2015

It went from ME to WE the day that everything changed

It went from ME to WE the day that everything changed
The Day I became a DadI was asked the question, " Do I remember a time in my life when everything changed? "

My straight answer is an emphatic, " YES!"

The picture of me holding Chardonae is one of the first pictures of the two of us together. She was only hours old when, and now looking back almost 13 years, it's incredible to think how fast time has flown by. That specific day was THE DAY everything in my life changed.

It went from ME to WE in an instance


The day I saw my first-born come into the world, everything changed. No more could I comfortably commit to activities, opinions, beliefs anymore. What was all about "me" was now all about "we". Don't misunderstand me, my wife was always part of the "us", but we were both adults and had our own passions and direction in life - some of which ran together and some of which ran in parallel.

At least that's how it was before that most incredible day of days, when our lives changed forever -- and for the better.

[caption id="attachment_20792" align="aligncenter" width="403"] 7 things a daughter needs from her dad The checklist I wish they gave me at the hospital... [Image Credit: http://quotesgram.com/ ][/caption]Fatherhood was a concept I understood only through the filter as a son. My dad is a great man who loved on my brother and I from the day we were born right up until NOW. We talk often and reminisce of times long ago when he used to tend for us in the various phases of our young adolescence through to young adulthood. However, nothing could prepare me for the day I became a DAD. You can read all the books ( which I didn't ), watch all the movies ( Does "Parenthood" count? ), consult with every single father, grandfather or great-grandfather you can connect with, but NOTHING can prepare one for the day you hold your newborn in your arms.

That day it wasn't just about "me" anymore... it was now about "we" and of course, all about her.

When Manulife asked me...

"Do I remember a time in my life when everything changed?"


The following images is the best representation of what flashed before my eyes as I explored my mind to build a timeline of milestones... all I could think about was my family...

Be Covered as a Dad

But, what about OUR future? And all the "what if's" yet to happen...


Manulife got me thinking about all the WHAT IF's in life. To be honest when I first got started as a Dad, I couldn't imagine what tomorrow would bring let alone 5, 10 or 20 years... but the one question in the back of my head kept nagging at me.... "What if?"

To many uncertainties in life. You can't plan for them, nor can you live a life expecting for the unexpected. Life happens and we can choose to prepare ourselves to the best of our abilities. Thankfully, almost immediately after Chardonae was born, my wife Christie and myself invested in a savings plan along with insurance -- no more staying awake worrying about the "what if" situations... I could at least find some solace in knowing that if something happened that we couldn't control, at least the family was covered.

Even writing this article, my heart rate is somewhat raised and I feel anxious. Thinking and talking about those moments we don't WANT to think about is not pleasant - but you know what's more unpleasant? Not doing anything about it.

Do yourself a favor and do what I did. Check out and walk through the "Cover Me" application. It was an eye opener  for me!

However, as much of an eye opener it was, I'm happy to share that I also gained peace of mind in knowing that my family is covered even while we're going through our most current life transitions. (you can learn more about those here


If you have 30 seconds to invest while waiting for your latte to be made, you might want to check it out too.

[button color="red" size="big" link="http://goo.gl/mtBDTz" icon="" target="true"]Get some PEACE of MIND #BeCovered[/button]


Don't let the conversation stop here. Join us Wednesday November 25th at 9pm EST for the #BeCovered Twitter Chat :


BeCovered Twitter Chat 2- Nov 25 2015
Check out these great bloggers as they talk about what "Being Covered" means to them:


So when did you life change drastically? Take a moment and leave a comment below sharing a time in your life when you realized EVERYTHING had changed.

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you are awesome - really This post is sponsored by 360ACCESS on behalf of Manulife Financial. The opinions are my own...

And to be absolutely clear, this is my disclaimer: “Just so you know, I have been compensated to share my ideas on this topic. Sometimes it is in the form of products, or services or even money… But here’s the thing; I won’t  share anything with you that I don’t fully support. It doesn't matter what it is, or how much they are willing to give me, if I don’t believe in it, It won’t be on my site. Seriously. You’ll just have to trust me on this.”   ~ Moose

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