The Smells of Christmas!

Recently our new house has developed an "aroma." We've been making cookies, pies and other fun holiday treats. A few days ago, hit and miss, we would get a whiff and one of us would say "what is that smell?" We love the smells of Christmas but this one was a little unusual for the holiday season. Jeremy began digging through boxes, going through the pantry and looking behind the washer and dryer but to no avail. The smell grew (grows) stronger.

This is not a good smell mind you. It's a terrible, sickening stench and it's growing worse. We've been chased out of our dining room, pantry, laundry area and it's stretching to the kitchen. If we've been gone for a bit and come in we even notice it when we open the front door and step into home, sweet home... er, smelly home. All the boxes in that portion of the house have been dug through, moved and rearranged, the hoses for the dryer have been checked, every crevice we can reach has been examined, the pantry torn apart and the attic scoured. We suspect that the source of this foul smell is in the attic somewhere (because as bad as it is in the house, it's SOOOOOO much worse up there) but we haven't actually found it yet and we're concerned we never will. I'm starting to wonder if we walk around with this smell clinging to us and nothing covers it up for long.

Our house should smell of blue spruce, cinnamon and sugar, cookies, hot chocolate, pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, candied yams, and other warm delectables of the season but no. Instead, our house is warm and bright and smells like a dead animal. I plug my nose when I head to the fridge, light a candle by the washer and dryer and hold my breath when I'm in the pantry. Jeremy made cookies last night and it only covered the odor for about 15 minutes before we had to take the cookies to the living room to avoid feeling sick. Lavinia keeps asking "why does our house stink?" I haven't had the heart to tell her "because something died in the attic or the wall and we can't find it to get it out."

Does anybody know how long we can expect this torture to last? Should we call someone to come out and relieve us of our misery or is it likely they won't find it either? I'm trying not to think about what this is going to do to Christmas dinner. How can we cook and eat with that smell? And I'm pretty sure it's going to get worse before it gets better.

I think I'm going to remember this holiday season as the stinky-est one we've had yet and I mean that literally!