Picking a Christmas Tree

I know, I know, it is March and I'm posting about Christmas trees.  I hope to get all of the stuff we did in December posted before Easter.  HOPE.

For the past two years Lilly, a member of the church, has gone with us to get a tree.  Both times it wasn't planned, but we should probably make it a tradition.  It's fun having her along.  This year her brother came and he was a big help.

 The boys are searching for the perfect tree.  I don't do too much during this process.  I lost this battle a long time ago.

 This "lovely" looking tree was the winner.

 Each boy got a chance to do some cutting.

 This kid scares me the most with a sharp object.

 Steven helped carry this heavy tree to the car.  Then Hans and Steven hung out the doors of the minivan holding the tree all the way to the bailing station.  Hans groaned every time we hit a bump.  This made me laugh so hard and cause me to hit even more little holes.

 When we got home we had to cut an additional 2 feet off of the bottom.  It still touched the ceiling and I couldn't put on the star.  But Hans and the boys loved the tree.

I was hoping it would look better decorated.  No such luck.

Decorating the Tree

This is the second year of our tradition of heading to Zionsville for Solveig's birthday.  The boys helped her decorate the tree and we exchanged presents.

 Solveig is very brave and lets the boys handle the breakables.  They are truly breakable as Anders did indeed break one.

 The boys were better this year about spreading the ornaments around.  But there were still clusters of ornaments at the bottom.

 Grandma and her Fiene boys!

 Grandpa kept the troops entertained while Grandma and I prepared for the giving of presents.  This was no easy job, but Grandpa handled it very well.

 The boys got sleeping bags and Gus was ECSTATIC to get a Spider-Man one.  He has slept with it every night since then.

Our Christmas Tree

Somehow I was able to convince the boys that we needed a more normal sized tree this year.  Last year our tree was ridiculous! When it came time to pick out a tree the boys were constantly reminding their dad not to get something too big.  Hans was not amused.

 We also had some teens from church join us for the event and they helped convince Hans that the tree should be smaller.  He doesn't like listening to reason when it comes to the size of a Christmas tree.

 Eventually we settled on a normal sized tree.  Hans was very happy we had two strapping young men there to do his work for him...um, I mean with him.

 John and Anders liked watching.  Anders was fast asleep in the car.

After we were done cutting it down, Hans was again grateful for young people.  Even if they were on my side about the size of our tree.

Three Boys Under a Tree

Since I had the kids already dressed nicely for John's school program, I decided to grabs some pictures of the three of them.  The boys wanted to lay under the tree.  And, in case you didn't read my earlier post about our tree, it was humongous.  The boys were able to lay on their bellies under the tree and not even come close to touching the trunk.

 I have a ton of pictures of Gus watching John.  It is only fitting that Anders watches Gus.

 But, this is what happens when one kids watches another...

 Anders decided to take it to the next step and be funny.

 No to be outdone, Gus decided to start screaming.

 Anders followed shortly therafter.

They all look bored, but they are all looking at the camera.

Our Gigantic Tree

We decided to cut down a tree again this year.  I guess it is now a tradition.  Although after this year it will probably be a tradition carried out by the boys and me.  We will leave Hans the Obnoxiously Giant Tree Hunter at home.

This year we went to Tammen Treeberry Farm.  This place was great for a couple reasons, but mainly because it was so efficient.  I love efficient places.  When you drove in, you were given a map and a saw.  Then you could just drive your car around the the land, cut down your selected tree and drive away. $50 got you any size tree you wanted, so Hans took full advantage of that.  We drove around to find a tree, seeing a good number of "normal" looking trees, when Hans spotted this one...

It's really hard to tell from this picture, but this tree is about 10 feet tall and 6 feet around.  I said "NO. Absolutely not!  It will not fit in our house."  After a few minutes of arguing about this, he gave up and started looking for another tree.  Thinking I had won the battle, I was feeling confident that we would be taking home a normal-sized tree.  Then Hans found this one...

and started cutting it down before I could even walk over to see it.  For the first time in our marriage he put his foot down.  OVER  A TREE!!  This tree is a mere 6 1/2 feet tall, but is also about 7 feet around.  It is a bush.  It looks ridiculous.

 The boys showed moral support while their dad cut down this beast of a bush.

 Hans even cut himself a bit while doing all of this.  Ask me how sympathetic I was.

 The boys got bored waiting for their dad to finish cutting down the big green thing and started to play in the dirt.

The boys and their tree.

We got the tree safely home (darn it!), and in our living room.  It takes up almost the whole room.  The boys have enjoyed laying under it to look at the "stars" and Fritz has enjoyed chewing on the branches.  Me?  I'm waiting until I can haul that green monster to the curb.

Trimming the Tree

My in-laws requested that we make a visit to Indiana so the boys could help them trim the tree.  Solveig had Eva and Machara help her last year, but it was up to the boys to help decorate Grandma and Grandpa's tree.

 I was becoming a little bit of a Nervous Nelly as the boys were reaching for all of the glass ornaments.  I wanted at least some of the ornaments to make it through the decorating process.

 There was a beautiful cluster of ornaments at the bottom of the tree.  Kids have no concept of reaching higher.  But that is okay because I'm positive we would have lost more ornaments that way.

The tree turned out nicely and the boys had a wonderful time.

Douglas the Tree

I love living up north, especially when it comes to Christmas trees.  We were never able to have live Christmas trees in our home because my dad and I were allergic to them.  And a pastor can't be sick and lose his voice during the Christmas season.  When Hans and I got married and moved to Indiana, we got a live tree for our first Christmas together.  We actually cut down our own tree.  For the first time in my life I actually didn't get sick.  I think it is the mold that grows on the trees when they are being shipped down to Texas that causes my allergies.

Last year we were "living" in a hotel for Christmas so getting a tree wasn't an option.  The boys actually opened their presents underneath the tree in the hotel lobby.  This year we decided to start the tradition of cutting down our own tree.  So we packed up the family and drove a whole 8.13 miles to the nearest tree farm.  I knew we were going to get a tree and yet I forgot the camera.  Where is my head?  At least I remembered to bring the kids.  I did have my phone so I was able to capture a few pictures.

We walked around the muddy, muddy farm on the lookout for the perfect tree to bring home.  I knew I wanted a Douglas Fir since they have softer needles and don't shed as much.  The first tree Hans and I ever bought was a Spruce and it was absolutely beautiful.  It also shed virtually all of its needles by the time we took it down.  I don't really feel like stepping on pine needles for the next few weeks.

We finally found the area with Douglas Firs and, low and behold, we found a beauty.  John must have heard us asking where the Douglas Firs were, so when Hans asked him what the tree's name should be, John quickly replied, "Douglas".  It is not a Christmas tree.  It is Douglas.  John tells everyone he sees about Douglas and asks if they want to come over to see him.  I'm kind of afraid I will emotionally scar the boy when he sees Douglas sitting on the curb come January 1.

  We just found Douglas and are waiting for Hans to find a saw to cut him down.  Gus is not at all impressed.

 Let the cutting begin! 

 Cutting the tree is "man's work" apparently.  I have no problem with this, but this man decided to wear his nice pea-coat (or 'pea-standing-up-coat', as he likes to call it) and then lay on the muddy ground.

So Douglas is now in our home.  He fills the house with the wonderful aroma of pine and is adorned with 500 lights and what seems like 50,000 ornaments.  Douglas also serves as a fun new toy for Fritz and Anders.  I don't think I've ever felt sorrier for a tree.