Christmas Tree Hunting

YM: We have finally gotten ourselves a Christmas tree! We've been planning to get a tree for several weeks but each time something would come up and we wouldn't go. Naaman loves the tree hunting experience, he was disgusted with the thought of getting a ready cut tree from a tree stand. Conveniently for us, our local paper had printed a map of all the tree farms in the area and we picked one to which we have never been. 

NH: We went to a small family run tree farm north of La Center, WA where we could choose any tree for $20. This seemed like a great deal to us, so up we went, on our Christmas tree hunt. This was Jude's second time, but the first he was still in the stroller so he was pretty excited for this one. Upon arrival we set off immediately in search, armed with a red cap that we could use to highlight a tree for consideration, so we wouldn't lose it among the advertised 5,999 others. We wound through the trees, occasionally losing a leg to one of the tree stumps scattered about. Jude was very excited to carry the red cap, after I removed the saw from his possession. In about 10 minutes, we thought we had selected a pretty good tree. We intended to put it through the trunk and into the interior of our car, so we had to keep the height in check - measurement showed that around 6 feet would be the max. This tree looked to be about perfect, so we had it shaken and baled.

YM: I thought it was too short, but Naaman was convinced it was the perfect height for our car and apartment. Of course I was happy to have a tree, but still it was quite short to me. 

NH: Upon getting home, we painstakingly pulled it out of tight squeeze in the car and carried it upstairs, cut off the baling, and cut an additional 1" off the trunk to ensure that it drew water. Once all was prepared we set it upright, only to find that six feet is a lot shorter that we originally thought. The tree looks a bit miniature, so we have plans to add blocks underneath the tree stand to elevate it, with a tree skirt on top to hide the hideousness of it all. We also have yet to add a star on top which should bring the perceived height up a little more. After putting a few ornaments on the tree that we had been collecting to reflect our various interests, it's looking pretty good, another strand of lights, and I will be able to say that this as money well-spent.

YM: The tree was really short! It looked funny and odd and sort of made our living room look even smaller. Jude appreciated it a lot more than us. To him it probably looks like a big tree. There wasn't room for anything under the tree let alone the presents we are hoping to put under it. We definitely needed to bring up the height, so we are getting wood blocks to prop under the stand to add several inches to its height. Overall though, it's a nice tree and I am really very happy to start our own Christmas traditions.