It seems there is always a big push to get all the holiday decorating done by the time the Thanksgiving meal has been cleared from the table. I feel like it gets earlier and earlier each year. Last year, we went to pick out a tree the weekend after Thanksgiving and the lot where we normally purchase our trees was completely sold out. Before December 1st. So that launched a quest of sorts to find an alternative. We drove to other places boasting Christmas trees and found them either sold out or with nothing that would do for what we wanted. I wanted a bigger tree for my two-story foyer and a smaller one for the main living area that we could enjoy every day. With no luck in our town, we rented a trailer from Home Depot and drove to some tree farms about an hour away to see what they had left. No luck. Finally, we located a tree farm that was basically in and around the property of the owner. There was a nice lake and trees of all sizes and shapes. They were beautiful. There were more rows of trees back behind the house as well. So, we picked our trees and as we directed the owners to the bigger one to chop down, one of them asked, “You sure you want this tree?” That should have been my clue. What I have come to realize is that I do not have a good sense of size outside of context. In the wide-open space, the tree did not look so big really. We were guessing it was around 16 or so feet and my foyer is 18 feet tall, so we were good, right? Wrong. Again, I have no concept of size. With height also comes width. The tree was perfect as long as you did not need to open the front door or walk in the foyer at all. The branches were grazing the picture frames on the piece of furniture next to the stairs. It was like something right out of a Dr. Seuss book.
After cutting 3 feet off the bottom, passage through the foyer was available once again. Don’t get me wrong, it was still a really big tree. We had to go up to the second floor and try to throw some of those starburst ornaments down in the hopes they would stick on the higher branches that we could not reach. Decorating it was definitely a challenge. It involved a lot of leaning from a really high step ladder which is dangerous enough for me but add in the fact that my 4-year old loved to climb and I had a DEFCON 4 situation. With little ones, the mission is: bring the Christmas magic into your home while not breaking anything and most importantly, keep everyone safe. Kids love shiny and sparkly. They see round colorful ornaments that look a lot like balls they can throw.
They also like to put things in their mouths so having a bunch of metal hooks within reach is not nerve wracking at all. My youngest actually tried to climb the Christmas tree when he was 2. I can’t really blame him. To him, it was a natural instinct to climb trees. Suddenly there was a tree in his living room. Why should this tree be any different? Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him get up on the hearth and reach with an arm to grab the tree. Then he lifted his leg as if he were going to step on one of the branches. The necessary mom intervention followed, and disaster was avoided. I reviewed an online definition of DEFCON levels and the description of level 4 reads “increased intelligence watch and strengthened security measures.” Although the argument could be made that this is any given Tuesday for moms, it definitely sounds like an accurate description of measures necessary during the holiday season. If you decorate at Christmas and you have little ones, then you have a lot of new things they don’t see every day and they will head straight for them. They will want to check them out, touch them, play with them, and possibly try to eat them. Your eyes-in-the-back-of-your-head power will be working overtime.
Honestly, I never really had a good strategy for this. I would like to start a tradition of getting them a small tree for their room that they can have throughout the season decorated with ornaments. Both my mom and my mother-in-law have given my boys ornaments through the years so letting them have a little tree of their own could be another thing to incorporate into our traditions. Eventually, as the main tree gets crowded, it would help with overflow ornaments and you could still have them out and enjoy them. I mention that because it is also a good idea for little ones too. You can get a small tree and some shatter proof ball ornaments just for them. They get to decorate too, and are hopefully distracted from some precious holiday items that might not be shatter proof. Plus, if they throw their special ornaments (because they look like balls so why would you not throw them?), you are covered there too. Aren’t you smart! Kids see balls and want to throw them. Again, not their fault. Wood, my eight-year-old went through a serious ball phase when he was around two years old. Anything that looked like a ball, he threw it, and he had surprisingly good aim for a two-year-old. My mother-in-law had an ad for discounted pictures at J.C. Penny, so we took him in for a photo shoot. To help entertain him the photographer (before we could stop her) gave him a small brown football shaped shaker toy. Key phrase being football shaped. We both said, “No, no!” in unison but it was too late. He threw the toy so hard that it hit her big, fancy, expensive, professional camera directly in the lens. Like I said, he had good aim. Luckily, it did not break, but that was an awkward few seconds until we had confirmation of that.
Just a Thought:
Merry and Bright
Back to decorating. I love picking out the tree and getting it all set up. Though artificial trees have certainly come along way and there are some gorgeous ones out there, I love a real tree. Every year, the tree has a slightly different shape and character. I love nature so I love that I can bring a little bit of the outdoors inside. If I close my eyes while walking through my living room, it smells like a forest. Some people purchase those tree shaped evergreen scent things to put in their cars to achieve that smell. I now have it in my house all month long.
Then we get the lights out and even though we had brand new lights last year, there always seems to be an issue with a strand or two. Probably a Christmas light manufacturing conspiracy. Once that is rectified and the tree is glowing with the perfect balance of twinkle and greenery on each branch, it’s ornament time. This is my favorite part. Unwrapping each ornament is a great trip down memory lane. I know when they grow up and have their own homes, I will pack up some of their ornaments for them to take just like our moms did for us, but for now, they are still little memory treasures for my tree. For instance, one of my absolute favorites is a cow ornament that is my oldest son, Wood’s. He went through a cow phase when he was around one years old up to about 18 months. He loved cows. While my friends were watching Paw Patrol with their little ones, we were finding videos of cows to show him. One of his favorites was a YouTube video of some cows on a farm running around during spring. It was set to classical music. We have a cow painting in our home to commemorate this phase. It was adorable, and of course I have my little cow ornament too.
We have little dinosaur ornaments as well which if you read my post, “The Year of the Dino,” you know was a significant phase for my two. My son Wood has also received a collection of sleighs over the years while Graham’s collection is reindeer. A new one each Christmas. I also have a beautiful ornament I purchased while in Italy as a keepsake to remember that trip. It is hard to hang my beautiful dogs’ ornaments as they are no longer with us but those are great memories too. I think it is special for the kids to hear us recount these memories and to see as we hang all sorts of sweet ornaments just how special they are. As I start to unwrap them, they light up when they see the familiar ones that belong to them. Of course, they want to help hang them and I must let go of my desire to do it all and just go with it. I am constantly reminding them to find the thick part of the branch instead of the end, so it is sturdy enough to hold the ornament. I also point out that if something breaks, they have to go outside and sleep with the reindeer.
It is funny to follow behind them and see where they hang things. I also have to remind them to spread things out as I inevitably find 5 ornaments basically stacked on the same branch.
More Christmas Tree Fun
As we ease into the season, to kick things off we had a little fun using the theme of Christmas trees.
The main activity was of course, putting the tree up and decorating it, but we also wanted a yummy treat to go with our hard work.
- Christmas Tree brownies: These brownies are super easy in that you can just make whatever your favorite brownie recipe is and then cut them into tree shapes using a knife or cookie cutter. Add some frosting and a candy cane trunk and you have an edible tree made of chocolate. Yum!
- Christmas Tree Waffles: This is a great option for those of you who enjoy a good, big breakfast. I know I do on the weekends. Add some food coloring and some M&M ornaments and these will be a hit. If you add candy to anything you will get two thumbs up. Here is a link to an article with these and other festive breakfast ideas: Christmas Tree waffles
Being the lover of books and reading that we are, we are also getting out our holiday favorites this time of year. If you want some great books to read that go along with the tree theme, check out these below:
- Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree: Mr. Willowby has purchased a tree that unfortunately, is too big (I can relate), so he makes a cut and tosses out the extra piece which is snatched up by someone who has the perfect spot for a small tree. A similar thing happens, and the story goes on and on until there are several homes that have been blessed by that large tree. A sweet story. Check it out here
- The Tale of Three Trees: A Traditional Folk Tale: This is a sweet story about three trees and their dreams of what they want to become as they grow. Each one is cut down and plays a special part in the life of Jesus. This book is a great way to start the season off focused on why we celebrate and how much God loves us. Check it out
- Little Blue Truck’s Christmas: If you do not already have some of these books for your little ones, I highly recommend picking them up. The original Little Blue Truck is one of our favorites. It is one we had to read over and over for Wood when he was a baby, and his first birthday party had a Little Blue Truck theme. This Christmas story follows Blue around as he delivers trees to all his friends and the last page includes a tree that lights up. Check it out here
We had a great day of decorating and have personally enjoyed these brownies and waffles throughout our holiday season so I hope this gives you some great suggestions of things you can do with your kids around the Christmas Tree theme.
I have already mentioned how much I love nature and that I love getting to bring these beautiful trees indoors where we can enjoy them during the Christmas season. In reading, I have learned that the tradition of decorating a tree at Christmas goes all the way back to Germany in the 16th century. Specifically, Martin Luther, started the tradition of putting candles on the tree to add light. He was walking through a forest and loved the way the stars looked twinkling through the evergreen trees at night, so he tried to replicate it to show his family how beautiful it was. I am so grateful that he did that because how many of us today enjoy the beauty of a Christmas tree all lit up for the holidays. It is certainly a great inspiration to me too, though. When we see something beautiful, instead of just enjoying it in that moment, perhaps we can find a way to bring that to others so they too can enjoy it. A great thought to start off the season of giving.
May your tree fit, your lights work, your decorating day be shatter proof, and most importantly, may you get your own chocolate Christmas Tree.
Stay tuned for more of the 12 Days of Christmas!
