We went to get your very first Christmas tree and in true Mommy/Shep fashion, it was nothing short of an ordeal. I have always had a Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. Growing up, I had an artificial tree that was up the basement pull down stairs and I remember watching your Grandaddy Shep pull it down each year as I stood at the bottom with a grin from ear to ear.

When Daddy and got married, we decided to go out and get our very own real tree locally and start a new tradition. Dece and Grandaddy Shep had been using a real tree for a few year and the smell and look just couldn’t be replicated in the fake stuff any longer. Each year we tried a new tree farm, and each year we had the most beautiful tree there was (I’m certain of this).

Then we had you……

The day after Thanksgiving we attempted to get you dressed and ready to get a tree, but in all of the excitement (and being at Dece and Grandaddy Shep’s house) you refused your afternoon nap. Your Daddy finally convinced me that you *might* nap in the car, so we plopped your cute self into that ginormous truck and headed to Whole Foods where they had gorgeous trees last year. 40 minutes later, (you crying the majority of the trip there) we see that they’ve closed early for the day (why not, right?). So, we counted it as a loss and headed back home. On the way, we passed the striped tent farm by the house and realized that they were open and decided to stop. Guess who FINALLY was napping? You guessed it! So like any good parents would do, we let you sleep and succumbed to the hot light that was on next door (Krispy Kreme is not to be ignored on a cold night when the light is on – lesson #1).