Oh Christmas Tree

Being the bargain hunter that I am I live for a good sale, a great coupon, and the words 50% off and clearance. It is a rare occasion that I spend full retail price on anything and it was no different as I shopped for after Christmas deals last year.

For two years we have used a hand-me-down tree that was given to us by friends when we moved in to our first home in 2008. It was 6 feet of Charlie Brown sadness and looked utterly dwarfed in our vaulted ceiling living room. Since it was free I never complained, instead each year I did my best to make the little tree look its best and took pride in my efforts to bring out the most Christmas cheer. After looking at the tree for the second year my wonderful hubby decided it was time to put the little tree out of it's misery and look for a new one.

Excited at the prospect of getting a great after Christmas deal I struck out on the hunt for a Christmas tree. Luck was on my side as I walked the isles of one of my favorite stores, Hobby Lobby; I had found a gorgeous 9ft, prelit, pine tree with cute little pine cones for less than $90. Excited at my find I checked with Brandon, tied it the car, and brought it home to store until the next Christmas.

Brandon, not having to work this past weekend, was in quite a funk Saturday night with nothing to do and nothing to watch. Wanting to cheer him up I suggested we get out the Christmas tree and put it up. Having already broken tradition by watch two holiday movies I thought why not go all out if it meant putting a smile on my hubby's face.

We opened the tree and found that it was missing a key safety feature and part that was essential to it staying upright; the small key bolt that held the base in place. Not only that but the tree stand was broken and one of the plastic pieces that held some the branches was cracked. We both discussed that maybe this was the reason it was on clearance; however, would the store really sell a tree with out the most important piece and safety feature? Deciding Brandon would rig something up for this year and we would find another one after Christmas we pieced it together and stood back as it towered over us. It filled the room and truly accented our vaulted ceilings nicely; however, our hearts began to sink as we realized we did not have any where near enough ornaments to fill it's many branches and the tree was just too big. It was with saddened hearts that we packed the tree back in the box, prayed that it could be returned and another search for a Christmas Tree began.

Having found a good deal at Lowes we headed out Sunday afternoon to make our Holiday purchase and save our Christmas. Lowes website stated that the store had 17 of the tree that we wanted; however, we could not locate them in the store. After having spent 15 minutes searching on our own we enlisted the help of a Lowes employee. For 20 minutes he searched the store, scowered the stock room, and checked the inventory list. Smiling he gently explained that inventory said they had 17 in house but for the life of him he had no idea where they were; he even went as far to offer us the next tree up for the lower price. Having been in situations like this many times Brandon and I just laughed, this poor guy had no idea who walked into his store and that this young couple in search of a Christmas tree had the worst of luck. Of course Lowes wouldn't be able to find 17 Christmas trees because Brandon and I were the people asking for one! In the end we traveled a short distance to another Lowes and quickly found the tree we were looking for.

It's 7.5ft of prelit spruce greatness now stands in the corner of our living room. Although still undecorated and bare we both know it will hold us until we can collect enough ornaments to buy the grander tree. Our only hope is that when we do it comes with all the parts and can be found when we want it. ;)