Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

Last year, I decided I hated our artificial Christmas tree and declared it to be the last year we would use it.  Ever!  The prelit lights didn't work.  The branches were barely hanging on.  It was a nightmare to get it to stand up straight and look full.
I was done.  It was time for the tree to go.

Since we were staying at my mother-in-law's during Christmas last year, I took the tree to the place were things go to die.  Such as old cars.  In the very back of her grossly overgrown backyard.

And when I say "took" I mean launched it from the back door and said good riddance.

So when Christmas came around this year, I really wanted to get a new tree.  Actually, I was okay with getting a real tree.  Chris, however, isn't fond of the pine needles all over the place.  Or spending close to 100 bucks for something we really would have to throw out.

After putting together the budget, I realized no matter how I sliced it, a new tree was not in our future.  At least not this year.

At Thanksgiving, I asked around to see if any of my family had a tree I could borrow.  I really didn't want to store the thing all  year round since our storage space is very limited.  It was to no avail.

Once Alex started really, really riding my nerves about getting our Christmas decorations up, I finally made a stop at my mother-in-law's to pick up the decorations we had left there from last year.

In doing so, I saw our old Christmas tree laying out in the dead leaves.

It looked so sad and lonely. I got to thinking about how this was the first tree Chris and I had purchased as a married couple.  It was there for our first Christmas in our old house and every Christmas since.

Maybe it was magic of the season or the pure thriftiness of being on a budget, but I couldn't just leave it there.

So from the leaf pile, I rescued our little Christmas tree.  I shoved it in the van, fully covered in leaves and cobwebs and took the baby home.

It rested outside for a few weeks in our back yard before I drug the thing up a flight of stairs and began the restoration process.

An entire Sunday was dedicated to the rehabilitation of this little Christmas tree.

And, honestly, I think it is the best it has ever looked.

Now that Christmas is over and the decorations are down and put away, this little Christmas tree resides in a warm corner of our storage area...gently covered with a blanket....reminding me that the past can't just be tossed out to die.

And even with all of it's defects, this is our Christmas tree and a piece of our history.