Last Christmas was my first one as a mum, but my son was a mere few weeks old at the time, whereas this year he is crawling everywhere, and I'm already concerned my Christmas tree will be pulled over in seconds. I've made it my mission to discover how best to babyproof my festive decorations, and after my research, here's the best advice I've found…
Secure it
Just like you should secure furniture to the walls to prevent an accident, it's a good idea to make sure your tree is attached to the wall somehow. This may require a nail in your wall to hook a piece of twine onto, but it will be worth it to avoid disaster.
Half tree
Did you know you can buy a half tree without branches at the bottom? Hey, it may look a little odd, but it's the perfect solution for pesky pets as well as tempted toddlers. This one from Argos is £55 and has 241 five-star reviews!
A present fort
A hack I've seen people use on social media is to add weights (like those dumbbells you never use) into fake wrapped presents around the tree. This will create a pretty but effective fort to keep your little one a safe distance from it.
A toy train distraction
A traditional solution for your tree this year is buying a cute train to go around the bottom. Hopefully this clever distraction will keep your little cherub busy and away from those pricey baubles. I've spied a £22.99 one on Amazon that I'm very keen to purchase.
Ditch the baubles
If, like me, you've got an array of precious glass and ceramic baubles collected from different places over the years, it may be best to keep them in storage while your kids are in their destructive era. Instead, why not embrace the bow trend and tie ribbons to your tree to make it pretty? I think this is the solution I'm going to opt for - an Instagram-worthy tree that will also prevent me crying over broken baubles.
Hide your lights
Lovely lights can be very tempting for children to grab so for safety it's best to wrap your lights as close to the trunk of your tree as possible so there is no dangling wire to grab.
Use the playpen
If all else fails, it's time to bring out the big guns. A simple but failsafe idea is to place your tree inside of a playpen. This will ensure it will be completely separate from your inquisitive kids.