Christmas Tree Tips

The day after Thanksgiving, we headed up to Summit County to cut our Christma

Lodgepole Pine

Dillon Ranger District

Fireproofing Your Tree

1. After choosing your tree, get a saw and immediately make a fresh cut at the base of the tree trunk. Try to make a level cut about an inch above the old one.

2. If you need to store your tree, put in a place away from the wind. A garage, patio deck or back porch work well.

3. After you've made a fresh cut on the trunk, mix up the ingredients for the fireproofing mixture. Fill a 2 gallon bucket to within an inch from the top with hot water from the tap. Then, into the water, add:

• 2 cups Karo Syrup


• 2 oz. liquid Chlorox bleach


• 2 pinches Epsom Salts (from a drug store)


• 1/2 tsp. Boraxo (from the supermarke)


• 1 tsp. Chelated Iron (from the garden shop or plant store)


• Let the tree stand in this bucket of ingredients until you're ready to bring it indoors.

4. When you've set it indoors, fill the reservoir twice a day with remaining mixture, every morning and every night before bedtime! Now your tree will be fireproofed!

How does it work?

The Karo syrup provides the sugar which allows he tree to soak up enormous amounts of water. Without the sugar, only the smallest amounts of water are absorbed. You can expect the tree to soak up 1 1/2 gallons of the recipe during the 10 to 14 day period your tree is up.

The Boron (in the Boraxo) makes the water and sugar move to every needle of your tree. Boron does this not only in trees, b ut in vegetables, fruits, and even house plants.

Then, there's the Epsom Salts and the Chelated Iron. Epsom Salt is magnesium sulphate, and this, together with the iron, provides the center molecules in the process we know as chlorophyll production. This ensures green needles.

The Chlorine bleach stops a mold from forming when water and sugar stand for a period of time.

Olivvy-isms, another one

From 10-13-09

As we were driving by the Sheraton Denver West, Zach said, "The middle [building]'s where you got married, right?"

Me, thinking, close enough. It was where we had our reception. "Yes."

Olivia, "Me meh-y you, Mahm." Translation: I'm going to marry you, Mom.

Ah, I'll have to treasure that because it's not going to be long that she'll want to have me as her life partner. :)

Olivvy-isms

A couple from today:

After Zach said, "When I'm 21, I'm gonna drive a MONSTER TRUCK!"
Olivia said, in the teeny voice she uses to be cute, "When me wenty-wahn, me dive a (in an especially high voice) bee-bee monstah tuck."

At lunch, pulling a cloth napkin over her head and fastening it below her chin: "Me Leetle Bo Peenk!"

Obviously, we need to continue working on personal pronoun use. I need to work on recording her words, too. She is pretty darn cute!

Oh, I remember a couple of others:

Talking to Daddy on the phone one night after she should have been asleep, in response to Daddy's inquiry of, "Are you going to have sweet dreams?" Olivia answered, "No! Ine makin cookies."
*If only there were a way to share the inflections in their voices, too.

And this is almost every night he comes home from work, but maybe slightly more enthousiastically when he's been gone on a trip, "Dahddee!!!! I weely missed you soo much!!!!"
*I sometimes consider leaving the kids for a few hours, just so I can experience the 'welcome homes' he gets!

Zachism

Oh, goodness! This was cute.

Zach (watching The Big Green Rabbit on PBS): Mom, why don't we have dose white tings dat come out of our noses?
Me (not watching the show, and having no clue what he was talking about): Huh?
Zach: Dose white tings dat are long, on mammoths?
Me: Oh, tusks?
Zach: Yeah! Why don't we have dem?
Me: That's just the way they are made.
Zach: Dat's just how God made dem?
Me: Yep.
Zach (after a pause, and thoughtfully): I love God.

Yeah, Moms!

MOTHERS

Real Mothers don't eat quiche; they don't have time to make it.
Real Mothers know that their kitchen utensils are probably in the sandbox.
Real Mothers often have sticky floors, filthy ovens and happy kids.
Real Mothers know that dried play dough doesn't come out of carpets.
Real Mothers don't want to know what the vacuum just sucked up...
Real Mothers sometimes ask 'Why me?' and get their answer when a little voice says, 'Because I love you best.'
Real Mothers know that a child's growth is not measured by height or years or grade.....
It is marked by the progression of Mommy to Mom to Mother.

The Images of Mother
4 YEARS OF AGE - My Mommy can do anything!
8 YEARS OF AGE - My Mom knows a lot! A whole lot!
12 YEARS OF AGE - My Mother doesn’t know everything!
14 YEARS OF AGE - My Mother? She wouldn’t have a clue.
16 YEARS OF AGE - Mother? She's so five minutes ago.
18 YEARS OF AGE - That old woman? She's way out of date!
25 YEARS OF AGE - Well, she might know a little bit about it!
35 YEARS OF AGE - Before we decide, let's get Mom's opinion.
45 YEARS OF AGE - Wonder what Mom would have thought about it?
65 YEARS OF AGE - Wish I could talk it over with Mom.

~An email

Hawkeyes!

Back when we were freshmen, Carrie and I decided we should DEFINITELY be some of those die-hard, old lady Hawkeyes, slugging beers and sporting our striped bibs at Kinnick in our 70s.

Care - are we still on for a Hawkeye game day in about 2040, wearing these? We should maybe order some sooner than later.

Anyone else? I'll see if we can get a group discount.

And, yes, I'm aware the Hawks lost their game yesterday and now stand at 9-1. Sob. Still love 'em!