The tree is going up today!

[DCJenn]

I'll be ordering my 1-800-flowers "tree arrangement" this weekend.

I'm sooooo not dragging out all of that stuff with a house that needs to be painted and a toddler roaming around and a husband who does nothing.

Jenn

[Vanquisher]

My tree has been up for two days. It still isn't decorated, but it is up. Hopefully, I can get that done today or tomorrow.

19.99 Home Depot 7' Douglas Fir! This is the samllest tree I have ever had. It is still very nice and full, but this year I could not justify the extra 20 bucks for 2' of tree. Can't wait until I can afford my 9' tall humoungous beautiful fake tree with at least a couple thousand lights and stuff. Most of the trees that look like what I would want are easily over $300. Then, I won't have to string lights. Until then, real trees for less than $20 will have to do. I love the smell of the real tree, but I want the hassle free fake one.

Cheer up Heidi. If it makes you feel better, my aim today is to pull out the ole 3 footer from Christmases past!

[Vanquisher]

Thanks Kevin,

I'm happy with my tree. Hijack warning - I'm crabby because I'm just freezing my butt off right now because our heat isn't coming on, and I cannot get it to work (60 degrees in here, thank goodness we do not live in Albany anymore). My husband is at the hospital (shock!), and even if he were her I don't know that he could fix it. I told him that I needed to fly my dad out here so he could take a course on "man jobs." I was kidding, of course. He asked if I really wanted him to be like my dad, which, of course, I do not. But, would it hurt him to fill the gender stereotype once in a while and be able to fix something when it breaks. Clearly this shouldn't be MY job. :>

Anyway, as we do not have the money to call a repair person, I am going to spend the day on the internet and in the attic trying to figure out why the hell the heat isn't coming on. I have no futher information than that. I don't know if the pilot light is on. I don't know if there is some filter I need to change. I don't know anything.

But, my tree is up, and if I can stop myself from freezing my butt off for a few seconds to actually get something done, then I shall decorate it, and it will be my pretty tree.

[Vanquisher]

Okay, I think I got it fixed, temporarily. I had to crawl up in the attic to get to the furnace. No pilot light. Read the side of the furnace, it is an ignition switch furnace. So I turned the swtich off, and I turned it back on again, and it came to life. I hope this solves the problem. Could it be that easy? We have had similar problems with it before. Air filters have been changed recently. I am hoping that once the house is heated to our specs that it doesn't turn off and then not turn back on again. I really don't want to crawl up there every morning to turn the dang thing on. The ceiling access is in my daughter's room, and I have to move her crib out of the way to pull down the ladder. What a pain.

Sorry to hijack!

I hope you get a lovely tree!

No tree this year. 900 sf plus 21 month old who seems to be training for the home destroyer triathalon do not make a space for trees.

We might go pick up some cut branches at the local nursery though and make some floral arrangements to get the scent.

Hope the furnace sitch is a quick, cheap fix.

We have been without heat in the winter 3 times. Once when the landlady decided that 1/4 tank meant there was a quart of oil left and shut it off because she was afraid it would hurt the furnace. The second time when flames were shooting out the back of the old furnace at our first house, and the third was when the chimney started falling apart because the lining was inadequate for the new furnace we had put in after number two.

[PrincessFiona]

We're heading out to the tree farm to pick ours and chop it down today...pictures forthcoming!

[Rapunzel]

I practically killed myself this week dragging the tree down from the attic along with the boxes and boxes of decorations for it and the house. My husband has been in Chicago all week and so I had to leave the nine year old with the baby downstairs while my three little girls came up to the attic to "help" me.

It was hard, but I got the thing up and the house decorated by this last Wednesday. Generally I try to have the Christmas decorations up the day after Thanksgiving but this year was just a mess - emotionally and physically - and I just didn't get to it.

Yeah, I could've waited until dh got home but I get a serious mood lift from a holiday decorated house and tree. And, right now I NEED a serious mood lift. Now I have to keep the silly cats out of the thing....

Jennifer

[PrincessFiona]

Are you out of hot chocolate?

[Sheherezade]

We're going to the tree farm tomorrow. It's Zach's turn to pick the tree, and Annie's turn to cut. So.....hopefully my 9 year old will pick a nicer tree than the Charlie Brown thing my daughter picked out last year. With the big party here, this family tradition may need to take a hit. We could also be freezing out there for awhile with my 6 year old using the saw. Did I mention that we got a foot and a half of snow yesterday, and there is more to fall tonight? Why did I move to the snowbelt? Oh yeah, I didn't know about the whole "lake effect" snow thing.....

I do love the Christmas season though....I've been decorating here and there all week but stalling on the tree because I want it to be relatively fresh at the party in two weeks.

Heidi -

fixer that I am, I'm going to say that the pilot light should stay on by itself and it probably was that easy. let's hope I'm right.

Angie -

I heard about the snow - not missing it here. Your town is so pretty at Christmas - it was always one of my fav places to go check the lights. I hope you're able to "direct" your son to a good choice.

We're hoping to pick one out today, but we're going to a Christmas parade today and a fundraiser tonight as well as the ED Nurses Christmas party after that so I have a feeling we won't get around to it. We do have a 3 ft fake Christmas tree set up in the great room that we won at a silent auction fundraiser a couple of weeks ago. It has a jungle theme (lots of stuffed lions, monkeys, elephants...) so it doesn't have a really Christmasy feel. I am just dying to get the real decorations up!

[Rapunzel]

Are you out of hot chocolate?

I've been living off of the stuff!

:coffee

[houseelf]

Ours is up but our toddler can't seem to stay out of it. We have the fake Christmas tree of my childhood which my mom gladly cast off in exchange for a smaller one when her kids were grown. I love our ornaments. Every year, we have a photo ornament made of our kids. Our tree is becoming a little shrine to the kids.

We had a sledding playdate yesterday. A bunch of kids came over and sled outside in 9 degree weather (PRE-windchill factor). We have several fabulous hills within walking distance of our development. I'm hoping that DS will be invited to more playdates now since we've hosted the last few. I don't know what I'm going to do with my little ball of energy this winter otherwise.

Hot chocolate is like plasma around here--the giver of life.

Kelly



Now our place has crap overflowing from the seams.

[PrincessFiona]

Are you out of hot chocolate?

I've been living off of the stuff!

:coffee

I have gained 4.5 POUNDS....I have to slowly...walk away...from the cup. None for me for awhile. :!