O Christmas Tree

We often head out to Mother Earth Gardens the day after Thanksgiving to buy our Christmas tree. We walk into the lot full of excitement and Christmas spirit and leave an hour later exhausted and at one with Ebenezer Scrooge. This is why:

The lone tree that occupies that eensy weensy little sliver of overlap is very difficult to find. It can take an hour which may not seem like much time but there are probably only 50 or 60 trees on display at any one time. Miguel finds the tree he cannot live without which is, shockingly, not the tree that Zeca cannot live without and Luisa and I find issues with both. We go from tree to tree to tree and it is excruciating. Last year, we added a wreath to the mix and the kids couldn't agree on one and had it out in front of all of the happy holiday patrons. The use of birth control went up dramatically in Minneapolis as a result of the spectacle. 

So, it was with some trepidation that we headed out for a tree today. The kids were excited and asked if we could get a wreath because they have the memories of gnats and did not recall the Wreath Smackdown of 2009. We were non-committal. "We'll see how things go..." We arrived and Miguel ran to a tree and said, "How about this one?" Zeca ran to another one and said, "How about this one?" and so it began. Tree to tree. But then, something strange happened, we all agreed on a single tree within 15 minutes. Everyone agreed that this one particular tree was tall enough, full enough and adorable enough to come home with us. We were so shocked by the peaceful agreement that we were caught off-guard when they asked for a wreath. Miguel ran to the wreaths and picked out a simple one with a single red bow. Zeca picked out the gaudiest wreath there - one with gold balls all over it and a pink and green polka dotted bow. We vetoed that one and then something very strange happened - she agreed with Miguel's choice. His draw dropped. Mine might have too but I'm not sure because I quickly snatched up the wreath and ran in to pay for it before anyone had a change of heart and started a wrestling match in the parking lot. When I came back out, the tree was on the car and everyone was smiling and ready to go. No arguments. No tears. No waving of fists and screeches of dissent. We simply got in the car and drove home. It was a Christmas miracle!