It almost got very ugly in here.

I was seriously low energy today. Not too much on the list to accomplish, but there was the tree sitting in the living room waiting to be decorated. I was going to make pudding for desert, but found we had no pudding mix. So I hung lights on the tree only to discover we didn't have enough lights for that fat little piece of lumber.

I decided to bag it and haul the kid out for a bit. We went to the hobby store so he could buy his Dad a Christmas present. Not open yet. Doh! So we went down the shopping center first to get lights, then the other way to get pudding mix and by the time we'd done both of those chores the store had opened. Five minutes and a significant expenditure later we were done.

Quick zip through the drive through for a kids meal for the boy. And home to eat. Then I multi-tasked the pudding and the lights and finished up the newspaper. I just could not get excited about the tree (which is really just not me at all).

So the boy and I start work on the tree. We have the normal go round of him hanging 2 boxes full of ornaments on a 1 foot square of tree while the rest is totally bare. I have six cool lightweight plastic oranments that he hung in a straight row one next to the other marching around the tree. Some I let go, some like two balls banging on the same limp little branch I forced change upon. Then hubs showed up and added Darth Vader and Yoda to the tree (oh joy), plus an odd ornament from his place of employment. The three of us worked for a bit then short attentionspan theater took over and the boys left to play a game.

I breathed a sigh of relief and worked my way through the remaining ornaments. Then I started hanging my bead chains. I had to use the stool, which was a bit of a pain. First one on, then the second. Then, as I straightened one little bit of beads at the bottom, the tree began to fall. I jumped up, grabbed it to steady it and started screaming. The poor boys must have thought I'd lost my mind. I dispatched the little one to pick up the ornaments that fell during the tussle and after DH offered no helpful suggestions left him holding it while I went for some rope. There is now a sling of rope from the window behind it, around the tree and back to the window. The application of said rope was followed by much tilting, pushing, tightening and angst.

I decided that I was not putting another thing on the tree and packed up the tin icicles and the tree skirt to sit this one out. I did relent, however, and hang the chocolate ornaments and spread a little foil tinsel here and there.

Now I just need to keep the dog and the maids from going anywhere near it. And I warned the hubs that if he still thinks he's putting a train around it he'd better be damn sure he doesn't bump, jostle, hit, touch, shake or in anyway upset the precarious balance of the tree.