For The Birds

I  had this brilliant idea to decorate a tree outside for the birds this year. Outdoor Rec on base was giving away real Christmas trees to families and when I heard they had a few left on a day I had a meeting on base...I decided to stop and try to get one while the boys were playing with friends. I chose the smallest tree they had and since I didn't load it into the car I was unaware of how big it still really was...

Carrying it around back wasn't the problem...getting it to stand up was...luckily the boys had fallen asleep on the way home so I didn't have any extra hands helping...

After propping the tree up with different bricks and rocks in a flower pot I filled it with dirt and this seemed to work...it must have been a sight to watch...trying to balance the tree, reaching for more bricks, running to get more when it still won't stand up...it falling over and dirt going everywhere...yes I was cursing myself for this BRILLIANT idea.

The next day, Henry enjoyed decorating pine cones for the tree with PB and birdseed...

Then we popped some corn and strung cranberries and popcorn for garland...

Time to decorate!

All ready for the birds...

Of course a few mornings later, the strong winds came as they often do in NM and our tree fell over...but the birds didn't mind...