Here it is!

I'm certain you have all been waiting to see a picture of MY FAMILY'S TREE.  : )

It is ten feet tall and gorgeous!

My friend in England told me it looked sophisticated. I really appreciate that comment, but if he could see it in person he would see the milk caps with glitter and a five-year-old's picture in the middle. That five year old is now thirty-one and you can see his photo in the side bar. His two brother's pictures are also on the tree.

Somehow their sister does not have her picture there but her handiwork as a child is well represented. She drew angels on pellon, colored them and cut them out. And someone cut a bell out of a styrofoam meat tray and glued fabric squares on it. Maybe I should look for initials on that one. Every year we all come to attention as we hang the two miniature cans of spinach on the tree. My children were Popeye fans and those little cans are a must!

Each ornament is a memory. My Aunt Lucy's knitted bells are there and my mother's crocheted Santa face and little wreaths. And there are so many ornaments I have made. (And keep making!)

Our young friends (our daughter's co-workers) went with us to choose and cut the tree. Three of them had never had a live tree in their house so they were eager to set it up and help decorate. It was a cold windy day, but after a lunch of chili everyone was ready to get to work. The ladder was barely tall enough. The angel on top had to be tossed up and stayed a little crooked. We thought it looked like she was flying. We listened to Christmas music and sang along. And everyone chose to have marshmallows in their hot chocolate.

We go to Allen Hill Farm in Brooklyn, CT to cut our tree. Last year we bought their special tree stand that has a 5 inch peg in the middle. They bore a hole in the tree trunk, then the tree balances on that peg. And it is perfectly straight and secure! It is a miracle! Of course we went there again this year and topped last year's nine foot tree by a foot. Next year I take a tape measure with me - or buy a taller ladder. Really, I think nine feet was tall enough.

The nest is empty again and I miss them all terribly! How nice for Mr. B and me to be sharing a house with our daughter and her husband! We will have a few quiet days before I launch into overdrive to hang my solo photography show. 

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