It Is THAT Time of Year!

Thanksgiving is a week away. . . The holidays are on my mind. . . Traditions are being followed and memories are being made. . .

I live in the state of Washington and am surrounded by pine trees. They are big and beautiful. However, nothing rings in the holiday season more than the smell of pine. It takes me back to when I was little girl in my parent's home. It reminds me of happy childhood memories.

For this week's blog, I thought I would share our favorite place to get a Christmas tree, a place where our family has created many joyous memories and had many happy times. This is a place that we have shared wonderful times with our friends. Our family has so many amazing memories of this place. This special place is Hubert's Tree Farm in Seabeck.

Hubert's is open the weekend before Thanksgiving if you want to get out there early and have first dibs at the trees. Their hours are 9-4 pm that weekend. Don't forget to bring along decorations to "tag" your tree.

The weekend after Thanksgiving, they hold a U-Cut Decorating Contest. How this works is the Friday, Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving, you go out to the farm and choose the tree you are planning on purchasing. You then decorate the tree. The Monday after that weekend the owners go through all the trees and choose the top 15 trees and then has the staff vote for the top one.

A few other tips before you go. Dress warm. Wear shoes that can get muddy. Bring a camera. Don't forget the saw and whatever else you will need to get the tree on your car. If you decide to pick out your tree early and not take it with you that day, don't forget to bring some decorations. Finally plan some time to enjoy and explore. Hubert's open season starts the day after Thanksgiving and runs through December 21st. Their hours of operation are 9-5 pm.

When you pull up to the farm, you notice the cute welcoming lights on the buildings. You are greeted by a very warm staff. They present you with a map so you can start looking for your special tree. They have many varieties. After you figure out what kind you want, you can drive to that specific area to begin looking for the PERFECT tree.

There is a lot of land to cover and trees to look at, so be prepared to do some walking. When you do find the tree that you are going to take with you, the real fun begins. You get to cut the tree down. Nothing like boys and saws sharing a "manly" moment. LOL

After you are done chopping down the tree and loading it onto your car or truck, you can go up to the Cider House. Outside the Cider House you can put the tree in a tree shaker to get rid of all the extra loose needles (and hopefully ~spiders!). Then go inside the Cider House and out of the cold to enjoy a warm cup of apple cider in front of the wood stove. The view of the mountains is also something you don't want to miss from the Cider House-truly breath-taking! On the weekends, it is even rumored that Santa may pay a visit so be sure to watch for him!

Like I mentioned the mountain range is so beautiful. Unfortunately this was on a cloudy day so we didn't get the best view. On a clear day, the view is truly magnificent! You can also see all the little Christmas trees growing to become someone's beautiful Christmas tree in the next several years.

It is fun to take people who are new to the area and have never cut down their own tree before. I think our family had almost as much fun watching our friends pick out their tree as we did ours. It truly is a fun experience if you have never done this before. It really is a wonderful way to relax and enjoy the day.

After you have cut down your tree, shook the tree, warmed up with some hot apple cider, and enjoyed some fun times with family and friends and were awed by the view, it is time to go back down to the buildings up front. There they will check you out. (I will include the web-site link so you can check out prices) I believe they also sell wreaths too. If you are into flocking, that is the white spray stuff they will put on trees to look like snow, you can request to have that done too for an additional fee. Personally, I love flocking in my house because my living room is really dark and I love the way it makes the tree "pop". Others don't, so you decide. If you do want it done, that usually means leaving your tree for an extra day or two so it can dry. They are super great about helping you make sure the tree is tied down and secured before you leave.

Finally up until December 23rd, you can send them 3 photos of your tree with your family, friends and even pets. (I forgot to mention, you can take your furry friends along for the tree hunt) They will again pick one picture out of 15. The winner gets a free tree the next year.

If this is one of your family's traditions, I hope I gave you a reminder about the dates and times and my blog this week made you reflect on the memories you have made here. If you haven't been, maybe this will encourage you to go check it out. I almost forgot. Here is the site for Hubert's web site: http://www.hubertschristmastrees.com/index.html Also I noticed on their web-site that they have antique tractor rides and hay rides. All the years going there, I never knew that they did this. Something new to check into this year.