I Am Part of the Decorations

I decided I would put up a tree this year. There will be a good amount of time to enjoy it this year, unlike the years when Thanksgiving comes late.

In order to put up the tree, I had to decide how to get it upstairs. That was a huge roadblock. It's in a large Rubbermaid container and, realistically, it's too heavy for me to haul upstairs. I could drag it over to the bottom of the stairs and then bring it up in pieces, but going up and down stairs is so painful right now. Then it hit me.

I could use just the top of the tree as my tree this year. I don't have to have the whole thing; just enough to be festive. Plus, it will be much, much easier to set up and take down. My grandmother never had a tree. She had this small ceramic tree decoration that she set up on the mantel of the fireplace. Presents were piled on the hearth as she didn't use the fireplace. This will work perfectly for me.

The room was thoroughly cleaned and the top was fetched. It took some finagling with the stand to get it to stay upright because the stand is meant for the bottom which is bigger. Then, I got out lights and tried to string them around the tree. I have 6 strands of lights. Four of them would go around this tree 3 to 4 times. The two that would be just right, don't work. Of course. It's probably one or two burnt out bulbs, but, you know what, I have no patience to sit in the recliner and check each bulb to see which ones are burnt out. It's time to add them to the give away bag and let someone else deal with it. I have recycled them for the very. last. time.

There's still some money on that Target gift card I received last week. I'll just go to Target on the morrow and get a small string of lights. If this works out as I hope, I'll probably be doing it again next year. Problem solved. I can finish decorating tomorrow.

In the meantime, I spread out the tree skirt and placed a birthday present received from my friend, Charly, under the tree. (See right what it looks like in better lighting.) Instantly, the spot "under" the tree was claimed. I remember when I set up the full tree two years ago. She loved lying under it. I didn't decorate last year. I just piled anything I got on the table in the living room.

Yes, the tree skirt will become festooned with black fur. But, I think that's great. It certainly adds charm to the decorations.

Beverage:  Coca-Cola

Deb