Tag: Beverly Tree Farm

Beverly Tree Farm

Posted on by Nichole S.

Are the trees getting shorter….or are my boys getting taller?

Last Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, marked the 7th year in a row that we have driven to the Beverly Tree Farm….Christmas carols cranking…. in search of our perfect tree. Some years we are in search of big….some years small.  Some years we go in search of super full….some years extra tall.

What doesn’t change is how excited we are to enter the Bertolon Family’s gorgeous red barn house to sit by the fire, drink some cider, share some cookies, flip through the “Naughty and Nice” book, inevitably bump into some friends, and head out into the designated field in search of the tree that speaks to us.

Some years it has been unseasonably warm…and a couple of times there has been some snow on the ground.  No matter what the weather, we always leave the farm….tree strapped securely to the roof of the car…full of holiday cheer and ready to kick off the Christmas season.

It means so much to me to know that the boys will look back fondly on traditions like this one as they grow older and will hopefully continue them with their own families.  Maybe they’ll let me tag along.

I want to thank the Bertolon family and all of the wonderful staff who, while conscious of it or not, are helping to make memories for countless families each holiday season.

I got such a kick out of looking back through photos of our “Tree Cutting Days” last night and seeing how the boys have grown each year. I look forward to many more years of tree hunting and the memories that they will bring.

I hope that you all find the perfect one of whatever it is that makes your holiday season so special and that happy memory making awaits you and your loved ones this season.

Learn more about THE BEVERLY TREE FARM Here

2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016

Finding “The One” at Beverly Tree Farm

Posted on by Nichole S.

Exactly one year ago I was waxing poetically (well, maybe not poetically) about how much we love cutting down our Christmas tree each year at the Beverly Tree Farm.

This year was no different.

Click HERE to read more about the Beverly Tree Farm

With a gorgeous red “barn”, a roaring fire, cider, hot chocolate, Christmas Cookies, holiday decorations, the friendliest staff going, and beautiful decorations, our time there each year screams Warm Fuzzies.

To some, the trees may seem pricey at $90 each, but the experience of living the good cheer, walking the fields, searching for THE ONE, sawing it down, and tagging it is honestly, truly priceless.

Another thing that you should know, is that every penny over the expenses of operating the tree farm goes to a worthy charity.  Over $110,000 has been gifted in just the four short years that the Bertolon family has been running the farm.  This year’s charity is the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Salem.

This year we spent a good hour searching for our perfect tree. CERTAINLY not because there were not hundreds of good options, but simply because it was fun to take our time.

We went on Saturday after gaining confidence that the rain was over.  In talking to the owners we learned that more than 450 trees had been sold on Friday.  Which, they also pointed out, was one tree every 48 seconds!

Sadly, if you are feeling inspired to go find the tree that speaks to you, you only have one more day to do so.  With so many fans, friends, and returning customers the tree farm sells out quickly.  They plan on being open Saturday, December 5th but that just may be the end of the season!  Please check the link above to be certain.

Christmas Tree. Check.

Posted on by Nichole S.

Another successful search for the most perfect of trees is in the books.  Cheers again to the Bertolon Family and Beverly Tree Farm for opening their doors, helping us to create lasting memories, and raising money for The Cabot Performing Arts Center.

Beverly Tree Farm

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Thank You Nichole Schrafft for the Beverly Tree Farm Recommendation!

Posted on by Kimsmithdesigns

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAMany thanks to Nichole for her wonderful recommendation to purchase Christmas trees at the Beverly Tree Farm. Nichole wrote of her family’s tradition in this week’s “Nichole’s Family Picks of the Weekend.” Although we don’t have little ones any longer living at home to enjoy the wonderful hospitality provided by the Bertolon Family, I needed a freshly cut tree that will last through an extended holiday season. Usually our tree goes up the second week or so in December, but as our daughter won’t be home for Christmas she asked if we could get the tree up and decorate while she is visiting.

The dork that I am, I showed up at the farm by myself and without saw–I thought it was pick your own, not saw your own, too! Fortunately, the very sweet Mrs Bertolon had just the solution, which was to select from a small pile of trees that folks had cut the previous day, but had left behind.

My next dilemma was the fact they place the tree on top of your car, but for liability reasons cannot tie it down for you. After watching the dad in the car next to mine expertly tie his down, I attempted to secure ours. I couldn’t have been more inept and within a few moments, the super nice dad had successfully tied mine down, too (he mentioned that he formerly worked at a tree farm). Thank you beautiful family from Marblehead!

The Farm is only open tomorrow, Sunday, and next weekend, December 6th and 7th, or only as long as this year’s crop of harvestable trees last.

For more about Nichole’s family’s experience read her post here and visit the Beverly Tree Farm website here.

 

the-girls-and-JacksonMrs. Bertolon (holding her granddaughter)

Images courtesy Beverly Tree Farm Website

Nichole’s Family Picks of the Weekend 11/29 + 11/30

Posted on by Nichole S.

Pick #1

So, I’m cheating here a bit with this post because my 1st pick is actually a few weeks from now.  Originally, I was going to post about the Parent/Child Cupcake making class that is taking place at Eurostoves on Saturday 11/29, BUT it is sold out….which made me think that some things I may want to recommend in the future may need to be written about ahead of time so that interested readers don’t get shut out!  I’ll try to keep that in mind.

You’re in luck, however, because the “Parent/Child Cupcake Crazy” is also being offered on December 26th.  So book now….and turn it into a great little gift to put under the tree!  A fantastic little date day for you and yours (or a niece, nephew, grandchild, etc) all wrapped up with a bow.  Annnnd, no need for the recipient of your awesome gift to be patient, because just when the Christmas buzz is about to wear off, you get to hop in the car and keep the fun going!

Check out Eurostoves here

Pick #2

If I’m to be honest, I haven’t been here yet, but I’ve been meaning to go and this weekend’s Annual Holiday Bazaar in the “magical shop in the forest” sounds pretty perfect to me.  I love the sound of the nature-inspired gifts, but strolling through craft tables can get boring for kids, let’s be honest.  The Center for Wildlife in Cape Neddick, Maine, (just over an hour away….so not too bad!) eliminates that by giving the kiddos an opportunity to meet the owl, hawk, falcon, and more who call the center home! And, this weekend’s events will also include winter book readings.

“Environmental Fairy Tales Come Alive! We will have readings of “A Christmas Owl” and “A Winter Solstice Celebration” at 1pm and 2pm. Gather under our educational pavilion, enjoy hot cocoa and cider, listen to these great tales, and meet some of the animals from the book!”

Stop for some lunch and hot cocoa in Newburyport on the way home to break up the drive and you’ve made a whole day of it!

Check out the Center for Wildlife here!

Pick #3

One of our favorite holiday traditions!!  For the record, traditions are really important to my little family unit.  Because I say so.  Kidding.  In all seriousness, creating traditions and being sure to do them each year so that our boys would hopefully learn to love and cherish them, was really important to me.  So, we have several traditions that we don’t mess with….and hopefully never will.  One of those is cutting down our Christmas Tree.  In November of 2010, the Bertolon family opened the Beverly Tree Farm.  Since then, countless families have marked their calendars to make the annual pilgrimage to their gorgeous property to find the one.  The one perfect tree that speaks to them!

We have gone every year since.  I’m not going to lie, the trees could easily be considered expensive. However, you’re not just paying for a tree.  You’re paying for hot cider, cocoa, homemade Christmas cookies, a roaring fire, and an incredibly kind and friendly family run business.  You’re paying for holiday memories in the making.  When they first opened it was possible to tag the tree of your dreams and then go back and get it later. When that was an option, we got two times the tradition for the price of one!  We would go, find our tree, decorate it at the farm, have some holiday yummies, sit by the fire, and then head home….Christmas carols blaring! Then, we’d head back the following week, search for our masterpiece, and cut her down. We’d eat some more yummies, sit by the fire for a bit longer, strap it onto the car….and head home once again.

Tagging it for later pick-up is no longer an option.  One of the reasons for that is that the tree farm is so phenomenal that they now sell out of trees in just two short weekends.  They open the day after Thanksgiving and stay open just this weekend and next weekend.  That’s it.  Still, even without the tagging, it is totally worth it.

A very important fact to know is that the Bertolon family uses proceeds to cover operating costs and then gives every other penny to charity.  A couple of years ago a large recipient was Hospice of the North Shore….last year, they were able to give $25,000 to Direct Relief to assist Philippine victims recovering from Super Typhoon Haiyan.  In all, over the past few years, they have given an incredibly $85,000 to selected charities.  This year’s charity is The Cabot….as in The Cabot Performing Arts Center in Beverly.

So, be sure to check out the Beverly Tree Farm here!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.