For many families, picking out a Christmas tree is a family tradition that's been in place for generations.
Single mother Patty Weber decided to start one, too, with her daughter, Emma Weber-Patchen, on Sunday during a visit to a Brazos Valley Christmas tree farm.
The mother and daughter drove from Houston with Weber's father.
"I've always heard about doing something like this as a family tradition," she said. "With me being a single mom, we don't have the traditional family. So I always try to find something special for [Emma] and me."
The family spent about an hour searching for "the perfect tree" -- as 6-year-old Emma referred to it -- before grabbing a saw and getting to work cutting it down.
The tree's size, shape and fullness were taken into account in making the selection, and the final decision had to be approved by all three family members, Weber said.
While looking online for Christmas tree farms in the Houston area, Weber said, she stumbled upon the Kelumac Christmas Tree Farm in Robertson County and decided it was worth a trip.
The Kelumac Christmas Tree Farm is nestled deep in the woods off winding dirt roads, and getting there is not as simple as running to the store for a tree.
But that only makes the process even more special, Weber said.
"It was fun," she said. "I would find one I liked but would want to keep looking because there are so many to choose from."
Keith McDaniel and his wife have been working the farm since 1988, when they planted their first crop of trees.
The first round of tree sales didn't come for four years, because Christmas trees take about that long to mature, McDaniel said.
The trees on the Kelumac Farm grow to be 5 to 9 feet tall, and customers have about 400 of them to choose from in a variety of types, including Virginia pine, Fraser firs, Leyland cypress and Carolina Sapphire.
There are about 150 Christmas tree farms in Texas, and almost 20 are in the Brazos Valley and Houston areas.
McDaniel said he enjoys what he does because it keeps him active. But, he said, the most rewarding part of his job is being able to contribute to so many families' holidays and watch as young families like the Webers begin their own customs.
Many of his customers make an event out of visiting the farm year after year, McDaniel said. His 23-acre property includes a two-room bed-and-breakfast, and some people stay overnight when coming to make their tree selection, he said.
"The Christmas tree represents a time to come together and join as a family," he said. "Every family has their own tradition."
McDaniel said he lets his wife, Lou, pick out the couple's own tree.
She said people like their trees in all shapes and sizes.
Some prefer tall, full and green ones, while others seek out thin, small and branchy trees, or what they call "Charlie Brown" trees, she said.
But for her, she said, it's not necessarily about the tree she picks out, but what type of tree it is.
"We have a [Fraser] fir tree," she said. "I prefer them because it was the tree I was raised with. It's Christmas to me."
In Normangee, Carole Huebner and her husband have been growing Christmas trees for five years on the Huebner Christmas Tree Farm.
Last year was the couple's first year to sell their crop, and this year, they had about 600 trees to choose from.
Huebner said she and her husband decided to go into the business because they enjoy growing things. But, like the McDaniels, she said that's not what's most important.
"Family tradition is what we encourage," Huebner said. "It's something the kids will remember when they get older and hopefully something they will continue in their families."
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