In Search of a Tree

Since we've resolved to actually get our Christmas stuff done early (or earlier) this year, we took Max and Molly out to find a Christmas tree yesterday. I think this makes the first time we've had a tree more than a week before Christmas ... yay, us! It was really cold (low 20s), so I bundled up the kids like Randy in A Christmas Story. They might have been wider than they were tall, but at least they were warm! Happily, it has snowed the night before, so we had just enough snow on the ground to make everything extra Christmas-y.

The nursery had some pygmy goats and a calf that the kids could visit with -- Max and Molly were thrilled to say the least. Max stared chatting the baby cow up ("Hi buddy! How are you?"), while Molly started singing the Wiggles "I'm a Cow" song to it (complete with the appropriate hand movements). The calf much have enjoyed our company, because he started lowing when we left, to the kids' great delight.

As we made our way over to the tree lot, we quickly discovered that the selection of trees is much better if you start looking more than three days before Christmas. No Charlie Brown tree for us this year! The kids were fascinated by all the Christmas trees and it didn't take us long to find the perfect one. While Dad staked out the tree and later helped tie it to the car, Max, Molly, and I ran around the nursery and oohed and aahed at all the Christmas decorations (and I think I said, "Just look, don't TOUCH" about 2,384 times ;).

The highlight of the trip was that Santa Claus was also at the nursery! The kids spotted him from across the room, shrieked "Santa!!!," and ran to him with open arms. Max chatted Santa up, as per usual, while Molly just kind of sat there and stared (I promise they aren't as traumatized as they look). Of course, the fact that Santa gave them each a candy cane as they were leaving endeared him to them forever.

We set the tree up in the living room and Max immediately wanted to know where the tree lights and the "Christmas tree toys" (ornaments) were. He even remember which light switch we used last year to turn the tree on and off. Hopefully he can wait a couple of days, because we're not planning to trim the tree until Sunday.