Taking Down the Christmas Tree

Christmas is over. The presents have been given and in some cases returned, the wrapping paper and boxes from said presents are out on the curb, and the family is now looking forward to the New Year. What is there left to do? Well, take down your Christmas tree for one. While putting up the Christmas tree is always a fun family pastime, taking it down can be looked on as a boring and tiresome chore. Here are some tips to help you take down your Christmas tree in a fun and timely manner.

Make Sure Everyone Helps-as I said before putting up the Christmas tree is fun but taking it down can be a pain. It helps if everyone pulls his or her weight around the house to make sure it goes by as quickly and painlessly as possible. So don't let the kids sneak off to their room to play with their toys, or dad sit on the couch lethargically watching football, or mom hide away from the stress of the holidays; everyone needs to pitch in to make this task easier.

Pick a Day-a good way to insure that everyone helps is to pick a day so that everyone knows when he or she will be needed. If you spring it on the whole family it is likely to result in a lot of whining "But I had plans today" whereas if on the day of Christmas you say "Oh by the way this is the day we need to take the tree down" if you get whining about plans you can always say "Well too bad you knew when we were planning on doing this" and that will be the end of that argument.

Do it in a Timely Manner-the longer you wait the harder it will be and the more plans you have to plan around. While you may not want to take it down the next day or even by New Year's Eve you don't want it to be the middle of January before you start planning on it coming down because then you have to worry about work schedules, and the kids going back to school, and everyone will be getting back into their regular routine so it will be harder to get everyone in one place at the same time.

Have a Set Plan-if you know exactly when you're going to start that will help. Don't make it super early in the morning because the kid will still be enjoying sleeping in late while school is out as will parents if they are on vacation. But if you know exactly when you're going to start and how to tackle the tree (example: tree topper first, then lights, ornaments, etc) it should make the time passes by quicker as well as makes the task as whole easier.

Know Where Everything Goes-make sure you know which ornaments go together and have boxes readily available. Make sure you have a place where the lights can go and that will help them not get tangled while waiting to be used next year. If you're not sure where everything goes then it will make taking down the tree more chaotic and much more of a pain then it needs to be.

Assign Tasks-you may think that this will encourage people to just get their part over and done with and then scamper off so be sure to say that if you get done first then help someone who's having trouble with their task. But this way people are fighting over who gets to put the ornaments up and who has to take all the lights down, who's in charge of tinsel (if you have it on your tree) and all that jazz. If someone has something specific they do this will cut down on arguing and time in the long run. I recommend giving tasks appropriate to the age and size of the family member (for example make the taller ones get the tree topper and ornaments that are up high while the smaller ones handle the ones at the bottom. This should also help the time pass quicker.

Have Trash Bags Ready-especially if you have tinsel or some other decoration that is suppose to be used for a one time only decoration. But more than that, as is the case with anything accidents happen so you want something ready in case an ornament gets broken or you notice a strand of lights that suddenly went bad. It is better to be safe than sorry so having this ready will really help you out in the long run.

Try to Make it Fun-if there's music you can play I would recommend playing it. Music helps make any task easier and pass by quickly. You don't have to necessarily play Christmas music (as the Christmas season will almost be over) but you need to play music you don't mind your little ones listening to, so keep that in mind. But with music everyone can sing along, laugh, and have a good time, which will almost make him or her forget that they're actually working.

Take a Break-if you have a rather large tree or you're trying to take more than just the tree down, take a break at some point to have a snack. I say snack because if you have a large lunch or anything like that then you and your family may get sleepy and want to take a nap. When you can't take a nap then you may be cranky and you don't want that so have a quick snack and then finish. After you're done then I would say go out and eat; that way it is kind of a reward for working together with so little problems and you don't have to worry about cleaning up after making lunch especially after taking a tree.

Tell Stories-while your teenagers will no doubt be tired of such stories, it will still pass the time to tell stories as you take down the tree. Talk about the ornaments, such as when you got them and why they are special (obvious choices for this are ornaments that say "Our First Christmas" or "Baby's First Christmas"). While you may have to deal with some moaning and groaning from the kids, talking does help time pass quicker and while you're telling stories they'll be cleaning and before you know it you'll be done. Plus who knows? Maybe your teenagers have some stories they want to tell about ornaments that they made in school or bought for the family. It helps to pass on family history if nothing else.

Hope this tips help you when it comes time to take down your Christmas tree.