Jan. 14—Due to Christmas vacation and a wacky work schedule because of Christmas, I haven’t had a chance to write in a few weeks.

So even though it’s a bit belated, I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year!

And while I’m looking forward to getting back in the groove now that we’re in 2024, I would be remiss if I didn’t take this chance to reflect on my holiday season.

If you know me, or if you’ve been following my column for a while, you know there’s always a lot of planning when it comes to my big holidays.

We always have stops to make at my mom’s house, my dad’s house, Carmen’s mom’s house, Carmen’s dad’s house, and our own house, if we can squeeze it in.

It’s very much like the movie “Four Christmases” if you’ve ever seen it.

Our first stop was actually way back on Thanksgiving when my mom hosted a Thanksgiving/Christmas gathering. She had been planning to spend the actual Christmas holiday visiting my brother in Texas, and thus she planned an earlier get-together with us before she went on her big trip.

Despite it being earlier than usual, it was nice getting to see my Granny, my uncle, some cousins and family friends.

Up next was my dad’s house over in Pikeville where I was born and raised.

It has become tradition for us to go visit that side of the family the weekend before Christmas, and this year was no exception.

We got to see my stepmother Brenda and stepbrother Jacob along with his new bride Haleigh. We also got to briefly see Brenda’s sisters and their families.

Brenda always has lots of candy and other goodies baked for us, and it was all delicious this year as always.

Then on the actual weekend of Christmas, our first stop was the house of Carmen’s mom Linda.

She cooked a nice meal for all of us which included her husband Donnie, my brother-in-law Wade, and his wife Kellyn.

We exchanged gifts afterwards, and then Carmen, Jaxson and I wrapped up the evening by looking at Christmas lights around Corbin.

Lastly, on Christmas Day, we spent the afternoon with Carmen’s dad Tim and his family.

His wife Susan prepared a big feast for us and all of their family members which is always fun to be a part of.

We exchanged presents with them as well and then later on made our way back to our house where we had our own little Christmas.

The season kept us on our toes as always but getting to spend it with so many people I love is something I wouldn’t trade for the world.

There was one little moment though that I especially took away from the holiday season.

It was back when we were at my dad’s house and I was pushing around Jaxson in his stroller.

Jax was going through a phase where he absolutely loved being pushed in his stroller, and would ask for it constantly.

At our house here in Corbin, it can be a bit adventurous because we have a bumpy yard and a gravel driveway.

But Dad has a long blacktopped driveway which is much more convenient for pushing toddlers around in strollers.

The reason that moment was special though was because of the thought that came to mind.

You see, that house is the one place I still have from my childhood. It belonged to my Nanny and Papaw when I was younger, and it was always a second home growing up.

My brother and I spent a lot of our summer days there while Mom and Dad were working. And Nanny picked us up from school a lot too, which meant many afternoons hanging out there.

This wasn’t the first time I had taken Jaxson there to visit. We had been several times before.

But in that moment pushing him in his stroller, I realized that in the same driveway where I used to always ride my bike or play basketball, I was now older and playing with a child of my own.

I had never really looked at it quite like that before, but for some reason it hit me right then.

I suppose it was because we were making several laps up and down the driveway that it took me back to those days from 30 years ago.

Nevertheless, it made me that much more appreciative of the opportunities I’ve had to share some of my childhood with my little boy.

I understand though that places like homes come and go. Even if I didn’t have a physical place like that to show Jaxson, there are still many things that can be kept alive from generation to generation.

Memories and stories can be shared of course, but most importantly, our faith in God is what we need to pass down more than anything.

No matter where we go in life and no matter what happens in our life, the Lord is always going to be there.

The same God that was there when I was a tiny tot is the same God that is here today watching over my son and all of my family.

So while it’s nice that I share old places with Jaxson, the most important thing is to share Jesus with him. Then he’ll hopefully want to share the Lord with his own family when he’s all grown up.

I do have to thank my wife dearly for taking Jaxson to church every Wednesday night while I’m here at work. He loves his little class and it’s going to be a great foundation for him as a youngster.

Psalm 102:18 says, “This shall be written for the generation to come: and the people which shall be created shall praise the Lord.”

My apologies for being a bit longwinded in this column. But I just had to share everything from my Christmas season as well as that moment I had while pushing little Jaxson in his stroller.

I pray that we can all share fond memories with our future generations but above all I pray that we all keep sharing God.