Holiday pack-away

• One zone at a time: tree first, then rooms, then outdoors
• Everything tested as you unplug: dead lights binned now
• Ornaments wrapped individually; broken ones photographed + let go
• Wrapped-wire trick: lights around cardboard, never loose
• Boxes labeled by room + who owns the decor
• Fake tree in its bag, real tree to curbside pickup day
• Gift wrap + ribbon consolidated to one bin
• The keepsakes: one memory box, dated
• New gifts find homes tonight — nothing lives in boxes
• Strings, extension cords + timers coiled + binned if frayed
• December photos backed up off every phone
• Note to self for next year: what to buy on clearance