Burning the tree, and what do I do with the space now?

I think it's finally time to take down the Christmas tree in our living room. Really. It's not dropping all its needles yet, but it may get there sometime soon. It's still very pretty. So why do I want to take it down? Because it's time, and I want my living room back. Sometime this week, that means, I will have to box up the ornaments, take off the lights, fold up the skirt and find a way to get the tree down the stairs and out of the house without making too awful a mess with the remaining needles. That also means I will have to do something with the space in the living room...

When we decided to put the tree in the living room where others could view it from the window, it meant a bit of furniture rearrangement. We put the futon in the office (officially creating an extra guest bedroom), moved the new couch to a different wall, and brought the rocking chair up from downstairs. The tree, skirt, and various presents have occupied the rest of the room. The goal this week is to clean up from the holidays, store the holiday stuff, and then brainstorm what else I want to put in that room...I found some tables I really like at World Market, but they are $$$ and I really need more seating in there. Hrm.

Also, I'm tired and really just want to go home and read. Not productive when I have things I have to get done :) So, I'll take it a chunk at a time, and when we're all done, we'll burn the tree in the pit in the backyard, giving it an appropriate send off.