♫ Oh Christmas Tree ♫

As tradition rules in our house, we always go get a REAL tree. By "go get" I mean we either go cut one down or just go to a lot and pick out one. I have been trying to break this tradition for many years. I know, that sounds like blasphemy coming from the Tradition Queen and all, but the only advantage I see of a real tree is the smell. When I brought it up again this year, the boys all groaned and said we have to have a real one or it just wouldn't be the same. Now if we were still cutting our own down like we did for many years, I could see it. But as it is now, we just go into a lot and try and find the best tall one they have.

Most years it is so bitterly cold that I just say to yes to the first one that doesn't resemble Charlie Brown's too bad. This year the pickin's were more than slim. So were the trees for that matter. The lot we ALWAYS get our tree at had nothing! Well, at least nothing worth writing home about. I was very disappointed. There wasn't even one tree I could settle on. Good thing it wasn't bitterly cold this year or I probably would have. We left and tried another lot. Thankfully they had ONE, and I mean ONE, that was acceptable. Nothing compared to our trees in years past, but acceptable.

Here are the boys doing their part in choosing the tree. Yes, Christmas Tree Lot Wrestling is a sport.

We loaded up the tree on the SUV and headed for Village Inn. That is the part of the tradition I think the boys like the best...the heading for Village Inn part.

We have been doing this for at least 15 years now. Get the tree. Go eat at Village Inn. Order Hot Chocolate. Shake head while boys act like bangees while waiting for the food. Stop boys from acting like bangees long enough for the waitress to take our traditional Village Inn family photo.

Smile. Teach waitress how to operate a digital camera. Eat food. Go home. Unload tree. Leave tree in garage until can find time to actually decorate it. When find time to decorate it, murmur- murmur- murmur about what a pain in the kiester putting lights on are each year and how nice it would be to have an artificial pre-lit one. Dave and boys keep untangling lights and wrapping them around tree. For some reason they are not the ones murmuring. Haul out of storage our two brazillion ornaments. Add them to tree without breaking too many. Risk life and limb of one of the boys in order to add ornaments and star to the top - 16 feet high. Sit back and gaze at the beautiful sight. Sorry no photos of that yet, since it hasn't yet happened! But it will... I keep telling myself, but it will.