O Christmas Tree...O Tree (or stick)

After last year's disaster in the woods, we decided to play it safe this year and not bring Gavin with us on this family tradition. His mom came to pick him up in the morning for a few day visit. We left right after that, but didn't really plan well for Lochlan's nap. We got to the tree station (as I didn't have a chance to run down to the forest ranger office downtown during the week) about 9am and Smoky the Bear was taking photos with kids and families for a donation. I thought this was an awesome! (Especially as I hadn't even thought of Smoky since I was a kid and didn't know he was a "thing" anymore). Lochlan didn't really know what to think about Smoky, but Mama was obviously excited. HA!
After we picked up our permit, we drove up Rampart Range Road for a couple of miles past where we had parked and started trekking through the woods last year. It was so much nicer and more serene this year, as last year, Gavin screamed and cried the entire time and it was such a bummer. Lochlan had fun playing with sticks in the beginning, then I put him in the pack for the hike through the woods. Since it was so early, there was no one else out in the area where we were, so it was nice to hear the birds, enjoy the sun and blue sky, and just be in and smell nature. Matt & I would chat from time to time, but it was so great just to think and be in the moment with my family.
I started thinking about the Colorado Mountain Mamas group and how our intent is to get our children in nature, to enjoy it and have a respect and understanding of the earth. Walking around in the woods, searching for the "perfect" Fletcher family Christmas tree 2010, it helped me solidify my feelings on what we are doing (in regards to how we are raising the boys) is right.
Back to the tree-searching. We were walking around for more than an hour and hadn't really seen any that were even halfway decent. Matt spotted one up on a little ridge, and came down to the meadow I was looking in to tell me that he saw one that was halfway decent. We decided to keep on looking, and if we didn't find one soon, we would go back to that one that he spotted. We didn't end up seeing any, so after awhile, we made our way back and up to that tree. It was horrid, but at this point, I knew it was getting close to Lochlan's nap time and I wasn't sure how much longer he would hang in the pack. So Matt got to work and sawed that tree down in about 20 seconds. That should have been our first indicator that the trunk was way too thin. HA!
We made our way back to the car, with Lochlan in the pack and Matt dragging the tree. We ended up back on the dirt road, so Matt & Lochlan hung out in the trees alongside the road and I ran up the road to get the car and bring it closer. Lochlan and I played in the woods while Matt loaded the tree on the car. I ended up finding some downed trees and used the little hand saw to cut off some garland. Once Matt got the tree all tied on top, I loaded Lochlan in the car, and the midst of it all, I left the garland there by accident. Bummer!
We started driving down the dirt road to head back to the major road to head home. We realized Lochlan was about to fall asleep, so we decided to stay on the dirt road (Rampart Range Road), which was a 25 mile drive home on that road. Since we moved to this area, I've been dying to drive that way either to or from Woodland Park, so I'm wicked happy that today was the day! Along the way, we spotted these water lines which had formed ice figures, so I just HAD to stop for a photo op! About 15 miles down the road, we came around this bend in the road, and there were awesome views of Pikes Peak and the whole mountain range on the sides of it. Matt got out and took photos, while I drove around in circles so that Lochlan didn't wake up.
We finally made it all the way down Rampart Range Road, which ended at Garden of the Gods. It was an awesome ride and I recommend it to any of our local friends! Along the way, Matt told me a bunch about Germany and Europe and we decided we should look into possibly checking it out in a few years as a place to live.
When we got home, we put the tree in front of the garage overnight. We realized just how tall it was, once it was out of it's natural habitat. It's by far the worst tree we've ever laid eyes on, which is absolutely perfect for us! We decided we'll figure out next year whether to do the same adventure or if we should find a local charity that is selling the "perfect" looking trees. Only because our tree keeps falling over and we couldn't put the tree topper on it, as it was too heavy for the top. See next post for photos of us decorating it!
P.S. I stole the term "stick" as in our Christmas stick from my friend Katie Parslow, as they called their tree last year their "Christmas stick". I figured that is a great name for our tree this year as well. Thanks Katie, and hope this makes you laugh!