Our First Christmas Tree

We put up our first Christmas tree on Sunday.

What a magical feeling; it was straight out of a movie: Matt and I rumbling down the winding road in my red pickup truck, pulling into the tree lot, picking through the trees until we found that perfect tree and then gleefully packing it up to take home. Well, that might be the slightly embellished version...

In actuality, Matt and I drove down to WalMart off Fallbrook, in the middle of mega-chainstore-mall and bought the best tree we could find in the $19.95 section. We then ran through the store trying to find all the things we would need before the store closed: $6 tree stand, $10 tree skirt, $10 worth of ornaments, etc. Fifteen minutes later we emerged victorious, ready to set up our first tree as a couple.

While I made Mulled Wine, Matt worked outside to saw off the bottom of the trunk with the smallest, most pathetic hand saw I've ever seen. Then Marsh, Matt and I sat on the floor and attempted to get the tree to stand straight in our $6 tree stand. Twenty minutes of "a little to the left" "No, wait, to the right" "No, that's not right either" later, our 4 foot Noble lived up to its name.

Situated in the corner of our living room, our little tree captivates any audience. The carefully selected red, white and blue ornaments hang amidst the little white lights while the gold star sits proudly at the top.

And Marsh curls up quietly on the cozy tree skirt, contentedly wondering why, on earth, is there a tree in our living room?