It's Tree-Getting Time Again!

Unbelievable, but true. We went last Saturday to get not one, but two trees for our home. We debated when to go for the tree. We had gone back and forth and around and around. See, we really wanted to have snow for the outing. It just doesn't seem right to get a tree without trudging through snow. You would think after six years living in NC, this wouldn't be an issue for us anymore. However, it always bothered us then, though we accepted it and looked past it. But now that we live up north again, it just doesn't seem right. There is no snow here. I checked the extended forecast on Friday night and saw that there was a chance of snow the following Friday and Saturday. We decided to wait. Saturday morning, when other plans fell through, (I was supposed to go shopping with my cousin who at that point had been up barfing most of the night), we started thinking again about getting the tree. I checked the forecast again and already the chance of snow was gone. We determined there was certainly no guarantee there would be snow next weekend so we might as well go ahead and get it now.
In the early morning it had been quite chilly, temps in the low30s or upper 20s, so I put hats and gloves and big coats on everyone who would let me and we headed out. By the time we had arrived and started walking out into the trees, it was quite warm.


(Remember this?!)


Lincoln just had on a sweater and the kids had started stripping off layers. The sun was shining brightly- and warmly. We wandered around, inspecting trees, walking a circle around them, judging their size and fullness.


We decided on a lovely, thick tree for the family room, and a smaller, narrower tree for the living room.


Lincoln cut them down easily, this year laying in dirt and mud to do it instead of snow,











and we dragged them back to the barn for binding.


The kids and I went inside for free hot cocoa and Lincoln secured the trees to the top of the car.


As I was standing in line waiting to pay, I struck up a conversation with the lady next to me. We talked a bit about the weather and I expressed to her that we had thought about waiting until next weekend. She said, "Oh no! This weekend is perfect!" Obviously she missed my point that we LIKE to have snow for tree-getting. I will admit, however, that it was easy. No dragging a bundled up toddler through knee-high (to him) snow. No biting wind whipping across the hills. No frozen fingers. No mittens lost in the rows of trees. BUT, there also were no rosy cheeks, no snowball fights, no trail through the snow from the dragging tree, no marshmallow world, no mist of snow blown off the tree in the shaker, no sled rides, and honestly the hot cocoa just seemed superfluous.

I still haven't really gotten a picture of the trees put up. The big tree fell over yesterday and has yet to be properly redecorated.

Snow is in the forecast again for next week. I'm ready for it. I need a little boost to my Christmas Spirit.