So I spent my Christmas vacation sleeping, catching up on movies and generally laying about while I wasn’t eating.

And man, did I ever eat. Three amazing dinners to celebrate my birthday — one at Trezo Vino, one at J. Gilbert and one at Blanc Burger. Great meals all, but my waistline is definitely worse for the wear.

My birthday and Christmas were terrific: I got everything I really wanted (except more storage for my computer…I’ll just buy that myself), including two new rad pair of sneakers and a new leather messenger bag for work (it makes me feel totally grown up).

And now, it’s officially 2012. Resolutions suck, but it’s a great time to start anew and set new goals for the year. So here are mine:

• I’m getting back onto Weight Watchers for real. We had some great success with it last year, but I stopped counting points and really lost my way. No more messing around. I’ve got 50 pounds to get to my goal weight. I’m aiming for getting there by the end of the year. Ideally, I’d like to be there by summer, but I want to be realistic too.
• I’ve got two big website launches this year. I want them both to go well.
• I want to find some sense of purpose for this site. Whether it’s WordPress or Tumblr or whatever…I want to post more and have more clarity in my posts.
• I obviously want to improve my work/life balance…whatever that might mean.
• I want to go on another adventure with Alli. It’s been too long since our Italian adventure. It’s time for another.
• Drink more water.
• I’d like to take another crack at reading 25 books this year. It’s been 5 years since I last did it. Look for an upcoming post with the books I intend to read this year.
• Keep being awesome.

Now that they’re written down, I have to stick to them, right? Isn’t that the point of stuff like this? What do you plan to do this year?

I don’t see it that way. My family has always been amazing at keeping my birthday festivities separate from Christmas, which I truly appreciate. Plus, I get to open presents like 4 days in a row, which rocks.

This year, the celebration of my birthday was on a level that is just about unparalleled. My lovely wife Alli and I started the 22nd by using our Groupon to Trezo Vino, where we dined on amazing bruschetta and I had a terrific pasta dish – trofie with lump crab and prosciutto, bread crumbs and chili flakes. It was as delicious as it sounds.

We saw The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (if you like the books, I’m assuming you’ll like the movie, but man, is it ever brutal.

On my actual birthday, Alli and I woke up and had breakfast at my favorite place in Olathe, Old 56 Family Restaurant. Seriously, if you haven’t been there, go if only for the hash browns. We then headed to the movies again to see one of my favorites of the year, The Muppets. After the brutal nature of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, it was fabulous for the second time. Seriously, it needs to win an Oscar for Best Song.

Had to run an errand, then after a quick nap and massage, we met my family for dinner at J. Gilbert for steak and family celebration. There, I was able to wear my new shoes from Alli and I got another pair from my folks.

The New Balances on the left are my new kicks from Alli. Old-mannish and retro-y, yet a little dressy…you know…because they’re leather. On the right, my new Muppet-inspired Kermit Adidas from my folks. They combine both my love of sneakers and my love of the Muppets. Plus, they are green. And they have the Kermit points around the tongue. So cool.

I also got a fancy new pen/stylus for my iPad and a bowtie from The Tie Bar from my brother and his family. Also awesome.

After dinner, we headed to another one of my favorite places, Christopher Elbow’s Glacé Artisan Ice Cream.

We topped it off by heading back to the movies to see the critically acclaimed silent movie, The Artist, which was completely charming in its simplicity.

All in all, my 35th birthday was freaking awesome. Family, movies, food, delicious food and rad sneakers. Yeah. I’d say it rocked.

Merry Christmas!

I come from a very musical family. My mom and dad were in a folk band in college called The North Door Singers (Google them). They sing at church. My brother sang at our wedding and could always carry a tune.

I’ve never had that confidence. I sang when I was a kid in church choirs and at campfires and I even tried playing the piano for like two weeks. But performing music never really stuck on me like it did with the rest of my family. That didn’t keep me from loving music. Not even a little.

My family, God bless them, has always said, “But you have a great voice! You should sing.” NO.

OK, maybe.

For the past several weeks, Jake and I have been learning how to play guitar from my Dad. Each Wednesday, my mom cooks us dinner and we meet at their house for a few hours to learn new chords, progressions and lately, songs.

Last week we learned our first real song — an original that was written by our friends out in Wyoming (also known as the Cowboy-version of the Osmonds) for my niece. The three of us learned the song and played it for her and the rest of our family last weekend.

This week, I got to bring a song that I wanted to learn — “Poison & Wine” by The Civil Wars (which you may be familiar with if you pay attention here). And last night, I went home and I sang it to my wife. I didn’t sing it well, but I sang it.

I sent a text to my dad today that read:

I am terrified of singing. Having a guitar in front of me as a shield helps.

It’s the truth.

I still don’t think I can sing. People may pooh pooh that thought, but if you’ve ever heard anyone else in my family sing, you’d understand my trepidation. But ever since I started learning how to play guitar, I’m not as scared to actually do it as I once was. Having that shield/security blanket sure helps because if I think I sound bad, I can just play louder.

Regardless of that, Wednesday nights have been this wonderful combination of family and learning something new and it’s a lot of fun.

Special thanks to Alli who snapped the photo in this post.

Taz (left) was Dreyfuss’ (our dog, right) brother (Jake also has one of the brothers from the same litter, Gutter). They were born on the same day to a litter of 9 other dogs. Losing Taz hasn’t brought into clear view the mortality of Dreyfuss, our family member for the last 10 years.

Words really can’t express my sadness. Dogs are such amazing companions who love and take joy in every moment. As humans, we can learn a lot from them. Their zest for life is something to be admired and Taz certainly had plenty of zest. I know that my parents are going to miss his joyful “smile” and his incessant, obtrusive tail-wagging.

Taz, your family will miss you and the joyfulness you brought to us through the wagging of your enormous tail. I wish I had better words for my mom and dad, but I don’t. All I can say is: I love you guys.

Dogs are amazing and enrich our lives. Please be thinking about ours tomorrow as he goes in to have dental surgery and to remove a lump on his back.

Once every 3 years or so, my family has this ridiculously excessive tradition. We wake up early on a Saturday and have a donut tasting.

And it is exactly as awesome as it sounds.

However, this is an amazingly un-local thing. The local-est place that we go is Lamar’s, but we also tried Krispy Kreme and Dunkin’ Donuts this year. After my devotion

Then, there’s this.

Meesha is organizing a meetup at John’s Space Age Donuts in downtown Overland Park on May 19, the same day that the new Dunkin’ Donuts opens up just down the street. I’ve got some friends who freaked out when Dunkin’ Donuts came to town. After my donut day, I can categorically say that Dunkin’ Donuts is very MEH and they certainly can’t hold a candle to Lamar’s. I’m going to try and make it to John’s on May 19 and give them a try.

It seems like they’re the awesomest. What are your KC suggestions for my family’s next excessive donut day?

Jake’s one of the funniest people I know and he just so happens to be one of my best friends. I’m lucky like that…to get along with my brother so well.

But this isn’t really a post about my brother so much as it is a post to him, welcoming him into his 30′s.

I’m proud of you, Jake. Not only are you my favorite brother (natch) but you’re also a loving husband, a great dad, a loyal friend and a hard worker. Knowing that you’ve now joined the rest of us in the ranks of your 30′s makes me feel old, sure, but I’m also reminded of how much you’ve grown since 25.

You’ve matured in a way that, at that time, I am not sure I would have believed…not 5 years ago.

Understand that I don’t mean that in a condescending way. I’m just so proud of the man you’ve become, even if you will always be my little brother and I’ll always, by default, be able to whip you.

I hope you have a great day.

We started on the 23rd, my birthday, by taking care of our nieces (and by “we” I mean Alli) for much of the day and having both our families over for some birthday festivities, Oklahoma Joe’s and funfetti cookies. I got a bunch of great presents…really good stuff.

Christmas Eve we spent with Alli’s family at Tyson and her sister’s house. More great stuff and lots of eating.

Yesterday morning, I got the present that I wanted all season: a white Christmas. So much snow! The family got up and did some shoveling — not just our driveway, but two others (and my back is paying for it today). We headed out and braved the roads to hang out with my family for lunch, more presents and really great times. Laughing with my family is one of my favorite things to do.

I made out like a bandit this year, scoring great presents from everyone and still having a wonderful white Christmas.

I hope everyone’s Christmas season has been as good as mine. A couple more movies this weekend and it will be complete!

Having not seen the first one, I didn’t know what to expect.

It was funny, completely owned by Janet Paone, who originated the role and played Vivian Snustad, the uptight Lutheran matriarch of the kitchen.

The food at the New Theatre is edible, but extremely beige. It’s buffet food, so…well…I don’t really need to say anything else about that. The service is very good.

As far as value for entertainment goes, it’s a very nice evening out.

There were a couple of reasons for that:

1. To unplug. It’s healthy. I spend a lot of time on the internet. But not on vacation.
2. I was in Wyoming. Out of cell coverage. Twittering would have been pretty difficult.
3. To prove to myself that I could.

I know that the internet missed me. But alas, I powered through six days without Twitter or internet or even cell service.

So in the spirit of my lack of twittering, I thought that I would share the updates that I would have twittered had I been connected:

Last minute packing. Trying to get it all into one bag since we’re all driving together. 8 adults and a baby in a 12-passenger van. 6:07 PM Jul 2nd from ÜberTwitter

And we’re off. A little cramped in here. 11 hours to Wyoming. Pretty pumped. 8:00 PM Jul 2nd from ÜberTwitter

We’re only one hour in and I’ve already had at least six of the cookies my mom baked for the trip. Okay TWELVE. 9:07 PM Jul 2nd from ÜberTwitter

Nebraska City. Time for me to drive. Good thing I brought good music. Carolina Liar. PLAY. 10:37 PM Jul 2nd from ÜberTwitter

The van we rented has a massive fuel tank. If my contacts weren’t drying out my eyes, I could make all the way to Wyoming. 2:30 AM Jul 3rd from ÜberTwitter

Huge wind farm between Cheyenne and the ranch. I wonder how much energy each one of these things generates? 5:12 AM Jul 3rd from ÜberTwitter

I need a nap. This ranch is so gorgeous. I have so many good memories from this place. http://www.bitowyoranch.com 6:20 AM Jul 3rd from ÜberTwitter

The horses: Cody, Sundance, Shoshoni, Chugwater, Dakota, Cheyenne, Comanche, Cherokee, Bridger, Colter, Red Cloud, Red Rocks, & Washakie. 4:16 PM Jul 3rd from ÜberTwitter

Shooting a bow and arrow not very well. 5:12PM Jul 3rd from ÜberTwitter

RT @whitneymathews @shaneadams On America’s birthday, I’d like to tell you that your interview is the 6th most-viewed page ever on our site. 8:16 AM Jul 4th from ÜberTwitter

Up and ready to go hiking at Vedauwoo. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vedauwoo 9:30 AM Jul 4th from ÜberTwitter

Holy crap. I almost just died. Slipped and almost fell off a 30-foot drop. Pretty scary. SERIOUSLY. Legs are a bit shaky now. 12:28 PM Jul 4th from ÜberTwitter

Mom started crying when I told her about almost falling off the mountain. 1:09 PM Jul 4th from ÜberTwitter

Rain has kept us from riding horses. We had hoped to ride after we got back and had lunch, but it is pouring. 2:49 PM Jul 4th from ÜberTwitter

Annoyed. 6:17 PM Jul 4th from ÜberTwitter

My oldest friend in the world is here now. Gabe is one of the funniest, best people I know. 11:30 AM Jul 5th from ÜberTwitter

What the heck is going on? Yesterday, I almost fell off a mountain. Today, I get thrown from a horse. Probably shouldn’t shoot any guns. 12:30 PM Jul 5th from ÜberTwitter

Hearing about The Infinity Principle, a new book by one of my Wyoming friends, Chad. http://infinityprinciple.com 4:00 PM Jul 5th from ÜberTwitter

Wyoming cowboys are a lot different than Kansas cowboys or Texas cowboys for that matter. Wyoming cowboys are FOR REALZ. 7:57 PM Jul 5th from ÜberTwitter

The Steeles wrote a song for my niece Ireland. @TasmanRay is going to teach me and @TheDudeAbides05 how to play it. 9:10 PM Jul 5th from ÜberTwitter

Going for a hike with Gabe, Chris and @startbeingfit. And all the dogs. I hope I can keep up. 11:14 AM Jul 6th from ÜberTwitter

Every week, they put on a cowboy dinner theater show here at the ranch. The Steeles are the non-Mormon cowboy version of the Osmonds. 8:43 PM Jul 6th from ÜberTwitter

An incredible trail ride today on Red Cloud. I still like Shoshoni, but Red Cloud didn’t buck me off. 2:22 PM Jul 7th from ÜberTwitter

On our last day in Wyoming, we had perfect weather, an incredible sunset and a campfire at Inspiration Point. 8:10 PM Jul 7th from ÜberTwitter

Tonight, we watched the horses being let out of the stable up into the field where they graze. Gorgeous animals. 9:33 PM Jul 7th from ÜberTwitter

A perfect end to the vacation: sitting on the deck under the stars around the fire pit listening to Dennis tell cowboy stories. 11:35 PM Jul 7th from ÜberTwitter

It’s official. Nine years of marriage and it keeps getting better. I love you, Alli. 12:01 AM Jul 8th from ÜberTwitter

My third near-death experience of the week: eating at McDonalds. When you don’t eat there for several years, you realize its disgustingness. 8:41 AM Jul 8th from ÜberTwitter

My turn to drive on the way back. Surprised that we’re already in Nebraska. 11:11 AM Jul 8th from ÜberTwitter

As fun as this has been, I am ready to be home. 7:44 PM Jul 8th from ÜberTwitter

Home. 9:50 PM Jul 8th from ÜberTwitter

It was an amazing trip — such a fun trip with the family. Getting to see Alli with the horses was so great, considering how much she loves them. I would seriously consider retiring in Wyoming. There is so much space and it is so peaceful. I can’t wait to go back.

There are lots of people in this world who have crappy parents. I am not one of those people. I am so blessed to have two people who have loved and supported me throughout my life in ways that I could never imagine nor ever repay. All I can say is thanks. Mom and Dad, you’ve been such a positive influence in my life and I’m so blessed to have been raised by you guys. I know that I wasn’t always the best or most-behaved, but hey, at least I wasn’t Jake.

While today is Mother’s Day, I just want to say thanks to both of you. Dad, thanks for always being so supportive and loving, even from across the globe at times. Mom, you’ve shown strength that I never could.

Happy Mother’s (and early Father’s) Day!