Christmas tree disa...
 
Notifications
Clear all

Christmas tree disaster

22 Posts
17 Users
0 Reactions
5,594 Views
(@TheVBs)
Posts: 883
Team INTERCOT Cast Member
Topic starter
 

:(

Last night we came home from DD14's choir concert to find the tree had fallen down. We were all set to blame the new kitties. We adopted a 2 year old boy in the spring and a 6 month old boy just a couple of months ago. This is their first Christmas with us. The tree had been up for days with no issues and as we got it back up, it looks like it just wasn't tightened at the base enough.

Because we didn't know what the kitties might get up to, we made sure no glass ornaments were on the tree. When I told the girls the plan, they wanted to do an entirely Disney tree. We have tons of those Storybook Ornament sets and lots of other Disney ornaments. I knew they weren't unbreakable, but as we picked the tree up, I was stunned to see how many had just shattered. :( And it mostly landed on the rug! We're going to try to fix what we can. Our DD10 was devastated and crying. I think every single one of my Tinker Bell ornaments broke.

The gifts got soaked too. But, thankfully, nothing was ruined! Of course, I had just wrapped a ton of gifts that day.

Oh well. It's just stuff. Right? Sigh.


Susanne

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 7:32 am
(@Pirate Granny)
Posts: 354
Senior Cast Member
 

I'm so sorry...I know as a child I was famous for pulling the tree down, so much so that my father screwed bolts into the ceiling to be able to tie the tree up to the ceiling. :blush:

We are off to disney tomorrow...is there something special I can purchase to make DD smile. I can have it mailed to your house from disney.

Please, take me up on my offer...today, I truly need to make someone else smile. It's been a long few days ...........


Pirate Granny

October 2020 — 3 nights OKW, 3 nights Poly Lakeview and 1 night BWV studios
November 2020 — BRV studio 9 nights
December 2020 entire family GV OKW
December 2020 January 2021 BCV studio

OH YEAH BABY !!! Proud owners at OKW + BCV + BRV + RR

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 8:17 am
(@Mrs Bus Driver)
Posts: 167
Cast Member
 

I am so sorry about your tree. Over the years it seems every cat I ever had has tried to climb a Christmas tree at least once. I think my worst Christmas disaster was when my Rottweiler peed on the tree. We had to take the tree outside to hose it, wash the ornaments and rewrap most of the presents. In the end it became one of those memorable Christmas stories, point is ornaments can be replaced even if it takes some time. As long as you pull together you and yours will still have a good Christmas.
Your story got me to thinking about Christmas past. When my kids were little I used to have a lot of crafting supplies, so one year I bought a lot of cheep ornaments and let my DD and her friend decorate them. They weren't Disney quality but we used those ornaments for many years and it made my DD very happy. Maybe you and your DDs could make a few memories.:mickey:


Three years in Connecticut and loving it
Next trip in Jan 2017 I hope!

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 8:47 am
(@mickeysgirl)
Posts: 187
Cast Member
 

So sorry for your daughter!

Growing up we had a cat who liked to sleep in the tree. One year he had toppled the tree one to many times, and my parents packed it all in. We refer to it as "The year of the Christmas chair". It is now an amusing story. It wasn't at the time.

I hope your tree remains standing through the rest of the season.


Jennifer (aka Mickey'sGirl)
INTERCOT Staff: Guests with Special Needs, Dining and Disney Characters

Last trip: March 2016 - Fantasy
Next trip: Aug 2017 - Aulani

I am a Galactic Hero once more!

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 8:51 am
(@cspenc28)
Posts: 75
Cast Member
 

I'm so sorry about your tree.
Growing up, my mom was so particular about our tree. No one could decorate it, except her. Well, one year she thought she was being smart, and only decorated the half of the tree you could see (it was in the corner of the living room). In the middle of the night, we heard this loud crash. It woke all four of us from a dead sleep. We ran downstairs and our tree had fallen over. We were lucky, it didn't damage any ornaments, and she hadn't wrapped gifts yet. But, it still was a mess that we had to clean up in the middle of the night, water, pine needles, it took forever.
We now laugh about it, but at the time, we weren't too amused. Now she just puts the plains balls in the back, and all the special ornaments in the front.


"You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you."
~Walt Disney

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 9:01 am
(@TheVBs)
Posts: 883
Team INTERCOT Cast Member
Topic starter
 

OMG! I love these stories! You've all made me laugh so much and I really needed that this morning. Thank you all so much. I'm still a little fragile, but feeling like I can face the day now. :mickey:

And, Pirate Granny, that is so incredibly nice of you!:mickey:


Susanne

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 9:34 am
(@PirateLover)
Posts: 367
Senior Cast Member
 

I'm so sorry! We've had some tree mishaps over the years. One year we had a lopsided tree and had to tie the top of it to a hook on the wall to keep it standing. I have a vast ornament collection- mostly Hallmark. I do have a fair amount of storybook and special WDW park ornaments as well. One good thing about Hallmark is that they are very well made. When they do break, they tend to break at joints and are easy to super glue back together. I would be so upset if my ornaments shattered. The Storybook ornaments do seem well made so that is surprising to me. But you are right, in the end it's just stuff. I always try to look at the silver lining... what if one of the kids had been sitting around the tree when it fell, that kind of thing. Try to fix what you can and maybe (if you have the $$ to spare) make a special trip with the kids to the Disney Store or Hallmark to pick out a few replacements together? Also a lot of the sketchbook ornaments are currently on sale on the Disney website. Not sure if they are on sale in store as well.


~M.~

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.
11 Trips to WDW
1 Trip to Disneyland
Many more to come
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection, the lovers, the dreamers, and me.

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 10:29 am
(@disneymom15)
Posts: 342
Senior Cast Member
 

Pirate Granny;2441892 wrote:
We are off to disney tomorrow...is there something special I can purchase to make DD smile. I can have it mailed to your house from disney.

Please, take me up on my offer...today, I truly need to make someone else smile. It's been a long few days....

Pirate Granny, what a nice offer


Jodie

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 10:53 am
faline
(@faline)
Posts: 2935
Staff Member Moderator
 

I'm so sorry!! It's such a disappointment but it will be a family memory for many years to come -- remember the year the tree fell over???


Linda aka: Faline
INTERCOT Staff: Vacation Planning,Trip Reports and Disney Camping
faline@intercot.com

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 11:28 am
(@bleukarma)
Posts: 10
INTERCOT Guest
 

My fiance and I don’t have a Christmas tree this year. We had a little table top one but when I plugged it in only half the lights work. I was so frustrated I took it straight to the dumpster.

But my childhood tree at my great aunts house also fell. I’m not sure what caused it. The glass blown mickey ornament that me and her picked out at Disney years ago broke. It’s sad. She is 80 years old and she raised me and every year we both enjoyed putting it on the tree. However, in the end, it’s just an object. We will always have that memory of buying it and using it every year.

Cheer up and think of all the nice memories you will make getting new ornaments with your kids! Maybe take your DD to pick out something special for the tree to cheer her up. She will always think of that ornament as “the special one we had to buy when the tree fell.” Lol!


 
Posted : December 10, 2014 12:22 pm
(@minnie04)
Posts: 290
Senior Cast Member
 

Pirate Granny;2441892 wrote: We are off to disney tomorrow...is there something special I can purchase to make DD smile. I can have it mailed to your house from disney.

Please, take me up on my offer...today, I truly need to make someone else smile. It's been a long few days ...........

what a nice offer.:thumbsup: It would be kinda cool to have something shipped from Disney to your DD. So sorry to hear about the tree. :(


Been there, done that and going back!!! See ya real soon !!!

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 1:01 pm
(@princessgirls)
Posts: 256
Cast Member
 

So upsetting!!!!

I famously remember staying at my SIL's over one Christmas break week, and her huge great room tree fell over crashing, and thankfully not on top of us either, it went the other way. It was too much tree in too little base.
Boom. Could have hurt us...
Julie:mickey:


Next Up:

Summer 2018... WE ARE BACK!!!
2 families
4 teenagers and Larry
Taking on the parks!

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 1:19 pm
(@BrowncatP)
Posts: 172
Cast Member
 

I, too had have a bad tree experience. I only had the lights on the tree when one of my cats knocked the tree over. The tree was new and the cat caused the base to break. I could not find anything that would support the tree. I had to go and get a new tree.


First visit 1976
Offsite 1982/1985/2000
Disneyland July 1996
AKL 2002/Sept 2011
Paradise Pier-DL July 2005
Contemporary Sept 2006/Nov 2014
Port Orleans-Riverside Sept 2008/July 2014/Nov 2018
Port Orleans-FQ-Nov 2012
Paradise Pier-DLH DL 2013/2015/2017 and D-23 Expo

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 8:39 pm
(@vwl-mom)
Posts: 2541
Staff Member Moderator
 

I'm so sorry, I have 3 cats and a very large dog and I am constantly worried that someone will knock it over.

Pirate Granny, what a lovely offer. Truly epitomizes the Christmas spirit.


- Lynn -
INTERCOT Staff: Theme Parks, DVC

 
Posted : December 10, 2014 8:48 pm
(@tinkwest)
Posts: 427
Staff Member Moderator
 

One year, for whatever reason, our tree decided to tip over. Several family members were sitting in the living room and watched it just suddenly fall down. It was after Christmas and we had stopped watering it already so there wasn't too much of a mess on the carpet and as far as I remember we did not lose any ornaments.

I'm sorry you lost some of your cherished ornaments. I know that would make me sad. But as many suggested, I think you should go out and buy a special ornament to mark the year the tree fell. My son was only three when ours fell down, but today - 27 years later - he still remembers it. It is a part of our Christmas memories.

BTW, I'm glad your cats have been well behaved so far.


Linda aka tinkwest
INTERCOT Staff ~ Disneyland Resort

Come On Everybody - Here We Go!!

“To all who come to this happy place: Welcome. ...”

Support our INTERCOT Sponsors!

 
Posted : December 11, 2014 12:48 am
Page 1 / 2