Alternatively, I bought the tree and surprised Jenn with it when she came home.

The girls and I hid in the living room with the lights off as Jenn approached the house. There we were, in the dark... And the phone rang! I was stuck behind the tree waiting to plug it in, so they ran around frantically to get it.

It was Jenn. "Hey, you wanna come let me in?"

Um... no? Sheesh, that ruin everything! So she let herself in and was duly surprised and no trees got knocked over and it was great. Then the nieces went to bed and I snuck around rearranging ornaments so the tree would look better with fewer clumps and bare spots. Is that wrong? Or does everybody do that?