Our Christmas Tree

Alvin: Daddy did a really good thing yesterday.

Olive: Did he?

Alvin: Yes, because he had been away for the weekend, leaving me and mummy to look after you, Olive, and you had been such a little handful. Once, you even made mummy cry cos you were so naughty...

Olive: No, I didn't

Alvin: Yes you did

Olive: Did I?

Alvin: Yep

Olive: (silence)

Alvin: So daddy came home with a big surprise for all of us

Olive: Oh yes it was huge. I know because I saw it. I saw it first because I was in the kitchen with mummy when we saw his headlights on the drive. So mummy said 'Thank God! Quick, Olive, go and see daddy!'
So, I let go of her ankle and ran out to the front door and when mummy opened it, I ran out to see daddy in his car.
I jumped all over him and kissed him and said hello and all sorts and then he kissed mummy too so I ran over to give her a kiss too.
And then daddy went over to the back of the car and opened the huge door that I sit in sometimes, and you will just never believe what he pulled out....

Alvin: Oh surprise me. I mean, this was my story, but go ahead, surprise me

Olive: A tree!!! He pulled a tree out of the car.
Daddy knows how much I love trees. Sometimes I find trees that have fallen over in the road and I pick them up and they come with me on my walks. Mummy and daddy always laugh and say 'that's not a stick, it's a twig' but they don't know, cos it's a tree!

Alvin: Olive, they're twigs. I've seen the ones you've left on the rug for us all to tidy up after you.

Olive: Anyway, this one was huge, and it must have been huge because mummy put her arms around daddy and told him he was the best husband ever.

Alvin: So they brought in the tree. I saw this bit cos Olive stopped in the hall to go crazy after all the pine needles and twigs that had fallen off in the hallyway and I was helping mummy to stand it up and look nice.
It took a while and daddy had to go into the cupboard to get a hammer. He said a naughty word and shouted once when he got a sore thumb and mummy laughed.
They put the tree in the corner where only rabbits and dogs can go. They made like a little den for us and it smells really good.

Olive: Tastes really good too

Alvin: Shhhh...

Olive: Oh yeah, right

Alvin, Oh but then they have covered it with all kinds of things and some tasty wire which lights up. Tastes different to all their other cables - fresh and sparkling.

Olive: Yeah

Alvin: What do you know? Dogs don't eat cables.

Olive: Silly rabbit, dogs eat everything - we're very versatile.

Alvin: Ah, Christmas is in the air again.... such a delightful time of year. Such a feast of boxes and wrapping paper to come.

Olive: And trees

Alvin: And trees