I have three amazing little kids, Mr8, Mr6 and Miss-almost-5! So far, every Christmas I have somehow managed to keep our tree simply dressed in silver, with a splash of colour coming from the coloured lights! A couple of years ago I bought the kids a little $5 tree for their room and about another $5 worth of little colourful decorations for it, so they’d leave ‘MY’ tree alone! ? Well, this year I decided to be a fun mum and to make Christmas about what it actually is about: family-tree-dressing, laughter, fun and love! So here are my few, simple steps to dressing your Christmas tree this year to make the kids happy, if you, too, are a control freak like me!!! 😂
Step 1 – Put the Christmas lights on the tree.
Step 2 – Let the kids use your existing decorations, and let them loose. Resist the urge to correct them. Have a cup of chamomile tea!
Result:
*it was truly necessary to take a photo of both sides, to showcase the full skill of the kids!*
Step 3 – Decide, that buying extra decorations to make the tree look full will make it more fun for the kids than moving their currents efforts around and upsetting their little self-esteems in the process. Let them choose the colours! Remember – you’re a fun, easy going mum!! Buy yourself some chocolate while out at the shops!
Step 4 – After coming home with their fantastic colour combination choices (my kids went for blue, pink, green, and whatever else they could get their sticky little hands on before I stopped them! Because, you know, budget!), let them loose again, because why the hell not? You’ve let it go this far already! Pour yourself a glass of wine!
Result:
Step 5 – Cover the tree with a handmade (by your kids!), colourful paper chain!! By now it’s just the perfect cherry on top of the cake! It really pulls it all together! Trust me! And they have so much fun making it, that it is a whole event in itself! Try not to interrupt them making the chain either, you’ll have your turn when it comes to getting the glue stick out of the carpet!
Step 6 – Here’s where you get to contribute: Choose the ‘good side’ and push the tree against the wall! It’s ok if there isn’t a whole ‘good side’ – that’s what the room corners are for!
Result:
Honestly, while it was hard to let them do their thing, there is no way I would swap this tree, which is full of my kids’ amazing personalities, full of the joy they took in hanging each item and making the chain, for any Pinterest-perfect, colour-coordinated bauble arrangement! I was still part of it with them by passing them the decorations and putting the odd one up, then hanging the paper chain up myself. But 90% of it is all them!
Now, sitting on the couch and looking at the finished product of their creativity, I truly see that letting go of my old tree has led to something so much more beautiful! Seeing their faces light up when they walk past, makes my heart do a little pirouette from joy! I have not stopped smiling either, we’ve all shared so much love today, it’s priceless!
I’m looking forward to many more Christmases with our tree looking this happy! ❤️
-A-
