Avoid Tears and Bickering when Decorating the Christmas Tree with Multiple Children

Decorating a Christmas tree with kids can be fun, but when trying to deal with multiple small children and 100 Christmas ornaments, things can get frustrating fast. Finding ways to make the task of decorating the Christmas tree with kids seem more fun than work isn't as difficult as it may seem. By planning ahead and getting organized, decorating the Christmas tree with kids can be not only fun, but also one of the highlights of your Christmas season. If you need some ideas for making the task of decorating a Christmas tree with kids feel like play instead of misery, consider the following suggestions.

Let each child make, or shop for, a new ornament beforehand, if you can. During the 19 Christmases that I have been a mother, we've collected about 100 Christmas ornaments. None of them were expensive. Some were handmade gifts that were given to us by close friends, and quite a few were handmade by the kids themselves. As a result, my children are familiar with each and every ornament in our collection. Our ornaments have become meaningful family keepsakes that I will distribute to my kids later in life. You can add to the Christmas decorating fun by letting kids play a big part in collecting the Christmas ornaments that your family uses year after year.

Let kids decorate the tree as much as possible on their own. Naturally, if very small children will be decorating your Christmas tree, you will need to have the tree lights and garland already on the tree before the kids begin with the ornaments. But after that, let them just have fun with it. Even if the decorating is messy, and the Christmas tree has ornaments clumped together all in one area, the entire task will be much more fun if you are not stressing about perfection. Once the kids are done with the Christmas tree decorating fun, just redistribute the Christmas ornaments around the tree more evenly at a later time.

Make an entire afternoon of it. Decorating a Christmas tree with kids is a lot more fun when the task is combined with several other Christmas activities. Pop in a CD of Christmas music while the kids decorate the tree, and have candy canes on hand for the kids to enjoy. When the Christmas tree is completely decorated, turn off all the lights except for the lights on the Christmas tree, and snuggle with the kids on the couch while watching a favorite Christmas movie.

The most important thing to remember when trying to capitalize on the potential fun of decorating a Christmas tree with kids, is to relax and have a plan. Keeping a few other things in mind can help, as well. For instance, very young children can get fussy with each other over which ornaments they get to hang on the tree. So if you can foresee that being a problem in your own group, separate the ornaments beforehand, and hand each child their own container full of ornaments. Also, be sure to avoid allowing very young children to handle glass ornaments to reduce the risk of injury. Finally, keep your camera handy because pictures of the kids decorating the Christmas tree make some of the best family photos you'll ever have.