As has been our tradition off and on for a number of years, Jenn and I spent Saturday afternoon with my parents and the boys trying to find the perfect Christmas tree for 2012.  We didn’t find it.  Mostly due to improper planning and standard nap times, we didn’t arrive at Bob’s Christmas Tree farm until 3:45 and it closed at 5.  Truth is though, it was about twenty seven degrees below zero and there wasn’t a really nice tree to be seen.  Perhaps we didn’t give it enough time, though my frozen fingers were telling me otherwise, but there were a ton of really beautiful three foot trees but, like with all these places, you pay the same flat rate whether the tree is 3 feet or 300 feet, so needless to say we were disappointed.  Then, my mother saved the day.

From out of nowhere she found a suitable tree. I say suitable because my dad had to go Edward Scissor-hands on the tree in order to get it to a point where it could be brought home.  It’s a nice looking tree.  Worth $45 when you could buy one of those pre-cut trees for $20?  Probably not…. except when you saw Ryan’s face
after the tree came crashing to the ground (with his help of course.)  A proud moment for our little hero and a glimpse into how my parents taught me to see the big picture.  That tree will have much more than $45 worth of value this season with the memories from today behind them.