This is the time of year that brings families together, long lost friends become acquainted with you once more, we all watch cheesy Christmas movies and sing off key to songs we've heard since we could understand what we were listening to. We put up the tree, decorate the house, climb the roof to put up the lights and try to out-do our neighbors by having the biggest blow-up decorations. But I think the one decoration that is always a hassle has to be the tree. Below is a guide on how to put your fake tree together.

1. Bring in your tree.

It is essential that you bring in your tree. If you'd like to see it from outside through your window's then it is essential you bring it inside.

2. Clear out the box.

Separate all the limbs by either color or letter, depending on what kind of tree you have, and make sure all that is left in the box is either the ornaments, the tree top, or nothing at all.

3. Put together the center "trunk."

You will need this center put together so that the branches stay on.

4. Begin putting on the branches.

Find the longest branches and being placing them in the designated slots so that they stay in place. Once you have them on, go to the next longest branch and so on. Go until you have all the branches on, longest on the bottom shortest at the top.

5. Put on the tree top.

This is the step where you place top of the tree on the top of the center "trunk."

6. Get out the lights.

Plug in all the lights and figure out which ones work and how many you need to go out and buy more of.

7. Stretch out the lights.

Stretch them out so that they are all untangled and there are no kinks in the line.

8. Begin putting the lights on the tree.

You have the option of either wrapping the lights around each branch or you can drape them on in a spiral fashion. If you wrap them around each branch it will take more strands of lights then just draping them.

9. Use two different extension cords.

Connect the top half of the tree to one extension cord and the bottom to another so that you can find the half that goes out and remove the strand that isn't working. Plug them into one extension cord that goes into the wall.

10. Begin putting on the ornaments.

This is the part that requires everyone to help because this is where you decorate the tree with every ornament that you've ever gotten and it becomes an event that people remember.

And now you have your tree up! Congratulations! You have the option of putting a skirt on underneath or not, but it's your choice. Have fun admiring your tree through the window, from the street, and around friends and family as you open up gifts on Christmas morning.