Christmas Tree with a 10-Month Old??

My daughter was 11 months for her first Christmas. I kept the breakable ornaments well out of her reach. She wasn't much of a problem. However, she did try to wrip the paper off several gifts left under the tree.

We have movable baby gates (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00020L78M), but never had to use them to protect the tree.

Like most of the other moms, when my son was small we put a small tree on a table in front of the window. We used wooden and homemade felt ornaments then as well, just in case.

A. V,

I have a 2 year old and 4 year old now and when my children were younger, we had a small tree that was able to be put on a shelf they couldn't reach. Last year we had bought a fake tree and put a super yard gate around it. I have two of those gates and they are a huge help. They don't help with keeping cats out, but they do keep the kids away from the tree. lol

Our first tree was a small 4 foot fake tree that you can still make look pretty with lights and ornaments but put out of reach of the baby, just a idea.....

Hola A.!! I have three small children (well, there really not that small anymore but there still my babies, they are 7, 5 and 3) and what we did is we changed all our ornaments to be 'child friendly'.... so, for now, I'm storing away all my beautiful glass ornaments that I've had for years or anything that I don't want to be broken. We decorated our tree with beautiful red and green ribbons and bow's, strands of beads from the craft store and my mother in-law bought us a bunch of little clothe ornaments that are really cute. I have to say, our tree has been really beautiful the past few years in spite of making in 'child friendly!' :) Also, I found the more I would tell them not to touch the tree, the more they did it... so, what I do, I just let them explore it (as long as I'm there) and after awhile, they will get bored of it and they leave it alone. Remember, the more you tell kids not to do something, the more they want to do it!! Don't know if this helps at all but that's what worked for us... Good luck and enjoy your holiday season!!

My daughter was eight months old last year for her first christmas and we had the same concerns. We love having a live tree for christmas but because we were worried as well about the pine needles we decided to opt for a fake tree. I know that they sometimes can be not as nice but at least we didn't have to worry about the pine needles everywhere. Also to stop my daughter from pulling on the branches we just put part of her play yard around the tree to block her from getting to it.

I don't see how you couldn't have a tree, but what would make it easier on everyone is if you bought a little baby "yard" or some latace work from home depot and put it around the tree. Its what my folks did last year with my son to keep him and the animals out of the tree. That way everyone can enjoy the lights and sight of the tree and everyone can also be safe.

Hope that this helps and good luck and have a wonderful Christmas.

A ten month old child can be taught not to touch the tree but you will need to be watchful continually. If the child goes near the tree , you can steer him in another direction. If he reaches out to touch the tree, you can tell him a firm "NO" and be sure he obeys. Then distract him with something else. Children have natural curiosity. This is how we learn. But they must also learn when not to touch for their own safety. You might consider getting a table top tree for this year so it is up and out of reach if you don't want the hassle of training. AF

I have 5 children, all of them are young adults now. The oldest has a 6mo. old baby. I also am a home daycare provider. I have always had a live tree. My mom always had a live tree when I was little, i had 4 sisters and brothers also. She never put hers in a cage, I have never put mine in a cage. It has always been in our livingroom which is where we hang out and watch t.v. I just taught mine from the moment we set it up that they could not touch it. The only tree we ever had knocked over was knocked over by the cat. I agree with other posters about being in the room with him when he is down on the floor near the tree.

hugs
A.

Hi A., I didn't have time to read the other responses so this may already be covered. I do daycare, so of course, the tree is a big deal at our house. In addition, I have a 3 1/2 year old, and a 16 month old myself. What I do is this. Artificial tree (because they are not as heavy if they are pulled over and they do not "shed"), shatterproof ornaments/bulbs, and I use ribbon the hang them on the tree rather than the metal hooks. The idea for me is to be able to have a tree. I may not be able to put on my beautiful glass bulbs right now, but until they learn, it's better than no tree at all. The idea is to do a "safety" tree until the little ones are old enough not to touch. Hope this helps. Now all I have to worry about this year is my crazy cat (we got about 4 months ago)!! She's a little spastic and I have a feeling she is going to be worse than the kids with the tree!

We allways did a christmas tree with our little ones- It was a little nerve racking because we leave it exposed to the little ones also. I think our cat actually tipped it over the most... I don't remember my first little one ever tipping it over-just the cat... Our first child was 10-11 months old his first christmas also.

We did a few special things though... I made decorations for the tree that were totaly baby proof- He loved it. I found wooden alphabet blocks about 1 inch by 1 inch and hot glued yarn bows to them and hung them on the tree. Very easy, didn't matter if he got a hold of them and not breakable, plus because we used yarn bows on them there was no hooks needed. We were cautious about breakables because we had never done the christmas thing with a baby.
He loved it and we have continued to use the blocks, each christmas because of the tradition and our second child was around the same age at his first christmas... So again he had somethng that allowed him to be involved with the decorating and it has let both of them enjoy christmas much more since those are their decorations and they can put them on the tree with out us worring now that they are a little older.

Have fun and invole the little one with what you can- make it fun for him and you- don't stress over it. It is a special time.

Good luck...

PS-my little ones when they were under a year were very mobile and I was chasing them alot- Christmas is totaly do-able even with super active little ones... And remember if disaster hits... get out the camera and laugh... because most of the disasters are more our reaction then anything- Enjoy your first baby christmas and document it, what ever happens

We're just gating the tree. That way he can look but can't touch.

I can only speak on my son but I can tell you it would not have been possible when he was 10 months (and not now at 2 years old :) and I would have been neurotic thinking he was going to eat the needles or something off the tree. How about a small tree on top of a table or put a tree in another room he can not get too - that is what we do. We have gates in the living room so the tree is put in a room off of the living room where we can still see it but he can not get to it.

I am not sure if your baby is walking already... the baby gate is a great idea... another alternative may be to pre-wrap many of Christmas gifts... especially some of the larger boxes and strategically place them under/in front of the tree that would kind of block him, but still be aesthetically pleasing... of course, this would only work if he is not totally agressibe into climbing and such...

We just put up the tree and then put a gate around it. It's so cool to watch them look at the bulbs and the lights. They love it! The perfect gate for the job is called the Superyard XLT. You can buy it at Babies R Us or at Petsmart. My favorite gate of all time!

Happy Holidays

Last year I faced the same dilemma with my little one. My solution was to place the tree in the corner. Our living room furniture formed an "L" against the walls and I placed a blockade in the gap between the two pieces. He was just beginning to walk and this was an effective strategy. Now that he is almost 2, I'm wondering what to do this year. LOL He will easily climb over any barricade that I place between him and his curiosity!! I have already decided that any breakable ornaments will be saved from the path of destruction by only using non-breakable this year. No matter what, I am looking forward to seeing the joy on his face when he first sees the tree!!

Yes you can have a tree, they are safe as long as you keep them away but for the most part they are interested but won't willingly get too close. They are interested but afraid. The pine needles are safe to put in the mouth. They won't harm them even if they eat them...lol not to clean but they won't hurt them. (My cousin ate them when i was growing up) but most children don't.

Hi A.. We had a tree last year with my son, who was 9 months old at the time. We didn't have problems at all. Amazingly, he was interested in looking at the tree, but after an initial "exploration", he left it alone. We put it in a room that wasn't his main playing area, and hung the ornaments a bit higher up on the tree. I would agree with the others here that you shouldn't not get a tree -- maybe get one and have a backup plan to put gates up if necessary. My son will be just shy of 2 years this year, so it'll be interesting to see what he does with the the ornaments....

A., have fun and get the tree for this year. I've never heard of a child eating the needles. I'd be more worried about him breaking the ornaments, getting cut on them, eating the tinsel, or pulling it over on himself.

Be sure that you supervise him at all times when he is in the same room as the tree. He will be fascinated with the lights and the ornaments. Get some child proof ornaments for him to look at, wood or plastic, and put them on the lower branches. Keep the breakables out of reach. I continued a family tradition of buying 2 ornaments each year to give to my son, and started with little rocking horses, Noah's arks, and others that were for a young child. As my son grew older, the ornaments changed as well. Now at 25 he has a set of ornaments that are special to be the core of his set when he starts up his family.

Congrats on the new place. We always tied a rope/ribbon from the tree to either a curtain rod or tie back hook to keep it from being pulled over (more for our cat than the kids). You can place it in a room that you can gate off if you are really concerned. Artificial tree are really nice now. We have one due to both my sons being allergic to almost every tree (as well as grass,weeds,etc.). That would solve the needle eating issue. Just make sure you place the unbreakable, inedible ornaments at the bottom and watch the light cords. Enjoy your first Christmas in your new home with your new son...it will be magical!

We always have a live tree. My oldest is almost 13yr. and I have 6 kids. It has never been a problem. The little ones pull ornaments off so we put the breakables up high.

Hi, A. - Do you have a folding playpen? We used that as a fence around the tree when our daughter (A.!) was little. Enjoy! N.

When my sister was about a year old, our parents put the tree in the playpen. They also put the Nativity in there because they caught her chewing on Baby Jesus!

You can get pens (like what they had on Jon and Kate Plus 8) either in the baby section or at a pet store. Pile everything you don't want the kid to eat inside.

And you might want to consider non-breakable ornaments and a fake tree this year.

I'll be in similar shoes next year, so let us know how it turns out.

My oldest was about 10 months her first Christmas and my youngest will be the same this year. With our first we wrapped a large box with Christmas paper (about 3 ft high), put a piece of plywood on top for support and then put our tree on top of that. It was great! She could pull up on the box but couldn't reach the tree. Plus it saved us money on a tree cause we could cut a smaller one:) We plan to do the same this year. I would highly suggest it - I really loved seeing her enjoy the lights and ornaments.

Merry Christmas!
S.

Hi A.,

I didn't read all of the responses, but a lot of them. You can have a tree and it can open to the baby, as long as you are always nearby when he is in the room. I would suggest an artificial one at first (it is lighter) and put a hook or two into the wall behind it to tie it to. Then on the off-chance that he pulls on it, he won't be able to easily pull it down. The artificial tree is also less work to keep moist and needles off the floor. I am sure you have enough to do already. The breakable stuff went up high, and the more baby-friendly stuff down low. When we had our girls for their first Christmas (they were 10 and 20mos old) they would walk by the tree and stare at it, ooh and aah, lay on the floor to look at the nativity, etc. They even said "Night Night" to baby Jesus in the Nativity every night before bed.

I have to be honest, though. The tree WAS NOT in the main play room. I think that would have been too much temptation for too long. Good luck and enjoy your first Christmas with your son. :o)

Sozanne

We had an artificial tree when our son was young. It was a 4ft tree I believe but he loved looking at all the lights and would just stare at it. I figured it it was small if he did pull it over it wouldn't hurt him and he actually never touched it. But just in case I had no class ornaments just the felt stockings in multiple colors I picked up at a craft store, I dismantled a crib mobile he had gotten that had child safe stuffed animals on it and put them on there and things like that. I think he liked it and still looks forward to putting the tree up now.

I used a baby gate/play yard around the tree to fend off little fingers. You may have to move it for photo ops, but at least you can have a nice tree for your baby's first Christmas! Also, put unbrakeable ornaments at his height!! So if he does get a hold of the limbs, your favorite ornament that grandma brought over from Austria won't be broken! hahaha Have a Very Merry!

We have always had a tree and never had a problem. The first year we tied it to an anchor in the wall to be sure it wouldn't fall on my daughter (who was pulling up on everything and put everything in her mouth). We only put lights near the inside of the tree near the bottom and the fragile ornaments stayed at the top. We bought a lot of kid friendly ones for the bottom so she could play with them. It worked out well and we have some great pictures of her playing with the ornaments.

Hi A. :) My son was born 4 days before xmas, so his first one wasn't an issue. His second xmas, we actually let him help put some of the safer ornaments on the bottom branches (with help of course) and he was so proud to have helped he never bothered to mess with the tree. We also set up a mini train track around the tree and he knew not to cross the track rather instinctively. With my daughter, I just set up a little tree on top of a table where she couldn't reach it. She loved looking at it and I didn't have to worry about her getting into it.
Happy Holidays!

Of course you can have a tree! If you're really concerned that he'll get in to mischief then maybe consider a table-top tree that you can place on an end table? A lot of places sell small trees for this reason (and there are always fake trees!) One tip is to place fragile decrations up high; last year was had all ornaments 36 inches up from the bottom of the tree! :-)

You will be fine....it is all a learning method....you will learn and the baby will learn.
If you are really nervous you could always put a gate up around the tree when the baby is in the room.....
BUT...I had live trees with my littles ones and they are both fine!

I chose a blue spruce tree for our tree when the kids were real little....they are rather sharp and prickly and the kids never touched it more than once!

hi A., we've never not had a tree! even with tinies and toddlers. you have to ride herd on 'em, but then, you always do, don't you? and you can always block off the living room if you need to let them run wild without running interference.
and they will LOVE it. get the tree and enjoy it.
:) khairete
S.