeping it fed with stumps and tossing them to the side for me to stack, and my dad heaved the heavy stumps to my husband’s side, ready to be split.   

Occasionally the kids would come help stack.  In fact, there was one instance where I moved back to take a picture of the kids helping, however, my youngest didn’t even get a chance because a worm of some sort latched onto his bare foot and sent him hopping and screaming.  Thankfully he was okay, just more scared than anything, but he was done helping and the other two didn’t want to take a chance.  They moved on to playing again and I went back to my post as stacker.

This made for a long day but it’s always good to spend time with family and accomplish goals.  It just makes you feel better to get a big project done and out of the way.  (There are always projects on the homestead!  That's what makes it so fun and fulfilling!)  We finished the day with charcoaled pork chops, baked potatoes, and roasted zucchini (from our garden).  It truly was a splitting good time!

My parents' firewood should get them through the winter.

My Take-Aways:

1. Families are there to help and support each other.  There are some tasks that require the help of others and some that don’t.  Either way, it’s always better spending time with people you love.
2. When kids are raised seeing their parents and grandparents work hard to accomplish things, they develop a good work ethic too.  This healthy environment creates the desire in them to help out even at a young age.  They get their hands dirty and have fun right alongside us.
3. A hydraulic splitter is handy to have around.  Over the years we have always had wood that needed splitting and it is worth the money to either rent or own your own splitter.  It sure beats using a maul or wedge and sledge hammer.