This holiday season is looking to be the one that starts a whole slew of new traditions. This would be our very first real tree. I have never, to my memory, ever had a real tree in my 30 years. It’s just not something we did. I’ve longed for one these last few years, and this year with having the baby it felt like the perfect thing to make into a new tradition. And when I say it felt like the perfect thing I mean that we were at the local home improvement store and I started having a meltdown because I felt like the artificial tree I put up Friday wasn’t good enough and because I want Declan to grow up having a real tree as part of his holiday (because there’s a large part of me that wishes my parents did real trees instead of fake). The cute family of 4 next to us didn’t help, with the dad telling his daughter to pick one out and she excitedly jumped and pointed and yelled “THAT ONE!” I swear this baby has made my Grinch heart grow three sizes.
I don’t even know if I’m doing this real tree thing right. It’s in water, and seems stable… and I hung a few leftover ornaments on it (but they’re not permanent… I’m feeling the need for some handmade lovelies on this). I strung up some lights but I need an extension cord – the tree can either be where I want it, or it can be lit, but it can’t be both! I didn’t have anything to cut a slice off the bottom of the tree before we put it up so I’m going to have to try to remember to cut a piece off after we take it down. One of my friends made her son’s first holiday ornament with a slice of the bottom of his first tree and it’s heart-meltingly cute. I mean, what’s more sweet than a piece of the baby’s very first tree?! Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
