oh christmas tree.

Posted on | December 2, 2010 | 40 Comments

in our 4 years of marriage, Scot and i have never had a real tree at christmas. we got a pre-lit faux tree our first christmas and have happily put it up every year. well, me happily, Scot maybe not so much. both of us grew up on real trees but while i loved the ease and un-messyness of the fake kind, he missed the smell and tradition of the real guys.

we agreed this year that we’d get the real deal. he promised to water it. saying no to a 27 year old 5 year old is nearly impossible. so this evening, off we went. caramel apple cider in hand, cash in pocket, unreasonably adorable tree-picking buddy by our side.

we found a beaut. a nice, fluffy douglas fir. you know what’s funny about tree lots? you can’t tell the girth or giantness of trees when they are outdoors amongst other trees. nope. it’s not until you get it home that you realize you just bought a tree wildly inappropriately sized for your tiny house. and you get kinda worried that you’ve made the wrong decision. and if you’re me, you gaze upon the carpet scattered with needles and you cringe. and you look at your 2 year old picking up the needles and laughing, and the cat looking at the tree a little too long and you really miss that tree in the box in the garage all of a sudden.

but then you look at your husband, and he looks like a golden retriever  – happy, tail wagging, light beaming from his eyes (if he had a tail, it would have been wagging. logistics). and you see your kid light up, too. and suddenly you forget all about that old fakie.

oh giant needly tree – you had me at hello.
you had me at hello!

Category: extreme happiness, family, firsts, just plain cute, nugget, rediculously cute hats, Scot, the haps

Comments

  • Kate

    Those fat suckers will get you every time. The trick is to use your body as a measurement when you’re out looking at the trees. Get a sense of the width of the space with your arms and figure out how much taller (or shorter) than you the tree should be.

    My mother in particular is terrible at judging the size of trees. One year when she went without me we actually had to cut off about 3 feet from the bottom of the tree to get it to stand up. This year she thought the 8 foot tall and 6 foot in diameter tree my husband and I choose was “much too small” when we were on the lot. Thank goodness she just gets a little 4 foot tree to put on top of the table these days so I can trust her by herself :)

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:11 pm

    good tip! it’s sooo hard to judge in the outdoors.

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  • http://baby-to-go.blogspot.com/ harmskills @ Baby To Go

    beautiful tree. we still have our fake one (3rd year so great investment) i love the smell but hate picking up needles all year long.
    harmskills @ Baby To Go´s last [type] ..Thanksgiving Week Eating

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  • Rebekah

    Looks great! I have a fondness for real trees myself, but we just don’t have the space.

    Also, do I spy Mr. and Mrs. Claus from Opal? =)

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:11 pm

    ha, yes! they need to be displayed until someone buys them – so adorable!

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  • http://www.gjmoorhead.blogspot.com Gina

    Perfect tree, my dear. Lovely shape and all.

    My fakie just is NOT cutting it anymore. And we have an entire “round” of pre-lit lights that died on us. I refuse to wrestle with the tree to untangle/cut the lights off of the tree, so we may opt for the real thing next year.

    And I’m loving the coats that you two lovely ladies are sporting. Red and purple …. LOVE.

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:13 pm

    i highly recommend the real thing. it was so fun!

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  • http://www.beautynthebanker.blogspot.com Beauty&theBanker

    You tree looks great! And your kiddo is adorable all bundled up!
    Beauty&theBanker´s last [type] ..O Christmas Tree

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:13 pm

    thanks! i thought she looked adorable too!

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  • http://www.littleelle.com elle

    “saying no to a 27 year old 5 year old is nearly impossible” – you’re so funny!

    your family is ridiculously cute, and the christmas tree looks AWESOME.

    xx
    elle´s last [type] ..epiphany

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:14 pm

    it’s true though! christmas turns him into a little kid. i do love it though.

    xoxo lady!

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  • http://www.parentinginprogress.com mae

    Loving the tree. Isn’t he so gorgeous and fluffy! Real Trees RULE!
    mae´s last [type] ..Meal Planning Monday… yeah about that

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  • http://unpolishedparenting.blogspot.com D

    Beautiful!!! We still have a tiny (fake) christmas tree from our tiny apartment days. We didn’t plan ahead last year and get a new one for cheap, so now we have to put up the Charlie Brown Christmas tree and wait for the end of the year sales to get a new one. The fresh ones look great but I just cant bring myself to getting one.
    D´s last [type] ..Life is pretty Amazing

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  • http://hibabyblog.com melissa devine

    love it! you should link it up on my ‘what’s on your christmas tree :) http://www.hibabyblog.com/2010/11/whats-on-your-tree-heres-mine.html

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  • http://www.orangegirlbigworld.blogspot.com Nani

    Your tree looks awesome! I love real tree’s we grew up with mostly fake ones until I couldn’t take it anymore and rioted for a real one. So here we are with a real tree. it is a b to vacuum the needles but it’s worth it.

    Harper looks so cute in her little pea coat~~
    Nani´s last [type] ..Wordlessish Wednesday- The past few days

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  • http://fishesplusfry.blogspot.com/ Mama Fisch

    I INSIST that we get a real tree every year and my scrooge of a husband obliges because he does not want to hear me complain. We literally go to the grocery store parking lot where a tree farmer from Wisconsin sets up shot in the back corner. It’s a weird way people get trees in a big city. But, I digress. Anyways, I always tell people that there is just something magical about doing it. And I can’t wait to do it this weekend. Your tree is gorgeous!
    Mama Fisch´s last [type] ..Thankful on a Thursday- Chocolate Chip Cookie Style

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  • http://www.law-momma.com Law Momma

    Just gorgeous!!! We, too, have a real tree and it makes me wag MY tail. You know, if I had one.

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  • http://mommypanda.wordpress.com Colleen

    PICKLE ORNAMENT!
    Colleen´s last [type] ..Walk to Afghanistan

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:16 pm

    oh heck yes!

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  • http://arms-wide-open.squarespace.com Grace @ Arms Wide Open

    i’m an oregon girl so a real tree is a MUST! love it!
    Grace @ Arms Wide Open´s last [type] ..wordless wednesday- friendship

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  • http://www.blendedsosplendid.blogspot.com Hesper

    Oh man, she is too cute. The tree is great! We have a fake one and I haven’t had a real one since I was probably in elementary school and we lived in Colorado where we’d go and cut it down ourselves! Since having Haeden and a small house, we got a 4 foot tree last year and I’m afraid to put it up this year. I think Haeden will pull it down onto his head at least once before the holidays are over. How’s Harper with these things?

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:17 pm

    so far she has taken a few ornaments off, just put safe ones towards the bottom. we are teaching her it’s only to look at, and she is doing pretty well. also, we’ve anchored to the wall.

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  • http://thehillmanfam.blogspot.com jenn h

    Your tree is beautiful! I love the photo of all three of you, would make a good christmas card. So cute!
    jenn h´s last [type] ..The Candy Cane Thief

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  • GG

    Your tree is beautiful! You were able to make it fit, and I don’t see any needles!

    I’ll be working on mine tonight. It’s so pretty! Thanks for letting me tag along. Hope mine looks as good as yours!

    GG

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:18 pm

    ha, i vacuumed up all the needles – you saw it, it was needle city in here! thanks for coming mom! can’t wait to see yours tomorrow.
    love you!

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  • http://beforethebabywakes.com Alexandria

    I love real Christmas trees and I never really knew how much I loved them until my husband and I bought our first together for our apartment. And then I really realized how much I loved real trees last year when Phoenix at 16 months old would stare mesmerized at it. This year I think with him is going to be even more exciting! And the huge Douglas Fir’s are my favorites!
    Alexandria´s last [type] ..The angry fish

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:19 pm

    i don’t think there is any going back from here! it smells so good!

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  • Katie

    The christmas tree is Beautiful! Very worth the time and effort.:) Getting that tree every year is a very awesome holiday memory/tradition. This is my first comment on your blog but I’ve been along for the ride for a year now! You rock!:)

    p.s.: our golden retriever (real deal) was exactly as you described when we brought our tree home….mmmm a big chew toy….

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:20 pm

    a YEAR?! thanks for saying hello! so awesome.

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  • http://thecolorfulmom.com The Colorful Mom

    LOL. This reminds me of the tree’s we used to get. I loved those big fat tree’s! Now, we get the tallest tree we can find.

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  • http://blog.magnolia-queen.com/ Whitney

    It’s gorgeous, and only slightly intimidating! ;)

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  • http://www.alittlebarefoot.wordpress.com jen @ a little barefoot blog

    Beautiful tree! It’s so worth the trouble.

    we did just the opposite this year. I always insist on a real tree, my husband could probably take or leave the whole business. But this year we’re traveling for the actual holiday so I bought the crappiest fake tree EVAH. $20 at target. but it’s there and it’s sorta cheery and it does the trick.

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:20 pm

    if we were traveling, i’d totally go the faux route. just makes more sense!

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  • http://hialissa.com alissa

    oh hello, best pictures ever!!
    alissa´s last [type] ..too young

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    mandy Reply:
    December 3rd, 2010 at 1:21 pm

    haha! thanks lady. it was so fun.

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  • http://bottlechronicles.com jess; [the bottle chronicles]

    beautiful tree!
    I’d love to get a real one next year :)
    jess; [the bottle chronicles]´s last [type] ..Our Inspiration- Our Muse

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  • http://www.postcardsfromparenthood.com Eliza

    We have a fake one and I love it. I break out in a rash if I try to decorate a live tree.

    Your tree is gorgeous!!! And seeing your husband so happy is totally worth it, I’m sure!

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  • http://www.jereandallyson.blogspot.com Allyson

    She (the tree) is quite lovely. I grew up on real trees as well, and DO love the smell. However, for me in my life…I don’t miss the fire fear, the needles all over and having to put lights on said tree. Oh wait, my Dad did that, but still, you know what I mean. Plus, real trees are soooo expensive. So, I fear I will never get that glorious scent wafting through my house. BUT, for you I am glad that you have a big beautiful tree making your home a beautiful Christmas wonderland.
    Allyson´s last [type] ..What wood you do

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  • megan

    your tree looks great! we went yesterday with my family to a xmas tree farm & each couple picked & chopped them down. well i watched while i held my 1yr old daughter, lol. thn hot cocoa. such a fun tradition!! ps: your family is adorable!!!
    merry christmas!
    xo

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  • http://www.misselaineouslife.com Elaine

    Who cares if the star almost touches the ceiling (it does, right?), it’s gorgeous!

    I kinda wish we could do a real one one of these days…

    These photos are all wonderful. :)
    Elaine´s last [type] ..14 Months of K

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