Oh Christmas Tree Oh Christmas Tree

In the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, Alicia and I rarely get around to putting up a Christmas tree. We tend to visit our families over Christmas, so we live vicariously through their trees.

We mean well. We've gathered Christmas ornaments from all around the world. But our ambitious plans to put up the tree usually fall short.

So a few years ago we bought an artificial tree. Not exactly the stuff that memories are made of, but better than nothing.

Even so, years went by before we actually used it. But last year we did it!

It was fun putting up the ornaments, but we were still gone so much of December that we didn't get much chance to enjoy it. And the effort to enjoyment ratio was skewed the wrong way.

Last night we were at Rite Aid and we saw the perfect tree. We'd seen the same tree earlier in the week in Skymall on our flight back from LAX. But unlike Skymall, Rite Aid had the tree for $4.99.

Whereas our artificial tree leaves me feeling a little empty (it doesn't smell right... actually it doesn't smell at all... certainly not like Christmas), the new tree gives me a wonderful nostalgic boost. It reminds me of Christmas in my childhood.

Yes, we're now the proud owners of a Charlie Brown Christmas tree.

I love it! The price was right. The "some assembly required" took all of five minutes. And its sad, droopy, little twigs are delightful.

Putting it away will be a breeze. And there's no needles to clean up!

Merry Christmas, everyone! And may your holidays make you feel as warm and nostalgic as our tree has  made me.