Holidays 2018 Series - Oh Christmas Tree

My holiday tradition -

Decorate the house in full.

Set up the tree (I do use artificial pre-lit trees...just  easier).

Decorate the tree.

Lay out the tree skirt.

Place the presents on the tree skirt in a rather methodical way.

Christmas tree. 

An artificial pre-lit tree is very difficult to set up for decorating and impossible to put back in the box when the holiday is over.  Artificial trees in any size are heavy and awkward to fasten into the base. 

Decorating the tree.

Separating the branches and filling out each section to create the illusion of a real tree is exhausting.  Once complete though, the tree is ready to be filled with sentimental ornaments.

My mom and I prefer white lights to better illuminate the variety of ornament colors.

Every year, I take a step back every few ornaments to check their spacing.  A constant process.

When the angel - always last - is placed on the top branch, I take a step back to truly admire "Oh Christmas Tree."