When the weather starts to get cold, we all probably spend more time indoors. Apparently, bugs are just like us.Many species are, right now, searching for a place to spend the cold months, especially stink bugs. No one wants to shack up all winter with stink bugs, but whether you realize it or not, you might actually be inviting them in. They only need about a tenth of an inch opening. That's the width of two stacked pennies. So, a spot left uncaulked around your window, or even under your door, is big enough. They don't bite, sting or carry diseases, but they are an ugly and smelly nuisance. Parker Darnell, owner of the pest control company Pest X, said, "If you squish them, you're going to smell them. If you threaten them, like they feel like you're about to kill them, they'll release the odor. It's a defense mechanism."This is the time of year when stink bugs start to look for a nice, dry and warm place to spend their winters. And they're not the only bugs on the hunt. Ladybug look-alikes would also like to spend the winter in your home. Jim Jacobi with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System said, "The typical one that we see is the Asian multicolored lady beetle that will come inside, and you'll see those (during the) same kind of time frame as you would the stink bugs."Darnell said they've received many calls from homeowners who want to get the stinky critters out of their homes. He said they could kill them before they ever make it in. "We're going to spray, like, a pesticide 10 foot up and 10 foot out. So, we're going to put it on the ground, and we're also going to put it on your, on your house itself. Put it around your windows, put it on your eaves. Anything like that to try to prevent it because they'll walk through it, digest it, die. Like, they'll never get into the house," he said.But if you'd rather deal with them yourself, just don't give them a way in. Make sure to seal up windows and doors and put screens on attic vents. But if you find one inside, gently pick it up, get rid of it and try to avoid the stink.If you have them in your house this year, they'll probably be back next year. Darnell said they secrete an odor that marks your home to tell the beetles next year that this is a nice, comfortable home where they can overwinter.

When the weather starts to get cold, we all probably spend more time indoors. Apparently, bugs are just like us.

Many species are, right now, searching for a place to spend the cold months, especially stink bugs. No one wants to shack up all winter with stink bugs, but whether you realize it or not, you might actually be inviting them in.

They only need about a tenth of an inch opening. That's the width of two stacked pennies. So, a spot left uncaulked around your window, or even under your door, is big enough.

They don't bite, sting or carry diseases, but they are an ugly and smelly nuisance. Parker Darnell, owner of the pest control company Pest X, said, "If you squish them, you're going to smell them. If you threaten them, like they feel like you're about to kill them, they'll release the odor. It's a defense mechanism."

This is the time of year when stink bugs start to look for a nice, dry and warm place to spend their winters. And they're not the only bugs on the hunt. Ladybug look-alikes would also like to spend the winter in your home. Jim Jacobi with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System said, "The typical one that we see is the Asian multicolored lady beetle that will come inside, and you'll see those (during the) same kind of time frame as you would the stink bugs."

Darnell said they've received many calls from homeowners who want to get the stinky critters out of their homes. He said they could kill them before they ever make it in.

"We're going to spray, like, a pesticide 10 foot up and 10 foot out. So, we're going to put it on the ground, and we're also going to put it on your, on your house itself. Put it around your windows, put it on your eaves. Anything like that to try to prevent it because they'll walk through it, digest it, die. Like, they'll never get into the house," he said.

But if you'd rather deal with them yourself, just don't give them a way in. Make sure to seal up windows and doors and put screens on attic vents. But if you find one inside, gently pick it up, get rid of it and try to avoid the stink.

If you have them in your house this year, they'll probably be back next year. Darnell said they secrete an odor that marks your home to tell the beetles next year that this is a nice, comfortable home where they can overwinter.