How the Times Have Changed

This year, the Christmas stocking is on the other foot. Instead of celebrating Christmas in the usual fashion, the holiday comes with a new way of life. A child is in the picture, and the spirit of Christmas began filling this new dad up in September!

Last year, I told my wife, "By this time next year, we'll have a six month old!" Next year is here, and boy does the season change, especially for new parents, when there's someone in the house that needs their diaper changed. They call children bundles of joy for a reason.

I remember Christmas as a child myself. Some of my best childhood memories are from Christmas. I don't know how I ever managed to sleep the night before Christmas Eve morning, when we opened gifts with my mom, dad and sister. I'd race in the living room like a bat out of hell and almost immediately begin tearing into the presents. One year, when my dad built a go-cart for my sister and me, I remember a huge buildup. My parents made me wait in the hall for what seemed like an eternity until they could get their cameras out to capture the image of a face in utter bliss.

Of course, presents are only one part of the holiday. Family is the cornerstone of Christmas. Every year was full of love, conversation, and a ton of food. These memories are etched in my brain, and it's at times like now when it's so nice to recall them at a time of transition, when the memories for my son are just beginning.

I can't think of a better reason to pass the torch of Christmas on to a child than now. I can't wait to see how the moments I held so dear will find my child and his bright eyes on Christmas Eve morning as he races down the hall to discover what Santa left for him.

Last year we waited for his arrival; this year we get to scoop him in our arms, and now we only wait for the rest of his life to unfold right before our very blessed eyes.

Merry Christmas.