Our Christmas tree this year is not a perfect specimen. It is asymmetrical, slightly bushier on one side, and has a decidedly wonky top. But I love it because it is an Eco Christmas Tree! It is a real living tree in a pot, and we have hired it for December. I though this concept was brilliant as soon as I heard about it – with tree delivery and collection included, you also get the satisfaction of knowing that a healthy tree continues to grow and thrive all year round.

When I was growing up we always had our Christmas tree in a pot. My mum and dad bought a small living Christmas tree for my first Christmas as a baby and every year for 20 years we continued to bring the same tree into the house. In the end it was so tall that it touched the ceiling. I really loved thinking of the tree and I growing alongside each other.

When Rowan was born, I intended to create a similar tradition for our household. But I soon learnt that my mum is a better gardener than I because I was unable to keep our little tree alive for the year… But Eco Christmas Trees provides the perfect service for someone like me. They even offer to deliver the same Christmas tree to you next year!

I do love Christmas tree traditions, and one of the Christmas stories Rowan and I are enjoying at the moment is Mr Willowby’s Christmas Tree by Robert Barry.

The story starts with the delivery of a very tall Christmas tree to Mr Willowby’s grand house. The tree is the biggest he’s ever seen – so big that it can’t stand up straight in his parlour! Mr Willowby asks his butler to chop off the top of the tree so that it will fit better. The butler cuts the top, but instead of throwing it away, he decides to offer the cutting to Miss Adelaide, the upstairs maid. Miss Adelaide gratefully accepts her ‘tree’, but discovers the tree-top is too tall for her attic room, so she too trims off the top… And so the story continues, and the tree-top is gradually shortened and shared with smaller and smaller animals.

I love the idea that a tree can become lots of mini-trees, as well as the wonderful sense of sharing in this book. The final illustration of Mr Willowby with his tree in the foreground, with the detail of a tiny mouse-hole and the mice and their miniature tree is so lovely.

What about everyone else? What Christmas books are you enjoying at the moment?

||Mr Willowby’s Christmas Tree is available in the We Heart Books store||