That’s A Wrap! Christmas 2017 Is All Wrapped Up-The Easy Way To Clean Up After Christmas!

That’s a wrap! Christmas 2017 has come and gone leaving behind the usual holiday chaos and confusion.  So why am I so happy, almost to the point of being giddy? I think the reason is mainly because I survived! I’ve had Christmas seasons that were much more stressful, much busier, much sadder and much merrier too, but this was my third Christmas without my only child here to celebrate it at home. I never understood when people would say how Christmas wasn’t the same because their children had grown and left the nest, but now I do.  I understand all too well.  There was a time I played Christmas carols in my car from the first of November until New Year’s Day, but not this year.  It’s not that I don’t think they’re pretty or that I don’t enjoy them, but they now make me cry.  And I wish I could say I’m one of those people who look beautiful while they cry – tears streaming neatly down their faces.  But I’m not one of those people.  When I cry it’s an ugly cry – my face scrunches up, my nose runs, my tears jump out of my eyes in all directions.  Suffice to say that it would scare anyone driving next to me if I were to play Christmas carols while in the car and broke out in my ugly cry! So to avoid that embarrassment I just avoided Christmas carols this year in the car!

Ok, enough gloom and doom! What I really wanted to share with you was my latest Christmas tree storage tip! Last year I saw this idea right after I had removed all the ornaments and taken my tree apart.  So I was determined to give this a try for 2017 and I’m so excited to say that the first part of plan has worked perfectly! Are you ready for the secret weapon? It’s clear plastic stretch wrap!!! Yes, regular clear plastic stretch wrap! I have a rather large size roll from Costco that i took out of the box.  My tree is a 7.5 foot skinny tree, but I’ve seen this done with larger trees as well.  I didn’t try to compress my tree in any way.  I did take the topper off – just dealing with the 7.5 feet compared to my 5 foot 4 inch self was enough of a challenge for me! After taking the topper off I pulled the tree away from the walls so I could easily walk around it.  Starting at the top (standing on a step stool) I began to wrap the plastic wrap around the tree.  I overlapped approximately 1/2 of each width of stretch wrap to give it a little extra strength.  As I said before, I didn’t compress the branches.  I just tried to be sure the ornaments seemed to be securely held in place.  I continued to do this until I reached the bottom of the tree.  Toward the bottom as the branches became fuller I overlapped closer to three quarters of each width to give the plastic more strength.  After I had wrapped the outside completely I went around the bottom of the tree to try and provide a “catch” for any ornaments that might fall during my transport to the attic.

Now came the fun part.  I was home alone and determined to have my tree 100% cleaned up before my hubby arrived home – of course this would be the day he texts to say he’s coming home early! I channeled my inner Grinch (my absolute favorite Christmas character) and took hold of my plastic wrapped tree and proceeded to carry it up the stairs to the attic! It was a moment the Grinch himself would have been proud of! My heart(beat) grew three times! But thankfully no heart attack ensued! As I lay the tree gently in the attic I felt a big sense of accomplishment and relief! Christmas was done for 2017! Literally all wrapped up and in the attic!

Everyone wants to know how I think the tree will look next year when it’s unwrapped, and I’m hoping for the best! But we won’t know until sometime in 2018! So stay tuned and I’ll be sure to let you know!