It dawned on me while I was playing with our son, Danny. He decided to put together a floor puzzle. A puzzle we’ve had longer than we’ve had Danny. I remember making this puzzle together before, and I was about to climb down onto the floor next to him. In the past, we worked side by side to fit the pieces in the right places. This time, though, I stayed put and let him start independently. I witnessed in wonder how he was figuring it out. On his own. It got me thinking, perhaps because I had this newfound free time where I wasn’t crawling around looking for the edge pieces. I sat watching him figure it out on his own. I suddenly wondered, who’s watching us figure "it" out?

This is our last first fall. This is the last time we’ll experience a season for the first time. It’s the last time we’ve done any essential tree farming activity for the first time. Over the last 11 months, we cut, cleared, burned, mulched, planted, transplanted, watered, sheared, and trimmed trees. If I’m honest, I hope a few of those activities were done for the last time. Others we will do on repeat. Most I welcome the opportunity to do again.

Summer is a time of freedom. Less structure, fewer routines. It’s playful, warm, and bright. Our first summer at the farm has been all of these things. Summer has been an exercise in letting go of control and embracing what’s in front of us. There is freedom in going with the flow and letting the day take you wherever it wants. We’ve had to adopt this approach with our trees as well. There’s only so much we can control. The weather, bugs, snakes…they’ve all humbled us.

Our first planting season we ordered 1000 fraser firs, 300 white pines, and 300 black hill spruces. We planted one acre of fraser firs, three rows of white pines lining the entrance and exit of the "T", and three rows of black hill spruces. This year, the best way I describe the experience is planting between. Planting between flag football and birthday parties. Planting between family events and trips. Planting between, quite literally, stumps and growing trees.

Things may look different at the farm, but hopefully they don’t feel different. We hope the upgrades to the shed make you feel warm and welcome. Some necessary, some organizational, some stylish – the shed is on its way be being a more functional space for checking out, entertaining the boys, and storing equipment. While Aimie decorated the office and employee lounge in neutrals, Dan worked hard to paint the interior garage portion John Deere Green with a tractor, Gator, and all the "necessary" implements. 

I write best, like most people I assume, when I feel compelled to write. When I feel inspired. It comes in waves in a way that when forced, I’m certain I’ve actually never been very good at it at all. The first entry includes excerpts from our offer letter, which was wholeheartedly inspired. Everything made us feel, made us believe, that this could happen. And when it did, inspiration. But here’s my challenge. What about the overwhelm of inspiration? How do you write about everything? That’s how the first season of tree selling felt. That’s where I feel a little at a loss for words. I’m not sure my words can do this experience justice.

Our adventure with Grandpa Dan’s Christmas Tree Farm began in 2018 with our first visit to cut our Christmas tree. We had recently moved to the area and welcomed our third boy, Danny. After googling close “You Cut” farms, we landed at Grandpa Dan’s.