Shipwrecked!: Day 2: Hey Griswold, Where You Going To Put A Tree That Big?

I have a confession to make. It's a big one.

We got a fake Christmas tree this year. For the first time ever.

*Gasp!* *Shock!* *Horror!*

Forgive me Father, for I have sinned.

Look, live Christmas trees while living in Washington State is a no brainer. The trees are like, actually alive, and green and lush and full and beautiful and last forever.

In California, where there's been a drought since, forever, and fir trees aren't actually created to exist in such a geographical part of the world, you struggle to find a tree that isn't short or skimpy, or completely and totally dead on one side. And then once you do find some lame booby prize of a tree and cut it down, it might live 4 or 5 days. Might. Then you spend the rest of the holiday season siting on your sofa staring suspiciously at your Christmas tree waiting for that fateful moment where your tree just spontaneously combusts right in front of your very eyes.

So, we took the stress away this year and bought a really, really, nice fake tre. And we stuffed it with smelly pine sticks and it looks real enough I actually went to water it the other day. And then we put a motorized Disney World Monorail around it. Because OBVIOUSLY.

Our totally real tree. Okay fine it's fake, don't tell Olaf.

Who needs a train around your tree when you can have a MONORAIL

Great fake treeness aside, we were already missing out on our tradition-since-forever of taking the whole family to the tree farm and cutting down a tree.

SOooooo, since we don't have enough decorations up inside and out, we decided that we'd go to the tree farm this year and cut down a little tree, to put on the landing of our stairs (for no other reason than we legit don't have room anywhere else). The kids get to pick the lights and the ornaments and do whatever they want to do with it.

Today was tree farm day! We went to one of the farms we visited last year in Sebastapol, a cute little place with a good sized hill full of fir trees. The kids ran up the hill and had no trouble finding lots of good candidates for our stairs. Finding little fir trees that are alive is easy.

Tree candidate #1 (not selected)

Calen liked the "blue" trees (too fluffy)

I don't think that one will fit on the stairs, Cam

We have a winner! Sonic joined us today too and had to be hipster like the boys

Brad and the boys cut it down and Calen carried the tree by himself down the hill to the car. Then we picked out a live wreath for our front door and called it good.

Also let it be known that Camden insisted on wearing his suspenders and bow tie to the tree farm. Insisted! Who am I to say no.

When we got home, I strategically placed the little tree in the back yard for the kids to decorate. For a photo opportunity, of course! The boys decorated the tree exactly how they wanted it, using colored lights (the family tree is white), handmade ornaments and a classic little star on the top. It's now happily sitting on the landing of our stairs welcoming us to the bottom floor, and it smells like tree and is just lovely and adorable.

Because we didn't get enough Christmasness today, we had an early dinner and headed back into Petaluma to attend the free tree lighting bash in the town square. The boys mailed their letters to Santa in the designated North Pole mailbox at the square and we stopped into the candy store for a treat to enjoy while watching live music play Christmas carols. It "snowed" from the tops of the buildings and then there was a countdown for the lights to turn on, and Santa himself flipped the switch. The boys got to visit Santa, though as a family we all agreed he was most likely a "helper" that the real Santa appointed for the occasion, and the real Santa will be visiting Petaluma in a couple of weeks.