"Oh, Christmas Tree, Oh, Christmas Tree"...WHERE ARE YOU?!

We set out on our quest to find the perfect Christmas tree for our family this year on Friday, December 11, 2009.  We had no idea all that this journey would hold for us, the adventures on which we would embark, the discoveries that we would make.

Well, it probably wasn't quite that dramatic, but it did take a little longer than any of us anticipated!  Here is our story, in pictures and a few words...

We began at Home Depot...and the kids were just as excited about the horses and carriages that were using the parking lot as a home base as they were about getting a Christmas tree.

Once we entered the tree yard, it was hard to tell what these trees were really like.  They were either wrapped up in twine, or lying down on their sides.

How about this one?

Well...maybe we'll look for one a little bigger than that!

Aaand of course someone has to go potty...any guesses as to who?

(Sorry about the blur...I was trying to figure out the best setting on which to take pictures since it was dark and had passed the camera over to Mike.  It's not his fault.)

We decided that we would check out Lowe's across the street.

So, on to place number two.  They have "Fresh-Cut Christmas Trees"...that's promising!

They were fine, but a little on the small side, so we decided to check out one more place that a friend had told us about.

It was very dark by now, and dinner time.  We were driving separately (I had already loaded the kids up in the van, and Mike drove into our driveway and said,"The truck makes sense for a Christmas tree."  So we drove two vehicles.) and when I pulled into the parking lot of this third location, Mike walked over to the car and I rolled down the window.  "You guys...this is the place we want to buy our tree!" he said.  He paused and then continued,"But it's closed."  I think we all groaned.  We decided to go out to eat dinner, then head home, and then try again in the morning.

It was actually after noon by the time we headed out.

This time we left all together.  This is what Eliana thought about riding in Daddy's truck.

It is a pretty sweet ride.

Our destination...a nursery, and we thought we had hit the jackpot.  What we discovered, however, was that we needed to actually hit the jackpot in order to buy a tree here.  The lowest price we saw was $199, and the highest we saw was $695.  They probably had trees higher than that, but we stopped looking.

Eliana was so sure that this little guy was coming home with her.   She said,"This mine!"  She says that a lot these days.  I tell you what, she has the two-year-old thing down pat!

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."

I couldn't resist.

All right.  We decided soon enough that this was not the place for us to get our tree.  We got back on the road without any real clue where we were headed, and told the kids to look for trees.  As we immediately passed several trees in yards and along the side of the road, you know, actually growing in their spots, Christian of course said,"Tree...tree...tree...tree...tree..."  We clarified.  "Christmas trees for sale."

Finally we saw a giant blown-up snowman (and when I say giant, think along the lines of Macy's Day Parade floats) next to a crane holding two fir trees up in the air.  I thought that looked like it might be a place where we could find some Christmas trees!  (Yes, that's me-Sherlock Holmes.)

This Christmas tree search was proving to be exhausting.

But we forged on.

Here was a beautiful tree...

Let's check the tag...

Well...that is a bit high for the Walkers. 

But wait!  What is that I hear?  Such heavenly music...and I see a ray of light shining down upon a lone tree...

The kids went running and yelling,"This is the perfect tree!  We found the perfect tree!"

We all checked it out, and it was a good looking tree and definitely less than $400.  Bonus!

The kids urged us to go tell the folks up at the front right away, before someone came and took our tree!  They were very worried about this.

But we were triumphant in claiming this perfect specimen of fir tree fit for Christmas ornaments and lights like no other tree we had seen!

And we drove it home, brought it inside, and began stringing the lights.  Eliana was beside herself!

The kids had a very good time putting lights on this tree, and once it was inside we were so glad that this was the one we ended up with.  It fits just right.  It's lovely.

And this child is just a goose.  That's all I have to say about her.

A goose.

It got a bit late, and so we'll have to finish decorating tomorrow.  I can't wait.  I love hanging ornaments, and it's so much fun to watch the kids have such a good time making the tree pretty, making it ours.