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'Modern Family' Recap: The Old Man And The Tree

Christianna Wiggins |
December 12, 2013 | 3:47 a.m. PST

Staff Reporter

Cameron and Lily accidentally attend a party for the needy. (ABC)
Cameron and Lily accidentally attend a party for the needy. (ABC)
Last night's episode of "Modern Family" was filled with holiday cheer. From Christmas shopping to cutting down Christmas trees, everyone was immersed in their own seasonal traditions. 

Following a Pritchett family tradition, Jay (Ed O'Neil) takes Manny (Rico Rodriguez) into the woods to cut down their very own Christmas tree. Once in the forest, Jay forces Manny to walk around in circles for hours in search of the perfect tree.

When Jay and Manny finally find a good tree, Jay attempts to saw the tree down. Shortly thereafter, he breaks the axe.  He then asks Manny to help him use a hand aw on the tree, but they end up breaking that tool as well. Following a series of similarly unfortunate and unsuccessful events, the tree ends up quite mangled.

Manny: "It's bald on one side."

Jay: "Its okay, we'll just come over some branches."

As Jay and Manny are discussing new strategies to move the tree, Jay's car rolls backwards and accidentally uproots the tree. Finally, they are able to cut the tree down and bring it home for Christmas.

Across town Cameron (Eric Stonestreet) and Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) are making their Christmas plans when they realize that they neglected to buy the only gift on Lily's wish list. Cameron decides to distract Lily (Aubrey Anderson-Emmons) by taking her to a charity event, while Mitchell shops for Lily's "puppy pound" toy at the mall.

As soon as they arrive at the charity event, Cameron and Lily begin to graciously indulge in all of the refreshments and treats offered by the party hosts. 

Cam is thoroughly enjoying himself when he suddenly comes to the realization that the party isn't in honor of the less fortunate, but it is actually for the less fortunate. 

By the time Cam has this epiphany, Lily has already collected toys and a coat, and has been photographed as a poster child for the poor. Cam feels terrible for the misunderstanding and tries to quietly remove himself from the situation, but in signature "Modern Family" style, his plan comedically fails. 

Back at the mall, Mitchell searches for Lily's toy while his two nieces Alex (Ariel Winters) and Haley (Sarah Hyland) volunteer at Santa's workshop just down the hall. Alex is Mrs. Claus and Haley is stuck being a helper elf. 

True to her assertive ways, Alex ends up constantly arguing with Santa about what he can, and cannot do in his position. After the altercation, Santa decides to abandon ship, leaving the two girls surrounded by a group of angry parents, and even angrier kids. 

Alex winds up feeling guilty for making Santa leave and fears that she will never be able to live with someone without constantly fighting with them, as she does with Haley and her brother. 

Luckily Haley is actually there to help her sister, and Haley assures Alex that even though people argue, it doesn't mean that they don't like, or love, each other. 

In contrast, everyone is bickering in the Pritchett-Delgado household.

When Gloria (Sofia Vergara) purposefully leaves Claire (Julie Bowens) with her overbearing mother (guest star Elizabeth Peña), Gloria is surprised when she returns home to find Claire and Señora Delgado bonding. As Gloria's mother begins to show special attention to Claire, Gloria gets jealous and begins competing with Claire to be Señora Delgado's favorite.

Señora Delgado: "Stop it, I do not have a favorite."

Gloria: "Why the hell not?!" 

After a confrontation between the two ladies, Señora Delgado sits with Gloria and Claire and lets them know that they are both loved and appreciated for their own roles in the family. This successfully eases the tension and gets everyone back in the holiday spirit.

READ MORE on "Modern Family" HERE.

Reach Staff Reporter Christianna Wiggins here and follow her on Twitter here



 

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