Today we resumed our tradition of cutting down our own Christmas tree. We have cut down our own tree every year, except last year. This year, we were invited to join our neighbors... a very kind and welcoming Italian family of four across the street from us... plus their brother's family of four... plus their sister's family of four... plus their parents! So, we were a little bit of outsiders, but they made us feel very welcome! The kids have had a lot of big and wide trees, so I made it clear that there was only room for a skinny, and not very tall one. They searched for the perfect one, and found it pretty much right away! I took a good look at it and Wes and I agreed that it would be a good fit... it leaned a little, but not bad, and the kids were very excited about this one... so we cut it down! We waited another hour and a half for our neighbors to pick out theirs but it was fun to walk through all the options. They picked a crazy wide 12 foot tree but it will be gorgeous in their space they have planned. It was strange not having snow on the ground while we did this, but it didn't take away from the fun! We then went for lunch with the group at one of their favorite Italian restaurants... which was delicious. Then, we went to a nickle and dime store across the street from the restaurant for some candy and toys... the kids had a blast playing with all the gadgets. When we got home we got ready for Wes's work holiday celebration... we got all dressed up fancy and had our first babysitter since we moved to town... who happen to be the same neighbor girls that we spent the whole day with! Thankfully they were not sick of our kids by the end of the day. The party was a lot of fun! It was a formal dinner with dancing in a historic building from the 1920s that has been restored and hosts events.... so a very nice night.
