Decorations and little ones!

[TheLimeFairy]

I need some advice! We have 4DCs (1,2,3 and 4). The 3 and 4 year old are grown up enough not to pull down a Christmas tree and decorations but the 1 and 2 year olds WILL pull down anything they get hold of (and the 2 year old has started moving furniture to reach things!

Anyway, I don't really want to put up a tree this year (we have a pretend one in the loft) as I think I would spend the next few weeks telling the little ones not to touch etc and we don't really have anywhere we could put it out of reach. This would be fine if it was just the younger two as they are not very aware of Christmas etc and wouldn't miss it but I don't want the older two to miss out. I will put some paper chains up high etc but any ideas of decorations that I could put up as an alternative?

Could you not get a very small tree and put it on the table? Possibly a live one in a pot. They can still decorate it.

Or cut out a paper tree and tape to teh wall. Hang hand made decorations (snowflakes, circles covered in glitter for baubles) and tinsel etc on.

If it isn't higher than a two year old standing on something (think washing basket, toy boxes, toys piled up!! ) it will not be high enough!

I never had this problem with older two but my third DC is a real handful!

I like the paper tree idea and it would give us something to do in an afternoon. They all like sticking and glitter etc. And as a bonus, our lounge hasn't been decorated for about 15 years so I don't mind sellotape etc on walls!

Hi, no advice - but DS2 sounds a bit like your DS3...

We have a particularly tastefully decorated tree which has pine cones on the bottom half (non sparkly and therefore of no interest to a fifteen month old apparently) and the sparkly baubles have now all migrated to the top!

It looks ridiculous!

We put our tree up having forgotten what a two year old is like around a christmas tree. Every day she drags a chair over to climb up so she can rearrange, lick (I think this is to double check it isn't made of chocolate) or just admire herself in the baubles. She is also freqently found doing a commando crawl underneath the tree. I shudder to think what she will be like with presents under there!

If you have a playpen you could it put the tree inside it. Or, get a tiny one and put on a table perhaps.

We've put our tree up on the dining table (it's a piddly 3ft one) - DS is 14 months. He "helped" me decorate it. As it's there, he doesn't play around with it unless I pick him up so he can play with the decorations every now and then.

In the living room we've got tinsel, a garland style advent calender, xmas lights on the mantelpiece and decorations hanging from the light fittings to make it look festive.

Thanks for the tips, it's also good to know I'm not alone!!!

We have decided to put the tree under the stairs (not in a cupboard!) and then put the fireguard in front of it, thus sectioning off the whole area! It may look a little odd but at least we will have a tree. I might decorate the firsguard with a bit of tinsel

I think the fireguard will look festive with a bit of tinsel :o

I'm in the same boat as you OP. I've got 2yo DD and 10mo DS who are both into everything. I got DH to draw a Christmas tree on a long roll of paper and DD has decorated some circles of card with glitter for baubles. Just need to paint it now.

My mum seems to think I'm depriving them of Christmas but I'm not spending the next few weeks rescuing the tree!

We're exactly where you are, more or less. Do whatever is the least stressful for you - toddlers are high enough maintenance as it is. You wouldn't believe the difference in our lounge now and before we had a toddler here. We've got a cupboard in there, and I think we'll be putting a small tree on top of it. I've bought some really nice decorations this year, just for once, and I do like the idea of the shared space being transformed once a year, DDs get so excited..

But if you don't want a tree, don't have one!! There are all kinds of ways of putting decorations up without a tree. Think bunting/strings of things hanging high up, twinkly lights from the light fittings or round your front door. I've got a crafty friend who makes amazing wreaths from holly/willow etc and her children attach different things to them, then the wreaths get attached to the front door/children's bedroom doors high up etc. You can just sling them in the garden waste afterwards.. and they cost peanuts.

I get similarly stressed with birthday parties/Christmas Fairs at school etc, thinking I should be doing more. No!! (I tell myself) I should be doing whatever is going to please me and the children without creating too much stress. DH always gets and sets up a tree if we have one, and does his bit, but because I'm home more, lots of it down to me through practicality. So, if this is you, my advice is to please yourself!!

I like the paper tree idea. Also you can get trees with fibre optic lights built in to them. They just look plain green when off, but when switched on get loads of pretty colours without there being anything they can pull off. We got a tiny one for the boys room and they love it. Last year was a nightmare with the big tree with ds2 but so far hes been a bit better this yr - now 2.5.