Last year I wasn't sure if Robby would continue believe in Santa. With him in school, I know that older kids can quickly squelch the innocence of the younger ones. I can't begin to explain how happy I am that I have at least one more year to enjoy this magical season, and I plan on making the most of every aspect!
We're only a few days past Thanksgiving, but it is already beginning to look a lot like Christmas in our house. The first few batches of Christmas cookies have already been baked- and enjoyed. The DVD's have been swapped, exchanging CARS and Ghostbusters for Rudolph and The Grinch.
Because we are going on a week-long cruise next week, I had every intention of keeping my decoration to a minimum. After all, it seemed illogical to invest a lot of time and energy into putting out lights and decking the halls when we are going to miss 20% of the season. Logic apparently went out with the turkey carcass on Thanksgiving because my house is beginning to resemble the North Pole!
Since Scott's football viewing schedule didn't commence until 1:00 yesterday, I pounced on the opportunity to get our tree. Robby didn't take much convincing to bundle up and drive to the tree farm. Scott required a little more cajoling, but he quickly got into the holiday spirit when he realized that my invitation was more of a directive than a question.
Singing Christmas carols and talking about our wish lists, the hour-long drive to the tree farm passed quickly. As soon as we arrived, Robby grabbed a wagon and saw and immediately took off towards the tree field. He spotted what he swore to be "the most perfect tree in the whole world" from the road. Although we tried to encourage him to look at other trees, he was convinced that he found the best one. In retrospect, I think that he just wanted to start sawing! Scott and I acquiesced, agreed that it was a nice tree, and "helped" him cut it down. It took us 60 minutes to drive to the tree farm but we were only there for thirty minutes, twenty of which were spent wrapping and tying the tree to our roof.
I wish we had invested at least as much time in tree selection as we did in driving to the field. Although we tried, we simply cannot get the tree to stand straight. It looks like a coniferous leaning tower and is precariously propped in its base with a series of stones and bricks. I'm hoping that Charlie Cat is not interested in what is essentially a cat playground because I'm fairly certain it will tip over when bumped.
After the tree was propped and wedged in the base, I went about the task of stringing the lights. This is when I realized that the branches were not adorned with tiny pine cones. Instead, they were covered with cocoons of an unidentified insect. It took me nearly 45 minutes to ferret them out, significantly compromising the fullness of the tree. I decided to fill in the gaps with handfuls of Christmas lights.
Despite the imperfections, our tree is beautiful. In many ways it is perfect fit for our family. It doesn't stand completely straight, it is riddled with holes and I'm sure it is home to at least a few more cocoons. (Hopefully nothing will be tricked into hatching early because of the warmth of the house.) I'm hoping to take a cue from our Christmas tree. It does not have to be perfect to be beautiful just as our holiday season doesn't have to go without a hitch to be successful. I'm going to try to stay both relaxed and in the moment this year!
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