Oh Christmas Tree

Two years ago, while working two jobs, I put up 14 Christmas Trees, two Christmas villages with over 40 houses, baked many dozens of cookies for friends, hosted a wedding reception for 80 guests eight days before Christmas and cooked a Christmas Day dinner for 30.

Last year, my only tree (next to my growing-up-twin-bed in the bedroom I occupied at my parent's home because of that "She Who Must Not Be Named" storm) was a Charlie Brown tree sitting on a shelf. No villages, no weddings, no Christmas dinner.

What's that saying?  The bigger they are, the harder they fall? Ouch.


My mother and I spent weeks washing the crap off of, dare I say this: HUNDREDS of Hallmark ornaments.  I cried at the number of motion ornaments that will just never move again, but when my mother gently suggested that I get rid of them, I almost decked her.  Get rid of them??? That would be like getting rid of my kids because they got picked up for driving with too many kids in the car.  And another time, for driving after midnight.  And still on another occasion, for driving with an open can of beer in the car.  I mean, I WANTED to get rid of them when they did that, but the courts said I had to keep them.  And I really wanted to keep my ornaments.

But I also wanted something different.  So this year, now that I'm back home, I had the time to find that something-an upside down Christmas tree.

When I saw one in a gift store last year, I sounded like Homer Simpson when he sees donuts...O-o-o-o-o-o-o-...I mean, it just did everything, well...right.  It was hanging from the ceiling so there was plenty of room for presents under it.  The ornaments hung down instead of resting on the branches.  And the colors were un-traditional pinks purples lime green and turquoise blue. Google gave me the list of stores that carried it and the websites for the ornaments. Before I was back home in May, they were stored and ready.

I couldn't wait to get it up and decorated this weekend.  Son #3 asked where the angel goes and I haven't figured that out yet.  Maybe the top but maybe she'll be sassy and swing from one of the branches.  I also haven't figured out what other trees will go up this year besides this one.  Right now, this tree is enchanting me in a way I haven't been enchanted in a long time.  I know that I'll love it the way I love all my trees-the Charlie Brown ornament tree, the Barbie, the Grinch and all the other theme trees. Yeah, yeah.

Just like I loved all my kids exactly the same way every day when they were growing up.