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I kiss the tip of her frozen nose. “Sounds perfect.”
After our ride with the kids, we head home to begin decking the halls.
I park the truck in front of our modern Swiss chalet, and Taeli hurries inside with her bags as Caleb and I unload and trim the trees.
We enter our cozy mountain home, the scent of pine and the warmth of the crackling fire greeting us, and carefully deposit the trees in stands and place them in the spots assigned by Taeli.
The massive sixteen-foot Christmas tree stands in the corner of our spacious living room beside the stone fireplace, its branches stretching toward and nearly reaching the ceiling. The thought of decorating it is a mix of joy and challenge as I fetch the A-frame ladder from the garage.
“All right, team,” Taeli says with enthusiasm, “let’s make this tree the best decorated in Balsam Ridge.”
Caleb glances at me and rolls his eyes as we gather around the tree, plastic totes of ornaments and twinkling lights spread out across the floor.
“This is going to take all night,” Caleb muses.
Taeli looks up from the ball of lights she is trying to untangle. “It’s a good thing I called in reinforcements.”
As if on cue, the front door swings open, and Taeli’s mother, Leona, and her beau, Ralph Gentry, enter, their arms loaded down with boxes.
“Granna,” Caleb cries as he runs to Leona. “Look at our Christmas tree.” He points up at the Fraser fir.
“Wow, that’s a stunner,” Leona gasps.
“Yeah, thank goodness you came by because we’re gonna need a lot of help to decorate it,” Caleb quips.
“Well, we brought dinner so we can get our bellies full and get to it,” Ralph says.
Caleb takes the box from his grandmother’s grasp and follows Ralph into the kitchen.
“Sara-Beth and Hilton are coming by to pitch in as well. I talked to her on the ride over, and they’ll be here as soon as they finish up at Langford’s,” Leona informs us.
“They don’t have to rush over here. I’m sure Isley can use the help too,” I say.
“Zoey and Morris are over there. Besides, Sara-Beth and Hilton want to see Caleb before he leaves for Chicago.”
I see the sadness flash in Taeli’s eyes before she can hide it.
It’s always difficult for her to send Caleb to his father’s, but this time of year is especially hard because there is much he will miss.
Caleb and Ralph rejoin us, and before long, the ladies retreat to the kitchen to get dinner heated and plated while we fellas get to work, twisting the lights around the tree.
Mom and Pop arrive, and we share the meal of pot roast and cornbread with them before we return to the task at hand.
The room echoes with laughter as Caleb and I engage in a friendly competition to see who can empty a tote and get the ornaments on the tree fastest while Taeli, Mom, and Leona sit, threading popcorn and cranberries and critiquing our placement skills.
“Caleb, you have to spread them out better than that. All your balls are in a clump,” Taeli instructs.
“It’s no fair. He’s taller than me,” Caleb cries.
Ralph quietly makes his way to Caleb’s side and starts sneakily moving ornaments up higher.
I watch as Caleb grins when his soon-to-be grandfather winks at him.
We cover the branches with the delicate glass ornaments Taeli purchased with beautiful, intricate designs and mix in Caleb’s handmade creations from school years past.
I contribute some old-fashioned wooden ornaments from my first marriage. Taeli found the box I had saved in the attic, and when I explained what they were, she insisted we keep and display them.
Once we’ve emptied all the totes, Pop turns off the lights, and I climb under the tree and secure the plug in the outlet.
