Our Story
Rocky and Leigh Ann Smith with their kids and Jake the Petting Dog
Holiday Acres is the culmination of a dream by Rocky and Leigh Ann Smith. When the first seedlings were planted in 1999, they looked forward to the day when happy families would come away from the city and enjoy God’s creation while searching for their perfect Christmas tree, making beautiful memories along the way. Rocky and Leigh Ann treasure the memories of choosing and cutting a Christmas tree with their own children, and watching a new generation of families make Christmas memories at Holiday Acres delights them both.
Eric and Betty Nesline, the Smith’s next door neighbors, enjoyed coming over to help at the farm each Christmas season and eventually planted their own field of Christmas trees. The Nesline’s established Mistletoe Farms where they are primarily growing different species of Cypress trees, while Holiday Acres grows Virginia Pines. Mistletoe Farm’s trees are sold through Holiday Acres, so while you may feel like you are visiting one large farm, it is in fact a joint partnership between two farms.
These two farms were once part of a much larger tract of land that was owned by Betty Nesline’s father, Mr. Lee. When Betty was a child, the land was a dairy farm. You can see the original milking barn, which is nearly 100 years old, behind the tree shaking and baling area. The grain silo, aka The Leaning Tower of Manvel, predates Mr. Lee. It was built in 1905, and is the oldest remaining grain silo in Brazoria County.
While Holiday Acres has seen many changes through the years, what has not changed is a desire by its owners to see families strengthened and to honor and glorify God for the most beautiful Christmas gift of all - Jesus.
“Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.”
Eric Nesline of Mistletoe Farm