Promotion

Last weekend, we put up our tree and decorated the house for Christmas. And I was struck by how hands-on my kids were in the process, and how much more fun it was for me.

When my kids were toddlers, my husband and I did everything ourselves. We had to be mindful of little parts the children could ingest or delicate objects that could break apart and hurt them. As the worker bees, my husband and I were exhausted by the time the project was done.

As they grew into kindergarteners and very young elementary schoolers, the kids wanted to do everything. No, they didn't have a sense for decorating. They just put ornaments, figurines, foliage, etc, in the first place they could see and reach (think under 4 feet!). Although over the course of several years we guided the kids into decorating in areas they couldn't easily see, anyone could tell that ours was a home with young children. Still, my husband and I had become managers with a staff of three: we were hands-on, but slightly removed from the labor.

This year, with our children older, my husband and I were promoted to consultants. It's the best Christmas decorating job I've had yet! The five of us formed an assembly line to efficiently move boxes from the attic to the family room. My son and husband put up the tree together. But the kids took it from there. By now, they have a sense of balance, theme, and color when placing ornaments on the tree. And they look up! So with a stepladder and/or our help, we now have an even distribution of ornaments on the tree - top to bottom and around all sides. It's pretty! As for the other decorations, they remembered what we typically place where, and set to work unpackaging items and placing them deliberately and attractively around the house.

The kids knew what to do, and simply consulted us when in doubt or when in need of an opinion. Meanwhile, my husband and I enjoyed a bottle of Artesa. Yes, I like this new promotion.