Depends upon some combination of intention, availability, motivation, and necessity. It varies from year to year. This one is not looking to be prompt thus far.
One year, when I was 18 or 19 or so, my tree was still up for my birthday in April. I cannot recall when I finally put it away, but I do remember having to pull it out again the next year.
Some years, if the tree stays up long enough it can just become a Mardi Gras tree.
The yard decorations would have come down today but I had somewhere to go. They’ll probably be up until the weekend, but if I’m being honest only about half of them made it up in the first place this year.
I raced home before the rain and took down all the inflatables in the front yard so that hopefully I won’t have to dry them out before packing.
So far they have only made it to the front porch, as I just barely beat the rain here. But the wind is in my favor to give me some time to unwind and then go out there and get them.
I think it was my junior year of high school, everyone in my house was so damn lazy that our tree stayed up until opening day of baseball season… around April 1st.
Mine will probably be down before New Year’s. But I only put it up 4 days ago. Never had anything but a real tree, and most years (including this one), we go cut it ourselves, rather than buying one.
One year we put up strings of white LED lights around the front and back doorways (inside and out), and they looked so nice and made such handy night lights we left them up for three years until we moved.
My lights stay lit on New Years Eve. The people that cut my lawn will probably do it on that day, so I’ll at least pull the stuff out of the lawn on Sunday. I’ll leave the lights along the roofline. Makes me sad to take it down.
I don’t know why, but we almost always have our tree & decorations up through the end of January. It’s pretty & since it’s deep into Winter, it’s kind of nice to set a celebratory mood with the too long nights. There is at least 3 real trees that I can see from my home on the boulevard in front of some of my neighbors this morning already, which is way too soon in my book!
The only correct answer is the day after Epiphany. Anyone who takes it down earlier isn’t really celebrating Christmas anyway, they are just throwing a Christian theme on Yule.
@macromeh to me takedown and packing are normal life. I don’t let it intrude on a holiday off; we’re still celebrating even if New year is more just a day off than a holiday for us. Epiphany, though the outside lights go back on an evening only timer after the twelfth day of Christmas.
until the superbowl. i don’t get the tree until a week before or the week of christmas, and winter is long and gray and boring in boston once xmas is over so i like to enjoy it. makes things cozy and bright. i like when people leave their xmas lights outside for awhile too. (not all kinds of deco, just lights.)
however this year the trees were slim pickins and ours is not drinking as much water as i would like it to for the amount of time we’ve had it, so it may have to come down earlier this year. i won’t keep a tree that’s a fire hazard and dropping lots of needles, but if it’s still nice and green and lush, yeah, superbowl.
@jerk_nugget I have white icicle lights on my fence line and porch, and old fashioned big bulb lights on my carport year round which I light in the evenings. Plus some solar lighting which stays on all night at a low light level. Pretty to look at and improves security when I take the dogs out for pee breaks in the evening and at 3am.
@moondrake love it! when i lived in an apartment with a porch, i would always have some lights out there, usually changed them for the season or just warm white. alas, no outdoor space here, tho i keep tiny warm white string lights up around the perimeter of our living room year round. i love the old style colored bulbs as well, i actually have a few strands of the actual old ones on our tree that were my grandmother’s. (she’s still around but doesn’t do a tree anymore.) bought a whole lot of replacement bulbs from a nice guy on ebay last year so now they’re looking particularly nice and i have some to spare (some were getting a bit blinding because the colored coating had worn.)
Down by the first weekend of the new year.
Whenever the wife says to take it down…
@jst1ofknd this is the smart answer right here
Depends upon some combination of intention, availability, motivation, and necessity. It varies from year to year. This one is not looking to be prompt thus far.
@shahnm Well yank some batteries out of the fridge and charge up the energizer bunny. Get cracking.
Until Epiphany of course.
@therealjrn ding ding ding ding!
@reg036 @therealjrn This
Usually gone by 2nd weekend of January or so.
One year, when I was 18 or 19 or so, my tree was still up for my birthday in April. I cannot recall when I finally put it away, but I do remember having to pull it out again the next year.
My wife puts it up, so she can take it down. Okay… when she tells me to take it down.
Some years, if the tree stays up long enough it can just become a Mardi Gras tree.
The yard decorations would have come down today but I had somewhere to go. They’ll probably be up until the weekend, but if I’m being honest only about half of them made it up in the first place this year.
I raced home before the rain and took down all the inflatables in the front yard so that hopefully I won’t have to dry them out before packing.
So far they have only made it to the front porch, as I just barely beat the rain here. But the wind is in my favor to give me some time to unwind and then go out there and get them.
I think it was my junior year of high school, everyone in my house was so damn lazy that our tree stayed up until opening day of baseball season… around April 1st.
I usually put things away on Dec 31 to make room for my New Year’s Eve party.
I’m better than some of my neighbors; their lights have been up for years!
(It’s all done before the new year for me.)
We don’t always decorate, but I imagine the tree might come down this week, and that’s about all weput up
Mine will probably be down before New Year’s. But I only put it up 4 days ago. Never had anything but a real tree, and most years (including this one), we go cut it ourselves, rather than buying one.
12 days duh
One year we put up strings of white LED lights around the front and back doorways (inside and out), and they looked so nice and made such handy night lights we left them up for three years until we moved.
My lights stay lit on New Years Eve. The people that cut my lawn will probably do it on that day, so I’ll at least pull the stuff out of the lawn on Sunday. I’ll leave the lights along the roofline. Makes me sad to take it down.
Most of my neighborhood does the same.
Ha, I live in redneck town, most of the lights never come down.
@cranky1950 Never come down or never come on?
@OldCatLady Yes
I took our tree down yesterday afternoon. Hubbie wants the snowflakes and paperchain to stay a little longer so they might make it until New Year’s.
I don’t know why, but we almost always have our tree & decorations up through the end of January. It’s pretty & since it’s deep into Winter, it’s kind of nice to set a celebratory mood with the too long nights. There is at least 3 real trees that I can see from my home on the boulevard in front of some of my neighbors this morning already, which is way too soon in my book!
If you don’t put them up, you don’t need to take them down.
The only correct answer is the day after Epiphany. Anyone who takes it down earlier isn’t really celebrating Christmas anyway, they are just throwing a Christian theme on Yule.
Down and packed away by New Year’s Day. Normal life starts up again on the 2nd.
@macromeh to me takedown and packing are normal life. I don’t let it intrude on a holiday off; we’re still celebrating even if New year is more just a day off than a holiday for us. Epiphany, though the outside lights go back on an evening only timer after the twelfth day of Christmas.
until the superbowl. i don’t get the tree until a week before or the week of christmas, and winter is long and gray and boring in boston once xmas is over so i like to enjoy it. makes things cozy and bright. i like when people leave their xmas lights outside for awhile too. (not all kinds of deco, just lights.)
however this year the trees were slim pickins and ours is not drinking as much water as i would like it to for the amount of time we’ve had it, so it may have to come down earlier this year. i won’t keep a tree that’s a fire hazard and dropping lots of needles, but if it’s still nice and green and lush, yeah, superbowl.
@jerk_nugget I have white icicle lights on my fence line and porch, and old fashioned big bulb lights on my carport year round which I light in the evenings. Plus some solar lighting which stays on all night at a low light level. Pretty to look at and improves security when I take the dogs out for pee breaks in the evening and at 3am.
@moondrake love it! when i lived in an apartment with a porch, i would always have some lights out there, usually changed them for the season or just warm white. alas, no outdoor space here, tho i keep tiny warm white string lights up around the perimeter of our living room year round. i love the old style colored bulbs as well, i actually have a few strands of the actual old ones on our tree that were my grandmother’s. (she’s still around but doesn’t do a tree anymore.) bought a whole lot of replacement bulbs from a nice guy on ebay last year so now they’re looking particularly nice and i have some to spare
(some were getting a bit blinding because the colored coating had worn.)
Usually the second week of January, just because.