Every year, we postpone getting a Christmas tree until a couple days before Christmas. Mostly because there's always so much other stuff going on in the holiday season that we don't have time to get one earlier. This year, we decided to get one early because none of us had plans for this Saturday afternoon. So off we went to one of our favorite Christmas tree plantations.
We prefer cutting our own tree because a) it's cheaper, b) it's more fun and c) it's kind of nice to see the tree in it's 'natural habitat'. Oh and of course we are outdoorsy people who like to get our hands dirty and walk around in the freezing cold for what seems like hours until we find
the tree.
Most people seem to take the first nice-looking tree they can find. We usually walk around the whole plantation three times until we decide to take the very first one we liked. Which is usually taken by someone else by the time we find it again(it's pretty easy to get lost when all trees look the same... kind of).
This time it didn't take long until we found our tree. Let me tell you, it's not easy to find a tree that meets all our criteria. First, the size. My parents have the bad habit of buying a small tree and putting it on a table to make it appear taller. Why not buy a tall tree in the first place? Well, ask them because I don't know the answer either.
Next, it has to look nice from every possible angle. Of course this includes the bottom, since we want the cats to look up and see a nice-looking tree. Kidding. But you get the point. And the branches have to be sturdy enough to hold our candles(yepp, we're old fashioned!) and lots of ornaments yet they can't be too close together because we don't wanna burn the whole thing. By the time we find a tree that matches our criteria we're usually chilled to the bone.
Luckily, we like to be weirdos who run around wearing santa hats in public (at least on Christmas tree plantations) to keep our ears warm.
Also, they make documenting our annual tree hunting much more fun!
Cutting the tree usually isn't a problem. Except when my dad decides to bring his 'awesome Japanese saw' instead of a regular one. Turns out it's pretty tricky to use and he won't tell us his secret technique - thus, after about 5 minutes of frantic sawing, my mom gave up and let my dad do the man's job. 15 seconds later and the tree was cut off. I didn't even get a chance to take a picture because everything happened so fast!
I had to give up my comfortable and fun role as a photographer to help carry the tree to the car. But my mom did a great job taking over my camera.
Right next to the entrance, I saw cute little trees. I couldn't resist and had to get one! Isn't it adorable? It's currently sitting on my kitchen floor where it's been suspiciously examined by Lina. After the holiday season, I'll replant it in my garden so I don't have to worry about getting another tree next year (nor the following years...).
Next, we'll get to put my parent's tree up in their living room and decorate it. Oh and I planned to knit some tiny Julekuler for my baby tree!
Do you have tree traditions? Do you have a tree at all? Is yours already up?
