In case it wasn’t already clear, I am not big into most holidays and anything holiday-spirit-esque.

We didn’t celebrate them when I was young and I just grew up with the mentality that Christmas - and the like - were more-or-less unnecessary expenses, wastes of time, and stress-causers.

Meeting Ethan has forced me to rethink all of that.

Since Ethan’s favorite holiday and time of year is Christmas time, I have no choice but to get involved. One thing that I haven’t done in many years, but was required by girlfriend-law to do this year is picking out a live Christmas tree. Now, it’s important that I preface this with the note that his family takes picking out a tree very, very seriously. They have been dedicating their winter weekends to tree selection since the very beginning. So, it should come as no surprise that we spent two consecutive afternoons wandering around in fields of trees in the cold, mud, sleet, and wind to find the perfect, 15-foot branched beauty.

Finding the perfect tree under regular circumstances can be pretty challenging - I can assume. But when you’re looking for one that literally towers over the rest, you can imagine a whole plethora of additional hurdles can arise.

We visited a half-dozen tree farms - all cute and quaint in their own way. And despite the terrible weather on the Saturday, the smell of the pines and the crisp feeling in the arm - partnered with my warm coffee, and my best friend by my side - actually made for an enjoyable afternoon.

Saturday proved successful for Ethan and I, as we found the most wonderful 8'-foot tree, which I so lovingly named Colin, because he is a Con Color fir. Get it? He’s looks quite a bit bigger sitting in our living room than he did in the field, but we had so much fun trimming and decorating. But, sadly, Ethan’s family weren’t as successful as we were, so we called it a night and returned to the trees the following day.

Sunday was gorgeous - the weather was warm and bright. Not your average Michigan winter day, by a long chalk. The overall splendor definitely gave me plenty of gorgeous photo opportunities. So, that’s a plus, too.

When we all finally stumbled upon the perfect tree for the family home, it took four people, two vehicles, and four saws to bring it down and get it home. I can’t wait to see what it looks like all decked out with ornaments and lights.

In the meantime, I have our tree - my first tree in over a decade - to admire and enjoy.

I guess this means I’ll add trudging around looking for trees to my list of new-found traditions. And maybe even give it a star - even though our tree is too tall to have one.

What do you think - is trekking for your holiday tree a task or a treat?