Faux v. Real?

Random.
All my life I enjoyed a real Christmas tree. My fondest memories are of being bundled up, pacing the tree lot with my mom and dad, rummaging through the trees to pick out the perfect noble fir. Each year I look forward to that scent- the crisp cool air with the pine aroma dancing into my nostrils (ew). The tree is never perfect. One year it was way too tall, another it was entirely too fat. Once it was missing a very large portion and we paid an obscene amount (I think it was $80 and this was back in the late '80s). But year after year I recall examining the calendar and setting the date to get the tree. And anxiously waiting for it to come.

But the tree always dies. If you buy it early in the month, it will surely be dried up and saggy by Christmas. If you wait, you miss out on the enjoyment of seeing the tree in your home until close to Christmas, and then the depression sets in after the big day when you're looking at it after it's been stripped of all the delightful presents underneath (I swear a tree without gifts underneath looks NAKED!).

And we have a dog. I simply don't know what he'd do to a tree. Would he try to eat it? Pee on it? Both?

Last year was our first X-mas with Benny. We decided on a small fake in order to a) save money and b) not worry about aforementioned dog issues. We were in the small apartment and really didn't have the room for the classic monster tree.

Now we have more space. Do I get my real tree? Do I go out and get a perfect faux tree? I could put it up whenever I please and take it down anytime as well. It will always look as good as the day it came out of the box. And though it's an initial investment (they're easily 200 bucks) after a couple years, it pays for itself. And cleanup is practically a non-issue compared with needles strewn throughout by a real tree.

But it just won't have that scent (though I could get a freshener).

What would you do? What do you do?