Adventure #14: Get the Hunt Family Christmas Tree!

Every year we drive out to the country to cut our own tree down.  This involves a long drive in fog that wasn't there when we left the house but is now so heavy I am worried we are going to drive off the road.  Each  Christmas tree farm just doesn't "feel right" to Geoff, so we pass countless ones until he finally settles on the farm that has whatever magical combination of attributes he needs.  Mine just need trees for sale, I still have no idea what he requires of his.  We all get out of the car and find ourselves ankle deep in mud.  Noah refuses to walk  because the ground is uneven and its cold.  So I carry my 50 pound child while we troop around the farm.

Just like Geoff requires some unknown formula to stop at the "perfect" Christmas tree farm, there is also some combination to create the "perfect" tree.  As my hands are falling asleep and my back is killing me hauling Noah around we look at trees.  We find countless ones that seem great to me.  But somehow they just aren't "right" to Geoff.  We continue with him pointing out trees, me saying, "let's get it", and him deciding its just not "quite right".  We keep looking as I am getting more short tempered by the moment.  Finally, after a good 20 minutes the tree is selected.  Oh, the joy of a U-Cut, Geoff realizes he is going to have to lay in the mud to saw down the tree.

Once we get the tree to our car we are forced to acknowledge that it will not fit in the back of our small SUV.   Even if we had remembered to remove Noah's push car before we left the house. Another 20 minutes pass us by while Geoff wrestles the tree onto the roof.  After many swears and some cut up hands, we are ready to take the treacherous foggy path back home.

Once home the real battle begins.  Our standard operating procedure is Geoff trying to screw the tree into the stand while I hold it steady.  Geoff lays under the tree while critiquing my holding of the tree.  He likes to argue that the tree isn't straight.  At this point my holly jolly holiday mood is gone replaced by something much crabbier.  I have to say (yell), "HOW CAN YOU TELL IF THE TREE IS STRAIGHT!?  YOU ARE LAYING UNDER IT!"  After far too long we have the tree up.  At this point decorating the tree while listening to carols and sipping hot cocoa is far from my mind.

I had been thinking maybe it would be OK to let go of the Christmas tree farm experience.  Last year after the tree collapsed on me and I was stuck until Geoff got home from the store. I decided I really am done with the tree farm experience.  Honestly it is a hassle we don't enjoy.

This year we packed the kids into the car to get our tree.  We drove 5 minutes on a blissfully fog-free street to our local Target.  Putting Noah in the cart we strolled through the store and browsed the ornaments.  We looked at their lovely assortment of trees while we were warm and I wasn't holding a heavy child.  Picked out our tree, conveniently boxed small enough to fit in our car even though we again didn't remember to remove Noah's push car from our car.  It is also light enough for Owen to carry it.  Erecting the tree took 10 argument-free minutes.  Forever I have fought the artificial tree.  But I am now a convert.