Our first year married my husband and I were trying to save money so we bought a little fake tree. Every year after I happily decorated it. Loving that tree simply because it was our first one together as a married couple. Even when those pre-lit lights started going out, instead of chucking it, I spent HOURS cutting those damn lights off. My fingers were sore, my back ached, but we still had our sweet little tree. After a while the box began disintegrating and the little fake needles were falling out by the handful. It didn't matter. My dedication would not waver. This was our "married tree". And so it went for seven years.
Then, this year, my dedication not only wavered, it shivered and ran for the hills. Because our sweet little, slightly balding, tree had spiders. That was enough. It was time to part ways. Time for a new tree.
Later on, at the giant store that has been pushing Christmas since October, we took a minute to wander through. White trees, green trees, pink and striped trees. My oldest daughter fell in love with a purple one. I should tell you at this point that there are two sides to me in this. There is the side that wants to give my kid everything she asks for. Then there's the part of me that wants to teach her. I want to teach her that almost anything is possible if you are willing to think outside the box and put some work into it. I want to teach her that we don't always have to buy, buy, buy. Sooo, out of this, I had an idea. It is far from traditional. Maybe a little weird. I proposed we make a tree. The sound of crickets was deafening as my family just stared at me. I said let's craft it out of wood! books! cardboard! paint it! Still, they were unimpressed. The conversation fizzled.
A few days later, while everyone was out for the day, I decided to go ahead and give this a shot. I used some craft paper, some tempra paint and my fingers to make my kid a purple tree. I swept dark purple this way and that and then a little light purple on top. While it dried I painted a star on another sheet of paper and wrote "I wish I may, I wish I might..." all around the edge of it. I attached our old tree skirt to the bottom and used Command hooks to hang lights and tinsel. Finished! Clapping my hands together I was sure this was great.
As I picked the kiddo up from school I was all excitement. I couldn't wait to get her home to see what I had done. This was going to be an awesome surprise.
Walking into the room she had a huge grin but after a minute of inspecting things the grin slowly disappeared into a kind of intense expression. Crap, I thought. This was the worst idea ever. Crap, crap, crap. She doesn't like it. She's disappointed. What was I thinking?? Where's my purse? I gotta get a tree!
Quietly, almost whispering, I asked her what she thought. She turned to me and said, "This is cool Mom! Next year we should do one that is striped! Blue, purple, blue, purple. And the year after that we should do one that's a rainbow!" Relief.
What do you know? Not only did she like it but it may be a new tradition. One born of trying to show my sweet babe, that I love her. That we don't always need to buy, buy, buy. That anything is possible if you go outside the box. Of course she doesn't see it like this. I'm not delusional. But, hopefully, someday, she might. A mommy can hope.
So here it is. Our one of a kind, free, hopefully a good memory, magical, purple, painted Christmas tree.
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