Gather up the entire family and head out to a local tree farm for an afternoon of adult pretend play – you get to be a lumberjack, free with the purchase of any cut-your-own tree!
This activity is loads of fun and far more interesting then heading over to a beer distributor or supermarket parking lot to buy a tree that has been leaning against a rack or laying on the ground for days, maybe weeks.
It is also a wonderful outdoor experience that is bound to turn into a yearly tradition.
Simply open up your local yellow pages and search tree farm. There are sure to be some within an hour or so drive, and depending on your locale there may be one right around the corner. Upon arrival you will, in all likelihood, be provided with a handsaw, and that is the only tool you will need for this Christmas adventure. You should be given the opportunity to drive or walk into the patch of trees and that is when the fun begins!
Some things to consider before heading out on the road:
1) How high are your ceilings?
2) Does your tree stand add significant height to your total size of the tree?
3) The trees are not planted or arranged by size, of course, so determine the relationship between the tallest member of your family to the height of the room where the tree will reside. Then force this tall individual to stand next to each candidate to eyeball the approximate bigness of the Christmas trees.
4) Rubber soled shoes/boots should be in order.
5) Stumps will be in play. Naturally, every tree farm will have seen some sawing before your family’s arrival and that means pesky stumps lying about. Give a heads-up to the bigger kids before they run off and make sure to hold your little ones hand as you peruse the fields together.
A few things you should not need to have with you (it would be a good idea to call ahead and be sure that your tree farm will indeed provide the following):
1) A Saw
2) Rope (to tie the tree to your roof)
3) Hot chocolate/cookies (your family may get a little treat out of the deal as well!)
You will most likely find that the following is true:
1) The price of the tree will be less than that of a pre-cut equivalent. After all, you are buying directly from the source.
2) Your tree will be fresher and last longer.
3) You kids will be far more engaged, running between trees, playing hide and seek, assisting in the search for the perfect one.
4) You will enjoy using a saw, especially if you do not often find yourself in business with one.
5) Lying on a cold, damp ground, half under an evergreen will feel much better than it sounds.
This writer cut his first tree down last year. It was also the first time there was a saw in his hand. The tree, upon being separated from its trunk, slowly fell straight on the back of this make-believe lumberjack. The daughter of the man responsible for this fallen tree, then 1-1/2 years old, was bundled up in her stroller 10 yards from the tree laughing hysterically with her mother. She still talks, and occasionally sings, about that day.
Cutting down your own Christmas tree will never be boring and it may just lead to a hilarious anecdote you can retell over eggnog at Aunt Bertha’s house this year.