Merry Christmas. with a child you will make up for no presents believe me in years to come

  Michael...congratulations on the new baby!  He/She in itself is a wonderful gift!  It's what Christmas is all about - a baby being born into the world.  Next year you will have lots of material gifts under that tree and your baby will stand wide-eyed before it, basking in the lights and the gifts.  Have an awesome Christmas, celebrate your baby's birth and celebrate the birth of the Christ born so many years ago in a manger that we might have eternal life!

Thank you both for your comments!  I'm sure we will have lots of material gifts under the tree for her next year!

Michael.

there is NO GREATER gift than Life itself, Your Christmas just came 3 weeks earlier.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas and congratulations on the new baby!!  What a wonderful present!

Yeah, we had less under our tree this year, as we have a 4 year old she has enough toys to get her along.  Plus, she has grandparents that keep her up to her eyeballs in toys.  Congrats, on the new born.  Aw, sleepless nights, diapers, explosions on both ends, and so on.

Dave

Happy Holidays to you and yours.  Merry Christmas!

Congratulations and Merry Christmas! 

Michael, Congratulations on the new baby.  What is the baby's name?  I would love to see pictures of the baby?  This is an exciting time for you and your wife.  The baby will change somethings, but have a job that is flexible is very helpful.

Congrats Michael, My wife and I are expecting the first week of Mark our first child so I know first hand how you feel... We stopped exchanging gifts about 3 years ago, we rather buy something for the house. This year it was a new room full of baby furniture....

Happy Holiday's!

Michael,

Congratulations on the baby.....my husband and I both made this agreement this year (my 20 year old spent Christmas out of town and it is quiet here) but both bought presents anyway...when you took that pressure off yourselves and focused on your family, you made the right choice......

Michael, I believe more and more people have stopped the material presents.  My "hubby" and I seem to have Christmas year round.  What a great present for Christmas...the new baby will bring years of great joy.  Merry Christmas.

The baby was the most precious gift you could give each other and you are right, no material possessions can replace love!  My husband and I do not give each other gifts and never have.  We got married very young and always thought the kids were more important to give something to instead of ourselves!

Michael, What a great gift you received this year.

You could not have asked for a better gift than the birth of your first child. Now in my family there is no way that I would have gotten away with no presents under the tree (new baby or not).

Congratulations and have a Merry Christmas!

Michael, how true that is and you have the best gift of all...Your daughter! Congratulations and may your house be fulll be wonderful blessings. Merry Christmas.

Michael, what a perfect gift! You'll have this special gift for many years to come and this gift will just keep on giving...hugs, kisses, etc. I KNOW you're having a perfect Christmas!

WOW A FEATURED POST!  Thanks to all of your comments, I never realized just how many people don't give material presents to their husbands and wives for Christmas!  I remember when I was young and I just kept wanting more and more and more presents to open.  My how things change when you become....

THE PARENT!

Merry Christmas, Michael!  Awesome present to have...

Michael, Congratulations on the featured posts.  And on the new baby.  We also decided this year we would buy no gifts except for the grandchildren and they got money.  It saved us a lot of stress by not having to be out stressing over gifts and it sure saved us some money.  We have everything we need...it was just a matter of what we wanted and we really didn't even want anything this year.

You have received one of the greatest gifts of all- your new child -- and your loving family.  Merry christmas and enjoy your many gifts and blessings.

Congrats on the new one and Merry Christmas.  I applaud you for celebrating the best things in life and that is family.

Michael Michael....a healthy new born child is a miracle.  But moderation my man as my mom always preached.  Don't pull out of the present lane completely...get on the train after christmas to get in on a few presents for your little one, your wife and buy yourself a few too.  Tis the season (ting)  Your little one will be wanting an ipod, z-4 and tuition to an expensive ivey league school.  You don't want to get out of the habit ot providing a few toys in addition to all that love.

I love simply put messages...thanks Michael!  We gave out presents but we haven't had a tree for a few years and this Christmas we literally could not think of anything to buy each other let alone think of anything for self....besides sharing the day with family. :) Happy Holidays Michael!

Hi Michael - you have 2 of the greatest gifts of all - the love of your wife and a brand new baby! 

I wish you a wonderful Christmas together, and a terrific 2008!!
Ann

Your gift just came a little early......enjoy it, as
I know you will!! Family is important...

GBY!!

\O/

Enjoy your new addition, but you should sneak out and buy your wife something small.  She will appreciate it and enjoy it.  The baby is great but everyone likes to get at least one material gift.  Enjoy the new year.

Michael, Merry Christmas! It's nice to see others who understand what Christmas is really all about. It's not about gifts and materialism. It's about our Lord and those close to us. May 2008 be an amazing year for you and your family! (As I know it will be with a new baby in the house). Enjoy it!

Congrats on the new member of your family. We too do little for ourselves each Christmas, our focus is on our children, and now a grandchild.

Best holiday wishes, 

You both have the best present ever!

Congratulations on your little bundle of love!  Having 4 ages 5-13, I can only imagine the quiet warmth and smell of Johnson's baby bath/lotion on your adorable 3 wk old and the big grins on your faces as you realize what Christmas is all about!  Life!

I agree! You both have the best gift ever.   Merry Christmas and I hope that 2008 is a GREAT one for you.

Congrats on the birth of your child.  We're expecting our first born in April and our tree was sparse too.  Being that this is our first, we have to get furniture, closing, diapers, etc. so we decided to knock out our list instead.

Jonathan Osman

-the former annapolis agent now in Charlotte, NC

Michael,

Your post is heart-warming and one that I hope many people read and take seriously.  I am so sick of the news media making us believe that we have to spend, spend, spend in order to enjoy the holidays.  As for me, I didn't charge 1 item on my credit cards this year.  And our family had a wonderful holiday.  Sure is nice not to get those credit card bills.  Kudos to you!

You do have one of the greatest gifts Love of family Wrap yourself in that warmth this year while you can. Merry Christmas

Michael, this is a lovely post.  If more of us followed your lead, we could totally simplify and improve our lives! 

Congratulations, Michael - your 3 week old is the best of gifts for you and your wife to give each other, and you two as parents are the best gift for your child. It's not material gifts that matter.

Congratulations on the birth of your baby...even without presents under a tree...you've had a great gift...a child to love. Merry Christmas.

Congratulations and best wishes for a Happy Christmas.  Your baby embodies the true spirit of Christmas, and nothing else is needed to make your family complete.  More of us should follow your lead and realize that it isn't things that bring happiness ~ it's love from our family and friends.  Thanks for a great reminder.

AGAIN, WOW!  What a tremendous response with this post!  Both my wife and I really enjoyed reading ALL of your comments and words of advice and encouragement!

AND TO JONATHAN (ALONG WITH ALL OF THE OTHER SOON TO BE NEW PARENTS), My best advice to you is for you and your wife to get ALL the sleep you can now and go out and eat at every restaurant in town until your sick and tired of eating out!  Then sit back and strap on your seat belt because you are going to be getting on the RIDE OF YOUR LIFE!  Make sure you are there for her in the delivery room EVERY STEP OF THE WAY, SHE WILL NEED YOU MORE THAN EVER!!!!

Congratulations on the new baby!  You'll have many wonderful Christmases to come!  Be sure to take a lot of pictures!

Bob Mitchell

ValueList Real Estate Services, Inc. 

Congrats on your baby and nice post!

Christmas babies are special.  Mine just turned 26 last Friday.  My other "Christmas Baby" turned 23 on September 24th but he doesn't like for me to remind him that he was my Christmas Baby too ;-)   My daughter came home from the hospital 26 years ago wrapped in a red and white blanket shaped like a Christmas stocking.  I embroidered her name on it and it has been the only stocking she has hung and Santa has filled all these years.  My son noticed the size difference in her stocking and his when he was three so I had to make him a stocking as big as his sister's.  This Christmas my daughter added the love of her life to our family so I had to make my new son-in-law a stocking just like my daughter's.  I was wise and cut out an extra one so in a year or so when I get a daughter-in-law I will have one partially made.

My neice just had her first child on the 19th, Sydney Elaine.  One of our staff members had her baby on the 17th, Mason William.  Christmas babies are special..... enjoy yours. 

congratulations on the new baby! I applaud you for celebrating the best things, your family.

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas especially with a new one,and here is a wish for a joyous and prosperous new year.

Seeing as how my 1st son just turned 6 months on the 22nd of December...we did the same thing.  BUT...I warn you....the extended family will flood your house with gifts next year!  I have so many toys floating around my house now....I am just overwhelmed.

Congrats to you and I hope you had a very Merry Christmas!

It's lovely to enjoy a new baby for Christmas.  All the rest is really just not necessary... 

great, simple post with a very important message. Congratulations on your new arrival!

Great post and very commendable. It might be harder to do as your baby gets older. Thanks for sharing this..

Congratulations on the new family member and Merry Christmas!

Michael-The true spirit of Christmas is spending it with family and loved ones.  Congratulations on the new baby!

Merry Christmas.  And I hope you enjoyed your first Christmas together with your new family members.

Congrats on the new family addition....Merry Christmas!

You received the most wonderful Christmas gift possible 3 weeks early!

Congratulations on the baby!  They are the best present of all!

Congrats on the new family.  There were no presents for us under the tree this year either - in fact, my husband and I decided long ago to forego presents for each other.  It just seems silly to HAVE TO run out and buy trivial presents because it's a certain day of the year.   It's made for much happier, stress-free holidays (not to mention post-holidays - no more returning stuff I don't want!)  Sometimes, we'll buy an "us" gift and claim it was a Christmas gift (one year it was a TV, this year is was a simple DVD). 

Of course, there were many presents under the tree for our son - and that brought more joy than anything!

The best gift of all is having children to LOVE!  Merry Christmas!

"Christmas comes but once a year,

    How glad we all should be....

 For that's the time when Baby Dear eats ornaments off the tree"     !

Wait till next year....that's when the fun starts !

Michael, I can't argue with your conclusion.  I spent the holiday with friends whose baby was experiencing her first Christmas.  She got many times more presents than she will ever need or want - I kept thinking of all the other babies who didn't have toys and would have appreciated one of them...

Congratulations on the birth & Happy Holidays. Having a newborn in the family is the best present of all!

Wishing You HAPPY HOLIDAYS and Best Wishes for A GREAT YEAR 2008.

Tommy   Nassau/Suffolk/Queens Home Inspections New York Certified Home Inspector Long Island NY 

Michael-What a great message that is and one that we all need to be reminded of.  God bless you and your little family.  Oh, the fun you will have in years to come. 

Mike, excellent thinking and congratulations on having a wife who will go for this.  With a new little one in the house next year is surely going to come with a full complement of presents under the tree.  The only relief in site after that is when thye reach the age where they dont believe anymore.  I must say I support your position that it is all about love.  Enjoy the season.