What Do I Do About the Christmas Tree?

My daughter will be 1 next month. I put up the tree while she was taking a nap yesterday. She was so excited when she woke up! I told her that the lights are hot. So far she has not touched it. We'll see how long that lasts! Good luck!

Put it in a playpen, so it can be seen, but she can't get to it. Not too attractive, but it works!!!!

we really didn't have much of an issue with it. We also redirected and things were fine. We also used the bell ornaments as an alarm too...I thought it was funny when I saw someone else say that! Just like anything else in the house, it's a teaching moment of what's okay to play with and what isn't! Have fun and enjoy the season!

When our daughter was small we had no problems with her bothering the tree. However with my son, we had to put the tree in the play pen. That way he could walk around it by holding on to the port a crib, but he couldn't touch the tree or ornaments. It worked great!

agrees that it's no big deal..just like lamps, electronics, and cats...at our house...it was just another no-no! i had more problems with the cats messing up our tree, than i did with the baby...i watched the baby a lot closer ;)

I really never had a huge problem with the Christmas tree they touched it & grabed it but after redirection they lost interest in it.I keep the bottom half bare as much as possible keeping lights & ornaments out of reach.We chop down our own trees so the pine needles get everywhere I have to vacuum daily so for the needles don't become a choking hazard.When presents get under the tree they had there share of trying to open them.

Does she understand "no-no" ?

Hi A.! My twin boys were 11 months last Christmas and we knew we had to do something with the Christmas tree too! (They wanted to touch everything, including the water at the base). We bought a "kid corral" which we placed around the tree. Kid corral is what we call it, as I do not know the official name. It was purchased at Wal Mart. Now they are almost two and know we will have to use it probably again this year. Merry Christmas!

We set ours up in a playpen the first 3 years, you can put the presents in the playpen under the tree without worrying that they will get unwrapped, they can't putt the tree over on themselves, of course this was a fake tree. You can decorate the play pen with Christmas material or blankets if you like. Honestly that was about the only time we used the playpen.

This sounds silly, but we had cats for years and now kids and here's what we do. We have probably around 100 bell ornaments (you can get them in big packages at Target, KMart) and place them all over the bottom of the tree. Some are kind of hidden so you don't see them all, but they are there. If anything touches the tree they sound and we can go in and check. This works well. We also put the gifts around the tree to make it more difficult to get to it and buy us some time when the bells go off. Good luck and Merry Christmas! This will be an exciting one!

My daughter was 16 months old when we had a tree last year and we did not anchor it to the wall. Also, we used all types of ornaments including metal curved hooks to put them onto the tree. The only thing we did differently was tried to start the decorations further up the three so she wouldn't take them off. She still managed to grab a few but after a few warnings, she stopped!

Sounds like you are on the right track to ensuring her safety!

Also watch the ball-type ornaments. They are made of very thin glass and it doesn't take much at all to break them. My kids always did a pretty good job staying away from the tree, but I was always reminding them not to touch it. We used the word "hot" when we referenced the tree, because the lights do get hot, and even little kids know not to touch things that are hot.

I always just did a lot of re directing and saying the dreaded "N-O word" but my sister had one of those portable play yard things she put around hers, if you are really worried you could just go with a smaller tree this year. I can keep the kids out of the tree but not my cats! Lots of luck and I wish you a very merry Christmas with your little angel.
B.

We put our Christmas tree into an old large play pen (a sturdy square one from a garage sale). It was called a graco Hudini, the sides did not fold down & the bottom sat on the floor. We did not put anything heavy or breakable on it & had soft fabric & plastic ornaments on the edges that they could reach.
Yes, my boys did pull ornaments off, but atleast if they pulled the tree over it would not fall on them (it would just rest on the edge of the play pen).
Also, our tree is fake with fiberoptic lights.

Hope this helps!
God bless!

We put up the tree when they were sleeping and when they don't see you touching the tree my kids never touched the tree. We told them it was pretty and we don't touch. It worked great.

You have plenty of good suggestions, but I just wanted to say that there is clinical evidence indicating that smacking kids' hands doesn't teach them what they can or can't touch, it teaches them not to explore their world. If that's the only way to keep them from bothering the Christmas tree (from the other posts, it clearly isn't), then I'd rather skip the tree for a year or 2.

Our kids were born in Nov and A. and we never had a problem. you just watch them careful and tell them no no pretty or tell them hot for the lights. they will learn it is not ok to touch. you can tap their hand and say no no they will learn. you can't take everything down for them thats how they learn. Enjoy that sweet baby girl and watch those eyes light up when she see's the pretties.
they are so fun at thrn age. oh, to go through that again. they grow up so fast so enjoy every moment. mine almost 17 and the one 20. both smart and pretty girls. here if you have any others questions. God bless you

We also used the superyard baby gate system. Our daughter is 3 1/2 this year and I would use it again this year if a friend (who has twin boys 1 1/2 years old and therefore needs it much more than I do!) wasn't borrowing it. It was very helpful at other times as well, but was worth its weight in gold at Christmas!

What about putting a gate around it?

My daughter is 4 and we have never had a problem with her bothering the tree. Don't get me wrong, she has been curious and played with the ornaments, but as another person stated, a few warnings and she was done. Also, the longer the tree is up, it will just be another thing in your house. I also did not anchor my tree the wall. The only thing I did do was kept the presents hidden until x-mas eve. She has a tendency to want to open them (even when she was younger). Have a great holiday!!!

I think we all worry about this and after we have the tree up and all the trimmings on, we realize that the worry was overatted. Dont put it in the middle of the room and maybe place a table or chair infront of it until the big day or when company is over but i am sure you will find that she will do fine

When my kids were toddlers, I just put the ornaments high enough where they couldn't reach them. The bottom of the tree was a little bare, but I didn't have to worry about them getting the ornaments off and hurting themselves.

I put mine on top of a sturdy coffee table so it was another 2-3 feet off the ground. I still guarded it like a hawk but it got at least some of the lower branches away from grabby hands...of course all the nice ornaments went on top. ;)

I think I would be tempted to get a smaller tree, put it on a small table that would fit in the play pen....then the tree would still be visible, because the table would have it above the level of the playpen...but the tree would be save from little fingers.You could also use the playpen to put some of the presents in...so it looked less like a playpen..lol.
R. Ann

When my babies were little there was no such thing as anchoring the tree or using non-choke hazard ornaments. I never let little ones see me do anything with the tree. The did not get to decorate or watch me decorate. I did it while they were napping. Then when they woke up I would go and get them and introduce them to the "Pretty Christmas Tree, that we do not touch." They never did. It worked at my house with babies I baby sat too. But, it might not work for all babies. If they don't see you touch it they don't know they can! I now have lots of non breakable ornaments and hang them low. The tree is still not anchored. I only have one tiny grandchild and she didn't actually touch either although I have some stuffed ornaments low enough for her.

I was in the same situation last year with a 1.5 yr old. I only put ornaments on the top of the tree. You have to make some accommodation, and it's only for a couple years.

We have a 5' Halloween tree too and this year I put all the breakable ornaments on the top and the sturdy ones on the bottom. We didn't have too many problems.

We have hardwoods, so my husband uses clear packaging tape to tape down the stand so it can't be pulled over. The tree skirts cover the taped area.

I have an inhome daycare, & I always have a full-size tree! I use all of my ornaments, including the antique glass ones from my Great Grandfather. Every single ornament is securely attached to the tree using the metal, bendable hooks...I take the time to bend the hook all the way around the branch. It's a pain, but allows for safety. I also place the breakable ornaments toward the top of the tree, with the soft- nonbreakable ones on the bottom. I place jingle bells around the bottom of the tree so I can hear when little hands (& dogs) are up to no good!

To keep the kids & dogs out of the tree, I place furniture around the base....the coffee table, some antique trunks, chairs...anything to protect it. AND the tree is placed in a corner to allow for this furniture placement. Not optimal from a decorating standpoint, but does allow for additional safety!

I don't want to come across as rude, uncaring, but rather with some good ole fashion common sense...

How about supervise the child?

If the child gets too close to the tree, redirect the child in a new direction and over time that child will learn right from wrong, safety from danger. This can be the starting point to begin teaching your child the word "no" in all aspects of his/her life, teaching trust and boundaries. Think of this as the beginning point of teaching your child life skills by starting it young and with love.

A child will never learn the word, "No" unless the parent first teaches it.

Moreover, if you are unable to supervise (even for a few moments in time), have someone else supervise and redirect, and/or use a playpen.

I would just reinforce the tree is something we look at and not touch. IF your little one can't 'get it,' then try a safety gate system to put all around it. It is what my cousin did when her children were small. I just skipped the tree the first two Christmases (at 6 mo and 1-1/2 y/o). Here's what I am talking about: http://www.babygates.com/WebComponents/Catalog/Public/sho...

When our twins were little we put the tree in our bedroom. With the door open you could see if from the living room but we could close the door to keep them out.

When the third child came along we left it out. Made sure it wouldn't fall and just didn't put anything breakable down low. She touched it but she didn't wrestle it down. Just curiously touched all the pretty things.

Hi A.,
This is going to sound off the wall, but here goes;
When my daughter was small, we also had 2 dogs and were afraid of someone getting hurt from the tree falling over or choking or eating the ornaments.
My husband and I put the tree (artificial) together, got it screwed into the stand and my husband then screwed it into the ceiling. It was unusual to say the least, and we had to make some accommodation's as far as decorating. We had to do it from a ladder and run the light cord down the wall.