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!

One huge benefit of attending Big Omaha was that Alli and I could stay with her folks and spend the weekend up here with them. Today, while Alli’s dad and I golfed this morning (and I played some of my best golf ever), she and her mom shopped. We came home, showered and then headed out to see Star Trek.

On Star Trek: WOW. What a movie! JJ Abrams put together an interesting cast of characters to reimagine and reboot one of the most iconic franchises of all-time. It was entertaining and action-packed – everything that a summer blockbuster should be. I had heard good things about the movie, but I reserved my judgment until I saw it. My judgment: Awesome. Go see it.

After the movie, we headed to Stella’s Hamburgers for a great diner-style burger (see above).

So, let’s recap:

• Golf
• Star Trek
• Bacon Cheeseburger

Yeah. Today pretty much rocked.

Ashley and Tyson will be married today at 5:00 p.m. We had a lot of fun doing their pre-marital counseling and getting to know them as a couple really well. We’re looking forward to welcoming Tyson to the family.

We are so excited to be a part of this day and so thrilled that the two of them are stepping into this next phase of their life.

Also, I took their engagement pictures (some of them are linked from the picture above).

We’ve seen a couple of sad dog movies lately. First it was Marley & Me. I was prepared for that movie to be sad, but I still bawled. Today, we saw Hotel for Dogs, a kids movie that made me want to go out and rescue every dog that I could. While Hotel for Dogs isn’t quite sad in nature (it is, after all, a Nickelodeon movie), it still had parts that got me choked up.

I’m a sucker for dogs. We’ve almost always had them as I was growing up and Alli and I have decided that instead of being “kid people”, we’re gonna be “dog people.” Now that may mean that our house will smell a little or that our clothes and furniture will be covered in tiny fur, but I can’t put a kid in a kennel and leave it for the night. You can do that with a dog. Sure, that’s selfish and all, but I’m OK with that. I think I’m at a point in my life where I’m OK with being a little selfish.

We got Dreyfuss less than 6 months after we got married. He’s now 8 years old, which means that at 80 pounds, he’s a little slower than he once was, and he sleeps all the time. I’ve started to think about what it will be like when he isn’t with us anymore and even typing it makes me sick to my stomach. He’s a loving, protective dog who is a part of our family. Not only that, but he is utterly and completely ours. Everything about him reflects us. He loves to sleep (guilty), has a distinctive smell (guilty again), is completely happy just sitting on the couch watching TV. He’s also utterly brilliant. I have an example, but I am going to use a scene from Marley & Me to explain and if you haven’t seen it, SPOILER ALERT! (Resume reading after the second set of stars.)

*****

There is a scene in Marley & Me where Jennifer Aniston returns from the hospital after losing a baby. Now, up to this point, Marley has been exactly what the book title says, “The World’s Worst Dog.” Instead of jumping on her unknowingly, this brilliant animal shows what true empathy is by sitting quietly, resting his head on her lap, and comforting her.

My dog has done and continues to do this on many occasions. A few years back, Alli had an ovarian cyst that ruptured and she had to have an emergency surgery to remove it, as well as her appendix which had become inflamed. During the long recovery process, she recounted the hours and days that she spent with Dreyfuss laying his head on her stomach calmly. He was her protector when I was off at work and he continues to protect our house always. (Believe me…he might be cute, but you do not want to be a burglar in our home. He’s a pretty imposing dog with a big bark.)

*****

Dreyfuss is an awesome dog. We are so lucky to have him as a part of our family. I hope that we have him for many many more years.

We found this bakery through a dance team parent who had brought Alli and Ashley cupcakes prior to their competitions the past two weekends (which they really did amazingly at, BTW).

Dragonfly Boba Tea and Bakery is a locally-owned and operated little shop right next to Pei Wei at 119th and I-35 in Olathe. One of the reasons that they came to our attention was that they have the ability to make gluten-free cakes and desserts. Since Ashley and Tyson both have a gluten intolerance that borders on celiac disease, they didn’t think they were going to be able to have a wedding cake when they get married in April.

With Dragonfly, they will.

We got to taste both the gluten-free and the regular cakes from Dragonfly and I could barely tell the difference between the two. The cakes are amazing. Ashley and Tyson decided to go with Dragonfly’s signature white chocolate cake for both their own personal gluten-free cake as well as for the main cake for those of us whose intestines can tolerate gluten.

Not only are the cakes terrific, but the owners are a terrific group of ladies that use recipes from their grandmother Opal, who passed away in 2006. Now, three generations of Opal’s children and grandchildren run the business in honor of her, a great tribute to a lady that made a heck of a cake.

If you’re looking for a cake for any occasion, I suggest you go check out Dragonfly.

I was not paid for this endorsement, although I would certainly take free cake for it.