Winter Wonderland

The song Walking in a Winter Wonderland has a whole new meaning to me now that we live in Alaska.  I think the verse "We'll frolic and play, the Eskimo way" is a nice way of phrasing what it looks like when you're trying not to fall when walking on icy surfaces.  Let's just say I bust lots of moves trying not to bust my behind. It's definitely not as fun as frolicking sounds.  All though it's helped my flexibility quite a bit as I practice the splits a lot more frequently.

Driving in winter here is a different story.  It's my kind of driving - no rules and no lines.  There's always ice, snow or mush on the roads so you can't see the lines.  I like being able to forge my own path.  Parking is great too because there is no worrying about parking inside the lines. Not that it's ever a problem for me ;)

We've been really busy since returning from our Thanksgiving trip to the lower 48 so tonight was the first chance we had to get a tree.

Selfies with a Christmas tree in the back of the SUV are totally a thing

I attempted to put up an artificial one but it just didn't feel right.  So tonight we went in search of the perfect real tree to bring home.  The first place we went had a 30 foot inflatable Santa outside the lot.  We were surprised to find that the prices were almost as tall as Santa and the service less than jovial.  Most of the trees had frozen needles too.  Nathanial did his best to negotiate a better price but the owner wasn't willing so we headed down the road to another lot.

The second lot was so much better.  The trees were housed inside greenhouses. There were no frozen branches and we were warm as we looked though the huge selection. The trees were hanging by the tops on metal railings which was really helpful in picking the perfect one.

It's funny how the smallest things make the biggest difference. The moment Nathanial carried in the tree our house started to have the warmth and joy the Christmas season should. 

Putting the stand on

Growing up my family would always eat at Pizza Hut after decorating the Christmas tree. I'm not sure why that was the restaurant of choice but it was a fun tradition to keep.

Tonight I decided to start a new tradition with Nathanial and have a fun meal before getting the tree. Our holiday fiesta with homemade salsa and Chuy's inspired jalapeno sauce was a great start to the evening.

We capped off the evening with a cheesy Hallmark Christmas movie and a double instrument serenade.  Not too many people have husbands that play both the trumpet and the harmonica.