Happy Advent! I wanted to share a quick story about one of my Stork family’s favorite Christmas traditions.

When my dad was younger, he spent a few years living in Ireland. While there, he purchased what would become a Stork-family Christmas treasure: a beautiful leather sheep collar with little bells on it. Don’t ask me why he purchased it, I don’t think he had aspirations to become a sheep herder? I don’t think he knew then how important those bells would become for his future family.

All throughout my childhood back in Kansas City, Christmas morning began with those bells. First thing on Christmas morning, my dad (well, Santa) would ring them with all his dramatic acting might and call out, “Ho Ho Hooooooo! MERRY CHRISTMAAAAAAAS!” My brother and I would leap out of bed and race down the stairs, hearts pounding with excitement, and jump into his arms. Some years we were already awake, lying in bed and waiting for the sound of Santa’s sleigh bells. Christmas morning, with all its joy and happiness, didn’t truly begin until those bells rang.

As the years went on, my dad faithfully kept the tradition alive, and my brother and I, even into our teens and twenties, kept our end of the deal—sprinting downstairs and shouting about Santa like little kids.

But then, when we hit our thirties, my dad decided we were finally old enough not to believe in Santa anymore. That Christmas morning, there were no sleigh bells, just our alarms. We wandered downstairs feeling a little heartbroken and bah-humbuggy. Christmas felt strangely ordinary. We had a spirited discussion with Dad about the tradition, and he promised that Santa would come out of retirement and never skip the bells again.

Now that my brother has two little boys, it’s become one of our great joys of Christmas to watch their faces light up when Grandpa Santa rings those bells—just like ours did all those years ago.

So, to wrap this up with a festive bow: cherish your family, your loved ones, your quirky traditions, no matter how silly or cheesy they may seem. Dads, maybe invest in some sleigh bells? The holidays fly by far too quickly, kids grow up way too fast, families move apart, and there is never enough hot chocolate to go around. Take the time to truly enjoy your loved ones, connect with your family, and don’t take anything for granted in our short time on earth before we are called home. Those sheep bells started as a silly thing my dad did when I was a toddler, but thirty years later, I can’t imagine Christmas or our family without them.

Happy Advent, and a very Merry Christmas from Dan and Callie Stork!

P.S. Don’t judge our little Charlie Brown Christmas tree in our picture.