The holiday season came early for 230 Fort Carson soldiers who returned from Afghanistan Sunday night to find the post’s Special Events Center dripping with icicle lights and a massive Christmas tree standing at attention inside.The soldiers, members of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, spent nine months stationed at Forward Operating Base Fenty outside of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, where they helped prepare the Afghanistan National Security Forces to become self sufficient, said Maj. Korey Brown, with the brigade’s rear detachment.

IN PICTURES: Fort Carson homecomingThe soldiers also built schools, roads and wells, Brown said.Sunday’s homecoming was the first of 13 expected to return of 3,500 soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division brigade to Fort Carson by mid December.Among the returning soldiers was Staff Sgt. Trent Logan, whose wife, Jessica, gave birth to the couple’s first child five and a half weeks ago.Trent Logan watched his son’s birth via Skype.The webcam did not do his son justice, he said.“You are way  more beautiful than that, aren’t you buddy?” he asked his son, Dylan, as he held cradled him inches from his face.“Did you see the big guy?” he asked a friend as she walked by.

“Congrats, big papa,” his comrade replied.Watching his son being born from thousands of miles away was “depressing,” the sergeant said.“There are a lot of things going on, and you have to try and maintain your focus,” he said. “But you have to block off some emotions to watch the birth of your child.”Jessica Logan said she was looking forward to taking her husband home to the couple’s new house and making green chili for him.Sgt. Stephen Topick also returned to Fort Carson on Sunday night. Waiting for him was his wife  of 16 years, Heather.“It’s hard not having that other person to bounce your day off of,” Heather, a mom of three, said of the deployment.Sgt. Topick said he was looking forward to “getting back into the dating thing” with his wife.Sunday’s homecoming was originally slated for Friday but delayed several times due to Hurricane Sandy, which grounded and rerouted aircraft headed to Kyrgyzstan to pick up the soldiers and closed some East Coast airports, Brown said.Nicole Adair, wife of returning soldier Staff Sgt. Christopher Adair, said the delays were discouraging but far from the worst thing that could have happened.“We just rolled with the punches,” she said. “As long as he’s coming home safe, that was the big deal.”

Sergeant Jared Bliss kisses his son Kason, 4, and holds hands with his daughter Jaylee, 3, as the 4th Brigade Combat Team from the 4th Infantry returned home Sunday, November 4, 2012. Michael Ciaglo/The Gazette Photo by MICHAEL CIAGLO/THE GAZETTE

MICHAEL CIAGLO/THE GAZETTE