The Perfect Tree.

This story starts off the same each year.  The phone rings and it's the local service group asking if we would like to order a Douglas Fir tree.  This year it was Lexi who insisted we go to the forest to get our own tree.  So I politely declined the pre-cut and delivered Douglas Fir tree they were offering but kept our name on the call list because who knows what will happen next year.

And really, just look at that tree line.  There's gotta be the perfect tree out there somewhere.

We set out on the old highway with Christmas carols playing and our hopes high.  Everyone looked out their window scanning the ditches for something suitable to string lights on.  "There's one!" someone shouts.  But upon closer inspection it's actually two trees intertwined.  So we continue on. Looking and analyzing. "Too bare, too tall, too fat, too hard to get at..." And just as we were about to lose all our Christmas enthusiasm... there is was.  The perfect Christmas tree.

There wasn't a lot of snow to contend with this year but the minus thirty temperature caused havoc on the fingers and toes.  Good thing there was hot chocolate, strings of lights and tree ornaments waiting for us at home.  But the funny thing is that a tree doesn't look as big in the forest as it does when you're trying to get it through the door.  

Getting this monster tree into the house and standing straight up was no simple task.  The tree stand was just not able to hold this beauty of tree no matter how much blasting wire we used to tie it to the wall.  I went to the store to see if I could find a more effective, sturdier tree stand but had no luck.  I can't lie and say that the pre-lit artificial trees that I saw while looking for the tree stand weren't looking very attractive at this point.  After great discussion about the kind of tree stand we needed but didn't have, we tipped the tree back on it's side and Jon cut it down to a smaller, more manageable size for the wimpy little tree stand that we had.  

After a full days work of tree hunting, tree erecting, tree decorating, and tree needle clean up we circle around to the same old question.  Is it worth it?  

In the middle of the fiasco, the answer was No!  Definitely not worth it.  But now that it's up and adorned with its lights and all the ornaments that each have a story to tell, my heart has softened. Maybe it wasn't that bad.  Maybe we can find a better tree stand for next year.  Or maybe we'll just order one from the service group when they call.  Who knows.

What I do know is that it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here and I look forward to all the joy that is going to happen around our perfect Christmas tree. And that's worth it!