Every year on Black Friday, we don't go shopping, unless needed, we stay in bed, have a good breakfast, get the decorations out, and put up the tree. It has been like this for years, and it will stay this way until the boys move out. I don't care how old they are, this is part of our fun time during the holidays together. I love that they are at an age they just love to do these things and to help out too.

So, out comes the tree, and I search up and down for all the lights. Well, I knew that I had some one a roll. And I knew that there were some more in the house, ok, but where. Oh no, I had to go out to Ace and get another 250 lights.

We get home and Eric picks up where he left off and he gets that much done. I had started pulling out the ornaments and the boxes that belong to each one of the boys. Well, they were mixed up, Eric had most of PJ's and PJ had most of Eric's. I think somewhere in the mix of last year, when I was taking down what I had put up, I just dropped in the boxes and thought I would figure it out later. Well, it is later, and someone figured it out just fine!

I sat back and watched them hang ornaments. They know not to touch the others ornaments or there will be trouble. I enjoyed watching them do this, I guess because I didn't have to this year was a part of it, and it may be because as mom, I watch they way that they interact with each other. They just had too much fun.

Eric looked back and admired his hard work and continued to decorate different things. And begged me to wrap gifts too. He got the skirt out, and he had me wrap the sewing machine that I bought earlier that day for me, and maybe wrap a thing or 2 of their stuff too. So, I did just that. He put the skirt under the tree, watched the cat walk around a few times. I wrapped more than I wanted to, but why not. It is fun for me to watch them try and figure out what they have.

Sometime during the night I was looking at the tree, thinking it was crooked. It was, and it was driving me up a wall. I couldn't stand it, it was one of those things that you just have to correct, and well I did. And it landed on top of me. Chuck was home and he came running. The only thing I remember is "Oh Chuck that wasn't supposed to happen!" Apparently the legs are not even and there needs to be a notebook under one of them. The cat tore it up last year and I forgot that I needed to make the proper adjustments.

We get the tree up and damaged looking, it was pitiful. I couldn't fix it that night, it was too late. I just left it like it was and prayed that there was nothing too badly damaged.

I went to each of the boys and told them to leave the tree alone, I would fix it in the morning, not to worry about it. So, that is what I did. I got up the next morning only to go shopping and then to start from scratch. It was not what I wanted to do on my Saturday, knowing of all that I needed to get done. But I promised them and I was going to put it back up again.

Yes, I took it all the way down. And started all over again. This time I used all the lights and I made sure that there was a notebook under the one leg that refused to lay flat. And made sure that it was going to stay up this time. I should have left it alone, but I can't. I guess I am OCD that way.

After the ordeal of the tree on Saturday, I had time to get done what I wanted to get done. And one was to get the boys to put together the gingerbread Christmas tree. Now, we usually make a house, but this year I found the box for a tree, and I was so excited that I had to buy both. I don't know why, but I did. I guess it is because I never had a great Christmas as a child, so I try my best for the boys to have the best that can be provided to them.

I read the package for the icing, mixed, it seemed a little thick, so I had to add more water. Yep, that didn't work out well. The kit came with bags and tips for the icing, but when my watered down icing got in the bag, it just sorta dripped out of the tips, I knew it was not gonna be right. But for some reason, the boys didn't care.

They each operated a different color. Put the ornaments on the tree. Popped bubbles, squeezed bags and had fun with it. They didn't care that I messed up, and that just means so much to me. I just watched them have fun, fuss at each other and do what they needed to do to put this together. At least now I know that when we make the house, not to use so much water.

The kit came with a star and gifts. They decided to share them, so PJ had the honor of putting the star on the tree. I guess when Eric gets older, he will be in charge of the angel on our tree.

It is funny how we become like children at Christmas time. We don't care what others think about us. We just have fun. And that is how I am. I love Christmas, not because of any gift that I will be getting, but because it gives me the chance to be a kid all over again.