<p>I noticed that my neighbor removed his Christmas lights yesterday. And he put them up last in the neighborhood.</p>
<p>I don’t decorate my house every year. But if I do, I only remove them after the new year.
How long do you have your lights hang on?</p>
<p>We don’t put on holiday lights. My idea of when to take down the Xmas tree is Epiphany (Jan. 6). H’s idea is whenever he has the time. :)</p>
<p>Husband did not have time to put the holiday lights up this year, but he normally removed the Christmas tree and ligths together.</p>
<p>No outside lights here, but I usually try to “undecorate” around January 1. Might let things go a little later this year since it seems like we just put up the tree, etc.</p>
<p>DH and I took down the tree and all the indoor decorations this morning. We had a lighted wreath outside on the porch so that was an easy take down.<br>
We usually put our tree up fairly early and then take it down as soon as Christmas is over. It is never up until New Years.</p>
<p>We have done this for the last 20 yrs, because S2’s birthday is Dec. 30.
I always wanted all the decorations down before his birthday so it would feel like a real birthday to him and not like an extension of Christmas. Also when he had birthday parties as a child, I def. did not want a pack of wild boys tearing thru the house knocking fragile Christmas decorations over.</p>
<p>THats very sweet- I am sure I would not be that organized.
but good point about the wild boys.
When it was just me and H, we would put our tree up late- but take it down on Valentines day 
sometimes we would take it down earlier- but as long as it still had needles…</p>
<p>Our neighborhood has an HOA that will send out nasty letters at the end of Jan. We don’t wait that long, though.</p>
<p>We took down our tree/ornaments today, but only because it was a fresh tree (or it was supposed to be!). The needles began falling off terribly and it had drooped so much even tho we kept it watered. We got the tree the Sunday after Thanksgiving, but left it in water outside for a week before we brought it in. It was a real disappointment this year. Therefore, we went ahead and took it down today. The rest of the decorations are still up–will get to that around Jan 1 or so. May rethink where I purchased this tree next year–we’ve bought from the same family for years (NC frazer firs), but very disappointing this year!!</p>
<p>We take our outside lights down as soon after Christmas as the weather allows. We usually pick an unseasonably warm day to do it. We stop turning on the lights on Dec. 26th.</p>
<p>The outside lights will probably go down next weekend, depends on the weather.</p>
<p>I undecorate the inside trees, etc. every year on New Year’s Day.</p>
<p>We keep lights plugged in (on timer) thru New Years. They come down when the weather permits. One year it was late March. I live in New England and my house faces north. The lights were frozen to the bushes, the poor shrubs would have been denuded if we had peeled the lights out of them.</p>
<p>We have a neighbor like the OP’s. One year the tree was by the street waiting for the chipper the morning of Dec 26th.</p>
<p>Erma Bombeck: (loosely quoted, but I remember the main point) “Do you want some time to yourself? Want to be in your house, all alone, with no one to bother you? Repeat loudly after me: ‘I am going to take down the Christmas tree.’ Kids and husbands will scramble, doors will slam, tires will squeal, and for the next 3 hours you will have the entire house to yourself.”</p>
<p>Outside lights are on a timer and are on through New Year’s Eve. I like leaving my real tree through Epiphany but some years (like this one) will get it out earlier depending on the deadline for city pickup. The fake tree sometimes stays up later if I can’t get around to getting it undecorated.</p>
<p>In our house all Christmas lights and decorations are removed in the “Three Kings Day”-January 6, 2010! Amazing 2010…</p>
<p>BTW wishing everyone a wonderful 2010!</p>
<p>I lack the effort to do much decorating around here. My kids LOVED it when they were little. Now, they barely help, although I’m much smarter and assign some jobs (the mantle = DS2, the ornaments = DS3, the lights in the window = H). Makes it much easier. Sadly two will be in college when it’s time to pack up, but I don’t want to rush and take everything down when they’re home and it’s still the Christmas season.</p>
<p>I’ll start taking everything down bit-by-bit next week and H will probably get rid of the tree 12/9. Kids go back 1/3.</p>
<p>“Our neighborhood has an HOA that will send out nasty letters at the end of Jan. We don’t wait that long, though.”</p>
<p>Wow! Maybe that’s why some people on our private road are so adamant about NOT calling our road maintenance group an HOA.</p>
<p>After the Epiphany/12th day of Christmas, January 6.
Before that is too soon, IMO.</p>
<p>I put mine up “late”–around Dec. 20th–so as not to be celebrating Christmas during Advent, which supposed to be a penitential season.</p>
<p>January 6th for the tree. Lights outside are on a timer–we’ll turn it off on the January 6th as well. This is the first time we’ve had the small white lights outside and they really look pretty on our paperbark maple trees. The tree guy strung them for us–he needed a bucket and he suggested that we just leave the lights on the trees all year. He didn’t think there would be a problem. We’ll try that and see what happens.</p>
<p>I’m with atomom and Bromfield; you must wait for the Kings to arrive on January 6th!</p>
<p>You are supposed to take down the outdoor lights? Mine are hard-wired.</p>
<p>Why take them down when you would just have to put them back up for Arbor Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July and Labor Day?</p>
<p>Outdoor lights went up/on about 3 weeks before Christmas, will keep them on probably through New Year’s weekend and then turn off and take down as weather permits ASAP. I do have candles in all my front windows and leave those on all winter - it’s my winter decorating </p>
<p>Tree went up about 2 weeks before Christmas. I like to take down for New Years, but sometimes the kids convince me to leave up TILL New Years. </p>
<p>I noticed a neighbor a couple of doors down (younger couple with 2 small kids that keep to themselves and I don’t really know except to say “hi”) had their artificial tree literally shoved out the front door haphazardly in the cardboard box resting on their front porch the morning after Christmas. It’s still sitting there. Ouch. I’m a little concerned they didn’t have a very “merry” Christmas - that seems so odd to me that it would be down already with little kids and just pushed onto the front porch stairs. :(</p>