For many families, piling everyone into the car and driving to a local farm to cut down a Christmas tree is a tried and true holiday tradition. For others, it can be a comedy of errors that does’t quite meet up with hopes of chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Here are a few tips and stories about how to help make the experience a memorable one.

For many families, piling everyone into the car and driving to a local farm to cut down a Christmas tree is a tried and true holiday tradition. For others, it can be a comedy of errors that does’t quite meet up with hopes of chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Here are a few tips and stories about how to help make the experience a memorable one.

Do: Be ready to get physical

Cutting down a live tree is a strenuous process. Recalls Nel Dennett of Portsmouth, “When my husband Jay got under and started sawing the boys (she has two sons) wanted to try. They lasted about eight seconds! The needles were insanely sharp and the trunk was ridiculously thick. Eventually it came down to Jay and I sweating as we tried sawing this thing down while the boys rocked the tree back and forth to get it to break.” Dennett’s tree was so gigantic, they ended up naming the tree “Big Betsy”

Meg Yeaton, also from Portsmouth had a similar experience “When we first checked into the farm, you are handed your very own hacksaw – yippee! Finding our tree was not difficult – I think we just got lucky and found one that was the right size. It was the act of cutting it down that was the difficult part. I don’t know if our saw was dull or what, but man, it wasn’t easy. And since it really is a one-person job, there’s not much for anyone else to do while the cutter is doing all the work!”

Don’t: Forget to measure

When Nel Dennett and her family brought home their huge tree they had a little trouble getting it into the house.

“After several attempts we realized that the tree wasn’t fitting through the front door,” Dennett says. “I sat on the tree to squish it while we wrapped the tree in a huge tarp, and three bungee cords around it to tighten it and try and squeeze it smaller while carefully trying not to break the branches. It took a lot of pushing, pulling and finagling to get it up the stairs because it was still too wide, even all strapped up! Finally we got it upstairs. That part alone took over an hour.”

Once they got Big Betsy in the house they realized when they “put it in the stand, the stump was way too big for the stand so Jay (her husband) had to get an electric saw to somewhat make the stump fit.”

Meg Yeaton and her family had a number of mishaps during their tree-cutting experience, but she was proud that they did remember to measure.

“Yes, we were smart enough to bring a tape measure to make sure!” she says.

Do: Create your own traditions.

Rebecca Emerson of Kittery, Maine, has been cutting down her Christmas tree since she was a child and loves to continue this tradition with her family.

“We have taken our son every year since he was 6 months old,” she says. “It has been fun watching him grow every year from the family photos we take each year. The first year he was bundled up in the Bjorn. The next he toddled around. Now he is old enough to help cut the tree down.”

Sarah Corliss and her family look forward to cutting down their tree each year because of the time shared together.

“Before we load the tree up onto the truck, we visit the snack shack inside the barn for hot cocoa, cider and other treats,” Corliss says. “Once we have been warmed we load the tree and make the trek back home where we prepare the tree stand and begin to detangle the many, many strands of lights!”

Do: Wear protection

Many first-time choppers didn’t realize how sharp some live needles can be.

Ian Jukes, a former Portsmouth resident, recalls this experience: “Being from England where it doesn’t really snow, I always had a Charlie Brown nostalgic dream about getting out into North American wilderness to cut down a Christmas tree. Little did I know the tree needles were like a thousand little hypodermic needles – all puncturing my forehead. When I emerged from under the tree there was blood pouring down my face! After a moment of shock, my wife Megan burst out laughing. Freezing cold and covered in blood. Nothing remotely Charlie Brown about any of it.”

Nel Dennett’s tree Big Betsy drew blood as well.

“The needles of this particular tree were so sharp I had a ton of tiny scratches all up both arms and my shoulders and face when I was done stringing the lights,” she says.

Don’t: Forget to have fun!

Whether your experience was akin to a Norman Rockwell painting or closer to a scene from National Lampoon’s “Christmas Vacation,” these families all remembered that it’s meaningful to create these memories together.

Rebecca Emerson, who embraces this tradition, says, “There is nothing better than the smell of a live tree in the house!”

For Sarah Corliss and her family there is a deep satisfaction when they all get to see the fruits of their labor.

“Once the tree is decorated, everyone stands back and marvels at how perfect our tree is!” she says.

Despite all Dennett’s trouble getting Big Betsy in the house and secure enough to stand, she reflected, “Big Betsy was a ton of work – but she was a beautiful tree. It was a very funny day. The Christmas magic was in the memories and not as much the moment.”

Ian Jukes summed up from his experience, “Would I do it again … nope. Was I glad we did it once? Yes!”

If you are interested in cutting your own Christmas Tree, visit www.pickyourownchristmastree.org. It has farms listed all over New Hampshire. Many farms have sleigh rides and snacks to make it a complete family outing.

Or you could find your own Big Betsy at Archambault Tree Farm – visit their site at www.archambaulttreefarm.com.

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