Decked the Halls

We had quite the struggles with our one-year-old pre-lit tree this year.

I was SO excited to decorate for Christmas this year.

We pulled out all of our decorations a few days after Thanksgiving, ready to make our little home feel like Christmas. We brought the tree up and plugged it in, only to find that the top section would not light at all. So, we went to Target and got some new fuses, thinking that we just needed to replace the fuse on that strand of lights. We got home. Clay replaced the fuse (which was quite the task for someone with very long fingers and big hands) and still no lights. I fidgeted with the bulbs for a while and finally got it to light! Victory! I was so happy. We went about merrily trimming the tree and putting out all of our other decorations. The next night, we turn the tree on and I go into the bedroom and play on the iPad while Clay plays XBOX (our nightly routine pretty much). I come out a few hours later to find that stupid top section unlit again! I asked Clay if he noticed and he said he had, but he wasn't going to say anything! Husbands.

I try to talk myself into not caring. It really doesn't matter. It's not worth taking the whole thing apart and pulling off the lights and restringing the branches. It's just one section. No big deal.

Well, then I talk to my sister and she said it would really bother her. Deep down, it really bothered me, too. My mom comes over and we decide the bulbs are burnt out. So, we look all over town for replacement bulbs. Gone. EVERYWHERE. Finally, I get the brilliant idea to use the strand we had bought and take apart the bulbs and use those to replace the burnt out ones. Clay and I spend a good 45 minutes replacing probably 30 of those pesky little lights. Still doesn't work!

We finally take the top section back to the store we got it from and they work on it and can't fix it either. They take the lights off and we restring them with a new strand and redecorate that section in about 5 minutes. Hallelujah! We now have a working tree. 

Wow, that was a long story.