Unboxing the first Amazon Christmas tree

This season, Amazon is selling 6- to 7-foot tall Christmas trees and delivering them right to your front door. We ordered one to see what it was like -- because who really knows what to expect when a company says "We'll send you a Christmas tree"?

We were lucky that our 49-pound (!!!), 7-foot tall box arrived via FedEx early in the day. Even before we brought it in the house, it smelled like a Christmas tree!

Don't let her face fool you. It's not that hard to get it out of the box. (But it is heavy for a person to handle solo.) Definitely take note that the process makes a giant mess, so do this outside, not in your living room like we did.

Most tree lots people would traditionally get live trees from will do this for you before you bring the tree home. Many will even attach your tree stand on the premises, getting you that much closer to decorating than Amazon did here. None of the prep work was truly difficult with two of us, but we could see this being an issue for someone living alone, older people, or anyone with less patience or dexterity.

You'll want to chop about an inch off the bottom to help your tree get all the water it will need throughout the season. 

Chopped trees "seal" themselves off once they've been cut down, so they need to be re-cut to absorb water.

But keep the twine or wrapping on the tree until you've positioned it in your tree stand. It's also important to know that since the tree is so fresh still, it will most likely be moist, damp and full of sap. 

Tip: Either wear gloves as a preventative measure against the sap and needles, or when you want to clean up use dish soap to cut through the sticky mess afterward.

Learn from our mistake and do the opening, sawing, and positioning in the tree stand *outside* -- or at least in a garage. 

We had an uber-fancy tree stand that was supposed to make it easy to "grab" the tree. After some finagling, we got it straight(ish) and locked in. Make sure your tree is positioned exactly where you want it for the season, and safely in the stand before you open its branches.

As you unwrap the Amazon tree, again remember to be careful of the sap, tree branches and needles that will fall off. You may also want to keep some hedge clippers handy so you can snip any damaged or falling branches.

As you remove the twine, carefully separate and fluff the branches of your tree. Gently press down and straighten out some, to encourage the tree to return to its natural shape. 

Be gentle here! You want the tree to open up but you don't want to snap off any branches by being too rough. Your tree will continue to open up more as you decorate.

This part may be unavoidable -- keep the broom and vacuum nearby for clean-up after the fluffing and before adding the tree skirt. 

Probably even after that too, as your tree will continue to shed needles throughout the season (bc death is inevitable).

We got a bit hasty fluffing branches, so be sure to take your time and ensure your tree stays nicer, longer.

Plan where you want your tree to live for the season before filling your stand with water or beginning to decorate with the tree skirt. Some people want their trees in the window for all to see and be jealous of, others want it to be the bright and shiny centerpiece of their homes. In either case, be prepared for A Project if you try to move it after decorating.

String your lights up, from the trunk of the tree to the tip so that you don't get stuck with an empty bottom. 

We plugged our lights into a TP Link smart plug so they could be controlled without crawling behind the tree every day and night. Here are more simple, DIY holiday projects to try right now.

If your lights are brand-new like ours were, be sure to stretch them out to get maximum coverage. If they've been jumbled up and in storage for the past year, consider patiently untangling them before starting to decorate. (It will really help your mental health, trust me.)

Tuck the end of the lights into the back of the tree (assuming you have a side facing the wall or corner), or connect it to a light-up or smart tree topper. 

Make sure the lights are on while you decorate, even if it's daytime when you do so. You'll get a much better idea of spacing, as well as what your ornaments will look like as you place them on the tree next.

Decorating your tree is one of the best parts of the season (for some, I admit). If you put your heaviest and largest ornaments closer to the bottom, they have only a short way to fall and are less likely to break. Lighter ornaments can be placed further up the tree since they won't bend the smaller, lighter branches.

That being said, always keep spare ornament hooks on hand. You never know what has gone missing or broken in the last year.

In my family, we start with the largest, most important ornaments and go from there. And sure, we have hundreds of ornaments of various sizes, and a huge fake tree, but still! Planning ahead is always helpful.

My mother always made my homemade ornaments face the window, "for everyone to see," she said. But I think they just weren't up to snuff with the rest of the tree. Think carefully about what you want guests and family to see when they experience the tree with you. 

Some people like to hide smaller gifts or envelopes in the tree. Be sure to pick a sturdy branch -- and don't forget about it when you open gifts! 

Once the tree is up, it finally feels like Christmas. We finished up by decorating the rest of the house with gifts (yes, already!), garland, stockings and more throughout.

Here are some more tips for quickly decorating inside and outside your home this season.

After a long day, we finally have a tree! Have a happy holidays all, we leave you with a count of what we messed up so that you may learn from our mistakes:

Times we swept or vacuumed: 4

Broken branches the tree arrived with: 0

Broken branches we caused: 2 (while fluffing)

Ornaments on the tree: 58

Ornaments we broke: 1

Times we washed our hands: 5, not including the one before lunch