How to Keep Young Children From Destroying Your Tree
You made the annual pilgrimage to the Christmas tree farm, picked out the thickest Fraser spruce (or erected Costco’s amazingly realistic pre-lit faux aspen), placed each decoration on a perfect branch, and gently lifted your toddler up to the tree. the top for the privilege of putting a star at the top. Now is the time to relax and enjoy the cozy baby wonder every time you walk past its shimmering splendor on your way to the laundry room. Right?
Wrong. If you have children under the age of 5, lifting a tree is only half the battle. (And what a battle it was. In a merry Christmas voice, say, “Let’s not touch this!” to a safer place. Hell doesn’t have the rage of a toddler whose accidental and dangerous jewelry placement has been ruined.)
Now you have to make sure that they do not drag it all out with their wild curiosity and love for putting everything, including shiny metal objects, in their mouths. So how do you keep your fun-loving Tannenbaum and little kids safe?
Make the tree inaccessible
Never underestimate the power of a baby gate . Would it spoil the pristine beauty of what you just created? Yes. But it also ensures that your work doesn’t crash to the ground. If you don’t like unattractive barriers, take a smaller tree, place it on a table where they can’t reach it, and secure it from tipping over (with duct tape or ties).
Rearrange ornaments (or discard ornaments)
Remember to place your most expensive or delicate decorations on the top half of the tree (or remove them entirely until your kids are older), and softer, cheaper decorations on the bottom third. You can leave the bottom half of the tree bare, but who wants a bare-chested tree? You can also take a full look at the decorations above and opt for something like red glittery bows that can be tied to a tree for a festive look. But no tinsel. This is a choking hazard.
Let them touch everything at least once (while you are near)
Instead of worrying every time they hold out their tiny, peanut butter-stained hand, consider spending some free play time with the tree, during which you take them on a tour of the jewelry, explaining that they are represent, and let them touch (softly) without consequences. This gesture alone can give them enough sense of freedom so that they don’t feel the need to retaliate for being constantly told that something is forbidden.
Create your own “alarm system”
Reading other suggestions on this topic, I saw the following recommendation, “Teach your child not to touch,” and I laughed and laughed. In fact, I still giggle. Every parent knows: the more you tell your child not to do something, the more they cannot help but do it. While this advice is impractical and impractical, the other one struck me as pretty clever. Place bell-shaped ornaments around the bottom half of the tree so that you are alerted every time your child touches it, like in the ADT system for low-rent toddlers.
Give them something else to play with
There are several ways to make the tree less all-consuming. Buy a small tree for their bedroom (or place it on the table next to a real tree) with its own tiny shatterproof decorations that they can decorate without effort without anyone else being able to touch them. Make a big show that it’s just for them and you won’t get in the way of their design. Buy a felt Christmas tree with decorations they can rearrange as they see fit, or temporarily move some of your favorite toys (rocks or sticks) from the playroom to the side of the tree to distract their attention. A train traveling around a tree can serve the same purpose.
Skip the tree (or put it late)
You can always skip the tree altogether or put it on at the last minute, and leave it for a longer period after the holiday. (These are, admittedly, two less than holiday solutions if you love creating a Christmas mood.) Whatever you choose, resist the urge to place any gifts until they fall asleep on Christmas Eve. Operation “Tree Protection” means nothing if all surprises are happily destroyed on the eve of an important day.