We have only used one Christmas tree our entire married life. It was a 2-foot tall artificial tree that we would set up on the floor or on a table to make it seem taller. The boys finally broke the tree beyond repair this year, so we decided to take our first trip to a real live Michigan Christmas tree farm. This was a first for all of us. So here's how it works at a real Christmas tree farm. First you get yourself a wagon and a saw. Then you load the kiddies onto the wagon and take a picture. Next you pull your wagon out to where the trees are, and you find a tree with a price tag on it that you like. This is the tree you cut down with your saw. Take more pictures. Haul the tree back to the barn on the wagon. Back at the barn, farm workers put your tree into a shaker that gets all of the dead pine needles and grass off of it. Then they put it into the baler, which wraps it in twine so that it won't get damaged on the roof of your car as you drive home. Don't forget to pay for your tree...you can't get it back from the baler without your receipt. Now, if you want, you can take a scenic ride around the farm on the tractor-drawn wagon. The end. We got a beautiful Frazier Fir and it is just the right size--our best tree ever! And, as a side note, if you received our Christmas picture in the mail, it was taken by Dan's sister, Bug, on the wagon ride at the Christmas tree farm the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
