The hunt is on for the perfect tree, a Christmas tradition for many

CHIPPEWA TWP. − Rachel Haswell tried to keep up with her 4-year-old son as he bounded between pine trees and bounced over thick grasses.

Then, just as he ran too far, he stopped and looked up at a towering Canaan fir tree. He found it — the perfect Christmas tree.

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"Dad, I found the one I want," he yelled, pointing at the tree. "Cut it down."

Once his family caught up, they decided the tree was too tall for their home and moved on, only for Haswell to find the next perfect tree.

It was the Haswell family's first Christmas tree hunt together at Galehouse Tree Farm outside of Wayne County's Doylestown. Like hundreds of other families, they decided the day after Thanksgiving was the best day to chop down a tree.

"It's our first as a family because we wanted to wait until they were old enough to remember," Haswell said, looking back at her young sons — the youngest 8 months. "Well, one of them."

Picking the perfect Christmas tree

Steven Haswell followed behind his wife and eldest son, dragging a black plastic sled behind him. On it sat carefully covered tools separating them from the baby boy who was unfazed by the pine needles and grass landing in the sled.

As they walked, Haswell sized up each tree, judging its height, girth and sturdiness.

"It can't be too tall, but we're also looking for something full," he said. "It has to hold a lot of ornaments."

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A few hundred yards away, another family searched for and found the right tree.

Kneeling under the tree, Lucy Burrington,12, sawed at the Canaan fir as her father held it in place.

"I can't get it. Can you get it lined up again," Burrington asked her dad. "Just don't cut it down; I want to do that."

Switching places, John Burrington realigned the saw blade and returned to his tree-holding position.

In a few quick minutes, his daughter felled the tree with the family yelling, "Timber!"

A Christmas family tradition plays out at Galehouse Tree Farm in Wayne County

This is the Burrington family's 15th year cutting down trees at Galehouse Tree Farm. Coming from Cuyahoga Falls, they make it every year on Black Friday.

Rain, snow or shine, it's a tradition they won't miss.

"We always go for Canaan firs because they aren't too prickly and hold a lot of ornaments; we have like two big buckets of ornaments," Burrington said after putting the tree on a sled. "This year we went skinny but full, it'll be a good one."

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Each year, they time how long it takes to find a tree. Some years are slow, but, he said, this year was quick.

"We did it in around 13 minutes, I think," he noted.

Part of their holiday tradition comes months after ornaments and lights are packed away. Once the tree is removed, they take it behind their house where it dries out.

Once it is thoroughly dried in April or May, they place it in a fire pit and set it on fire. It's a Christmas tree bonfire to inaugurate the warmer weather.

"Oh it's great, I recommend it," Burrington said, showing a photo of the fire on his phone. "It's so much fun."

Decorating for the holidays

His wife, Shauna Burrington, started decorating for Christmas on Thanksgiving night, she said.

Prompted by her two daughters, they broke out the lights and figurines while her husband placed two 8-foot homemade reindeer ears on either side of their front porch.

For the next month, she said, their house will be part reindeer.

Most years, Amand Jamil's kids don't have many opinions on Christmas decorations. This year, however, her daughter knew exactly what she wanted.

"My daughter wanted everything decorated early on, so everything was decorated by Veterans Day," Jamil said as her husband loaded a pine tree onto a sled. "They had a lot of opinions about the tree."

And as with many kids at the tree farm, every tree was a contender.

"It took us 45 minutes to find the perfect tree," she said.

That perfect tree was "fatter and taller," Jamil said.

Once the tree is home, Jamil predicted her kids would decorate it to celebrate Christmas as soon as possible.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Holiday traditions begin with fir: Picking the perfect Christmas tree