The Hunt in the White December

Ever since we moved to Salmon 8 years ago, we've gone "hunting" for our Christmas tree. We usually go the day after Thanksgiving to a mountain that's about a mile from our house. We hike up a trail, then venture off onto the hillside searching for the "perfect" tree. This year our hunt was a bit delayed, and we didn't go until last Sunday. We took our whole crew, and were joined by Josh's two brothers Gideon & Malachi, Grandpa Tolman, and 2 of Malachi's friends.
When we were leaving the house, Jonah asked dad "Where is your chainsaw? We need a chainsaw to cut the tree down." Dad explained to him that the tree will be small enough to cut with a handsaw, not a giant tree like the ones that we cut up for wood with a chainsaw. This was the first year I've actually had the opportunity to hike up the snowy hillside--usually I'm on the trail with the youngest child, watching and waiting to see the cut tree that comes rolling down the hill reaching the ground before the boys.
This year I especially enjoyed spending time with Josh looking for our own skinny tree, while the boys hiked on with Grandpa and Uncle Gideon for theirs. We don't have much room in our small house this year for a big tree, so we chose one that was pretty lopsided, because we knew we could shove the naked side up against the wall to conserve space.
I absolutely love it, even with its imperfections. I am so grateful for this annual tradition of ours. And although we went later than I had originally desired, and even though it was very cold and snowy, we had a great time! Now we are finally ready for Christmas!