I remember as a child that our tree did not go up until a day or two before Christmas. We would go to the corner lot and choose a tree. That might happen a week or so before Christmas. Dad then had to cut the trunk evenly and put it in a pail of water outside. My mom liked doing this because the branches would start to open up after having been wrapped tight at the lot. We would pester our parents to put the tree up. Most all the ornaments were glass--we would add to the collection every year by going to Hudson's and choosing a few more. We always had an angel on the top--she was partly fiberglass so it was a little dangerous. Dad put her on first. Mom was pretty fussy about the tinsel and so we often let her do that part. Single strands only--no clumps.
One year the tree was so crooked it fell over a couple of times. Dad put nails in the wall and we tied it up so it would stay steady. That was kind of funny. I still remember some of the ornaments-little glass houses, decorated bulbs and the bubble lights (our favorite.)
As a grownup on my own, I purchased an artificial tree and that is what we have had every since. Steve was never fond of all the real needles that would get into the carpet and I am slightly allergic to evergreens. This means that the tree gets set up the day after Thanksgiving. Heidi loves to decorate it and we enjoy the tree until well after Christmas. A new artificial tree was purchased this year at Menards for $180. We looked on and off for many years, but finally Steve found one he liked.
It is very beautiful and with its all new led lights very sparkly at night.
