It’s actually the Festival of Trees. But the convention center was so packed that I truly feared being sneezed upon. I didn’t look at the trees so much as stand in a line and shuffle past them.
For those of you not in the know, SneezeFest is a fundraiser for Primary Children’s Medical Center. People decorate Christmas trees and donate them to the festival. Rich people buy them. Money is raised for a good cause and all is well.
Some people get creative with the trees, and the results are adorable. There was a Pooh tree . . .
Later, a Coca-Cola polar bear tree. (A tribute not just to a product but a specific ad campaign for that product)
The children were especially taken by this little Lego tree . . .
. . . we found the Angry Birds tree amusing . . .
. . . and I loved the Barbie tree mainly because it gave up all pretense of tree-hood. It’s just a conical pile of boxes.
Eleanor’s expression in the above photo pretty much sums up our attitude towards the evening: basically good but kinda overwhelming. After seeing 100+ trees you get tree-blindness, and everything becomes a blur of twinkle lights. Add to that the gingerbread houses, wreaths, candy shoppe, craft booths, live entertainment, and a children’s game area, and, well.
I’m exhausted just writing about it.
Special thanks to my mother-in-law, Kathryn, for coming with us! I don’t think I could have survived without the extra adult to herd the kids. It’s been ten years since I’ve been to Festival of Trees, and I think it will be another ten more before I go again. Beautiful and fun, but whew!
Casa Camisas 
I see the Crown Burger drink! At least you ate well on the way there :). I would definitely have tree-blindness after the first ten and near the end I would probably be arrested for tree-homicide as I battle my way out of the crowds and trees.
Tree homicide is what I thought about when I saw how long the line was for hot scones. But I was able to score some fudge, so that was a plus.
Dinner at Crown Burger: also a definite plus. Eleanor nursed that cup of root beer for well over an hour, it was amazing.
That face is exactly how I feel about the Barbie tree as well.