THE SELLING SEASON

 

WE OPENED AT 11:00 FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23,  WE WERE BUSY ALL  DAY, NOT OVERRUN, BUT BUSY. WE SOLD 37 TREES,  AND HAD ALOT OF LOOKERS.  IT WAS PROMISING!!

 

 

ALOT OF OUR CUSTOMERS FROM LAST YEAR, CAME IN TO BUY AND VISIT WITH US..... SOME JUST TO SEE IF WE HAD COME BACK.  IT WAS A GOOD SATURDAY, WE SOLD 40 TREES, MORE THAN  WE SOLD ON ANY DAY LAST YEAR. ON SUNDAY DARRELL  GOT A LOAD OF TREES, WE SOLD 44 TREES  SUNDAY. IT  WAS PRETTY SLOW DURING THE WEEK, BUT WE WERE LOOKING  FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND.

SALVADOR IS OUR TREE FLOCKER THIS YEAR, HE IS VERY GOOD AT IT!! DARRELL WAS GLAD, HE NEVER LIKED THAT JOB.

 

 

 

 

WE FLOCKED ALOT OF TREES FOR CUSTOMERS, BUT WE ALSO  LIKED TO HAVE SOME ON THE FLOOR  TO SELL, SO JOHN DID SOME FLOCKING ALSO, TURNS OUT HE IS VERY GOOD AT IT TOO. 

 

 

 

 

DAVID  MADE THE KIDS TREES AGAIN THIS YEAR, AND THE KIDS WERE THRILLED!!

 

 

 

 

 

SOME MORE THAN OTHERS............

 

IT WAS A GREAT SEASON.........  OUR HELP WAS AWESOME!!! WE ENDED UP HIRING ONE EXTRA GUY, ANTHONY. SO, WE HAD TWO ANTHONYS.

 

 

 

ANTHONY P.

 

 

 

AND JOHN'S SON ANTHONY H.

 

 

DAVID

 

 

JOHN

 

 

AND OF COURSE, SALVADOR

 

 

 WE COULDN'T HAVE ASKED FOR A BETTER CREW!! AND COULD NOT HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT THEM.THE MOST WE SOLD IN ONE DAY WAS 61. THE LEAST WAS  7.  WE WERE OPEN 24 DAYS.   WE SOLD OUT OF TREES ON SUNDAY, DECEMBER 16 AT 9:00 P.M.  THE NEXT MORNING WE TOOK ALL THE SIGNS DOWN,  LOCKED THE GATE  AND CLOSED THE TENT FLAPS.  WHAT A RELIEF!!   THEN WE STARTED PACKING THE TRAILER AND WERE  FINISHED ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 20.

 

 

 

  WE HAD PEOPLE AT THE TENT WANTING TO BUY A CHRISTMAS TREE EVERY DAY UP UNTIL THE 22ND. THEY COULD HARDLY BELIEVE WE DIDN'T HAVE  TREES.

WE WENT TO THE CHRISTMAS PARTY/BUSINESS MEETING ON CHRISTMAS DAY.  IT WAS FUN!!

 

 

 

ELAINE AND DARYL GAVE EACH COUPLE A "GAG" GIFT.....WE GOT THE LOOOOOONG DACHSHUND STOCKING!! 

 

 

 WE HAD ALL EXCHANGED NAMES AT THE START OF THE SEASON, SO WE ALL GOT GIFTS.

 

 

WE ALL THOUGHT MIKE'S GIFT WAS VERY APPROPRIATE......

 

 

ON THE 29TH OF DECEMBER WE GOT PAID FOR ALL OUR HARD WORK...IT WAS MORE THAN WE THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE AND WE WERE VERY  HAPPY!!  WE SOLD 645 TREES THIS YEAR COMPARED TO 416 LAST YEAR. IT WAS A VERY GOOD YEAR!!

 

BEFORE LEAVING SAN ANTONIO WE HAD A CHANCE TO SPEND SOME TIME WITH OUR FRIENDS FROM LAST YEAR, KAREN AND MIKE.

 

 

I FINALLY GOT TO SEE THE RIVERWALK LIT UP FOR THE SEASON....IT WAS BEAUTIFUL!!!

 

 

AND THE ALAMO AT NIGHT!!!

 

 

WE LEFT SAN ANTONIO ON JANUARY 1, 2013, HEADED FOR SOUTH PADRE ISLAND FOR A MONTH'S VACATION. 

 

 

 

 

SAN ANTONIO TEXAS AND LOT NUMBER FOUR

 

WE ARRIVED AT THE CHRISTMAS TREE LOT AT 10:30 ON THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8. AFTER HAVING LUNCH WE DROVE TO THE WAREHOUSE AND PICKED UP THE TRAILER. WE STARTED UNLOADING IT THE NEXT MORNING.

 

 

 

AFTER WE GOT EVERYTHING UNLOADED, WE STARTED PUTTING THE OFFICE TOGETHER.

 

 

 

 

BY LUNCH THE OFFICE WAS UP!! WE SPENT THE REST OF THE AFTERNOON ORGANIZING  AND TAKING INVENTORY.  THE ORIENTATION MEETING WAS THE NEXT DAY AT 10:00 AT THE WAREHOUSE, SO WE NEEDED TO KNOW WHAT WE WERE SHORT, SO WE COULD PICK IT UP THE NEXT DAY.

 

 

ONLY 2 OTHER COUPLES FROM LAST YEAR CAME BACK THIS YEAR.....NINE NEW COUPLES AGAIN!!

 

 

WE WERE GLAD TO SEE OUR FRIENDS FROM LAST YEAR, KAREN AND MIKE.

DARYL SMITH, THE OWNER, SAID WE WOULD BE GETTING TREES NEXT WEEK....SO THE  PRESSURE  WAS ON TO GET THE TENT SET UP AND GET SOME EMPLOYEES HIRED TO HELP US.

FIRST THING SUNDAY MORNING WE PUT UP THE SIGNS ON THE FENCE, INCLUDING THE "HELP WANTED" SIGN.

 

 

STARTED STRINGING THE LIGHTS  FIRST THING MONDAY MORNING....

 

 

 

 

 SALVADOR  GARCIA,  WHO WORKED FOR US LAST YEAR ,CAME BY AND WE HIRED HIM!!  WE ALREADY KNEW DAVID, FROM LAST YEAR,  WAS COMING BACK, SO WE HAD TWO MORE GUYS TO HIRE. WE HIRED ANTHONY AND JOHN.   DARRELL  GOT THE FIRST LOAD OF TREES ON THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15. SAL AND ANTHONY CAME AT 1:00 TO DRILL AND SET THE TREES. WE GOT 52 TREES, THEY HAD THEM DONE IN  TWO HOURS.

 

 

 

 

 

 BRIAN AND MIKE CAME AND PUT THE "BIG FOIL TREE" OUT FRONT.

 

 

 

 

WE WERE HOPING THE " BIG TREE " WOULD DRAW ATTENTION !!!

 

 

 

 

EVERY DAY DARRELL GOT A LOAD OF TREES AND THE GUYS GOT THEM DRILLED  AND SET THEM UP. DARRELL AND I OPENED THEM, MEASURED THEM, WATERED THEM,  AND PRICED THEM.......IT WAS QUITE A JOB!! 

 

 

 

BY THANKSGIVING, WE HAD 226 TREES STANDING AND HAD ALREADY SOLD A FEW. DARRELL HAD ALSO FLOCKED SIX TREES. OUR TENT WAS FULL AND WE HAD BACKSTOCK!!

 

 

I MADE A TURKEY WITH ALL THE TRIMMINGS. WE STUFFED OURSELVES AND TOOK THE REST OF THE DAY OFF. WE HAD AN ENJOYABLE THANKSGIVING......AND LEFTOVERS!!

 

 

 

 

WE WERE  READY FOR OPENING DAY, HOPING FOR A GREAT SEASON!!! 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ENCHANTED ROCK STATE PARK

 

THE NEXT DAY WE TOOK MAGGIE AND MARLEE AND HEADED TO  ENCHANTED ROCK STATE PARK. IT IS ONLY 18 MILES FROM FREDERICKSBURG, AND YOU ARE ALLOWED TO HIKE TO THE TOP.   ENCHANTED ROCK IS A HUGE PINK GRANITE FORMATION. THE PROMINENT, GRANITE DOME IS VISIBLE FOR MANY MILES. WE LEFT FAIRLY EARLY IN THE MORNING, AS IT PROMISED TO BE A WARM DAY!

 

 

THERE WERE SEVERAL GROUPS OF SCHOOL CHILDREN HIKING AND HAVING A SCAVENGER HUNT......WE BECAME " PARENTS WITH PUPS",  THE "P" WORDS THAT THEY NEEDED. ONE OF THE GIRLS SNAPPED OUR PICTURES.

 

 

IT WAS ALREADY GETTING HOT!!

 

 

WE HAD HARDLY STARTED AND MARLEE WAS PANTING!!

 

IT WAS QUITE A CLIMB, BUT, IT WAS FUN!! WE HAD TO KEEP STOPPING AND RESTING!!

 

 

THE VIEWS WERE INCREDIBLE!!

 

 

IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL DAY....THIS WOULD BE OUR LAST DAY OFF FOR QUITE A WHILE!! WE WERE GLAD TO BE SHARING IT WITH OUR M & MS.

 

 

 

 

 

TOMORROW WE HEAD TO SAN ANTONIO AND WORK!!!