THE HUNT

Before we get started with the hunt, I have to explain something. Once a month my husband travels for uh, 'business'. I don't really want to say on my public blog what he does but he does have to go away one night a month for work. While away, he is always treated to a local cuisine called a 'pastie'. Those of you who know what these are, know what these are (well, obviously...). Anyway, it is a pastry filled with meat and potatoes. I guess there are other things you can put in them. So, I have been asking about them because I have talked to some who really like these. Timothy brought one home for me. This thing was huge. It was stuffed with ground beef and cubed potato. Here is my unofficial review; it was stuffed with ground beef and potato. I don't think that there was ANY seasoning used. I had to douse the thing in BBQ sauce for some flavor. And I only ate a quarter because it was so much meat. Let's understand that it is a local thing, they are usually served hot with gravy, mine was reheated in the microwave, no gravy. However, I will say, I am no longer jealous of Timothy's business lunch.

Now, on to THE HUNT. For the first time in my life (that I can remember, at least), we journeyed into the wild to hunt for the perfect Christmas tree. We have had a very mild winter in town here. But I have to say that in the mountains, it was COLD and there was LOTS of snow. The girls loved it! Eli could barely walk, the snow came up to his thighs. So he and I mostly sat in the truck and waited. And believe me, that was fun. Timothy and the girls hiked a mountain and scouted for the tree. Some friends of ours (armed with chainsaw) were kind enough to come on this excursion with us. We had a great time, found a very nice tree and had some hot chocolate and sandwiches surrounded by beauty. Unfortunately, I don't have many pictures because my fingers (and toes) were frozen. I have very poor circulation.

That is the tree we found. Our friend's tree fell off a fifty foot cliff. So, we took the kiddos home and they continued on, promising to bring our tree later. This is what came through our door.

The thing was HUGE and not what we cut down! They went and found something bigger for us! After much trimming, we had a manageable huge tree. Please note the huge pink ornament. We 'won' that at a white elephant exchange and it's the kid's favorite. It actually fit on this tree.