Tuesday and Wednesday, December 28th and 29th - 19 and 20th Days

Tuesday and Wednesday were both great days.  Nicole had to get up at 4:00 in the morning to take Amber to the Airport so she could go visit her boyfriend in Texas.  I told her not to die while driving down there, and she didn't.  She's always been a very obedient wife.  Tuesday was great, work was easy, and people were nice, and Kerry and I got to ride to and from work on our bikes.  No one shot at me, ran me over, or cursed at me, so it was pretty easy to stay nice.   OH, exciting news, Bishop Walker found out that his daughter didn't actually have a miscarriage and lose the twins!  In fact, she went back up to Idaho, and the doctors did an ultra-sound and found two heartbeats!  So, he was excited, and so was his daughter and her husband.  I think it was truly a miracle.  On Wednesday, I woke up in a cold sweat because I dreamed that Hunter and I were driving down the road and the road was washed out and we drove into a raging river.  I was able to get out, but Hunter didn't, and he died.  It was terrible!  I woke up and had to slap myself a few times to make sure it was just a dream (note to self, don't slap so hard).  That night Nicole, Kaylee, Logan and I went to the gym again.  I learned my lesson and stayed away from Logan while he was working out.  It was much easier to eat eclairs while lifting the two pound barbells and watching T.V. then it was to work out with Logan!  Things I learned the last two days, 1st, Miracles still happen, even if we don't have Moses parting the red sea, we still have miracles.  2nd, If you're going to drive into a raging river, unbuckle your seat belt before the car flips upside down and you can't figure out which way the door is.  3rd, Don't slap yourself while holding your toothbrush (just kidding, I didn't really do that, but I imagine it would hurt).  4th, I get to go to Debbie and Brian's for dinner tomorrow and I'm excited.  It still should be easy to keep my streak intact because they're very nice people (unless of course Debbie decides to cook Liver and onions). 

Monday, December 27th, 2010 - 18th Day

Monday was a great day!  I went to the gym, and did 22 minutes on the eliptical, 500 jump ropes, 20 sit-ups with the 12 pound medicine ball, 20 curls, 20 box jumps, and 30 10lb medicine ball throws with Logan.   Then, I came home and went shopping with my Nicole and my girls.  It was fun, I was starting to get frustrated with one of my girls, so I just had to walk away, and all was well after a few minutes.  Sometimes, it's best just to walk away for a few minutes and cool down, especially when you're trying to be nice for an entire year!   Then, we came home and I went for a 30 mile bike ride with Debbie, Kerry, and Ken.   That night we went to the Anderson's and made gingerbread houses.  Kaylee and Amber made the coolest igloo, complete with a sled, a dog made out of tootsie rolls, and an eskimo made out of a nut.   Debbie made a cool tree, and Brian pretty much ate candy and talked with Mike about biking (you can't deny it Brian).  No, just kidding, Brian helped me, and our gingerbread house rocked.  It was pretty easy to be nice to everyone at the Anderson's, even when Kelly laughed when they told her that I was going to try and be nice to everyone.  Kelly's response,  "Kyle is going to try and be nice to everyone!" (imagine Kelly's hearty laugh here)  Luckily I restrained from doing my Ninja move on Kelly and taking her out right there, so my nice streak is intact.  Things I learned today, 1st, Don't do box jumps with a 17 year old boy, it will kick your butt (I know, this was supposed to be a lesson I learned previously, but I'm a very slow learner). 2nd, The frosting from the gingerbread kits can be used interchangeably with cement, seriously.  3rd, Don't do gingerbread houses more than once a year, or you'll look like a gingerbread house because you eat as much as you put on the houses (actually I think I put one part candy to every 3 parts I ate)

Sunday, December 26th - 17th Day

Sunday was my day to sleep in because I didn't have any meetings until 1:00!  Then what happened?  That's right, I woke up at 5:45, and couldn't get back to sleep!  There is truly no justice in this world.  The day was nice, though, I sat by the Christmas tree while everyone else was in bed and just thought about life, it was kind of nice.   It's easy to be nice to people when there's no one to talk to!  I didn't once want to hit myself, or scream at myself.  I was a complete master of my temperament.   Then my wife and kids got up, we played some games, and off to church I went.  I found out that Bishop Walker's daughter had a miscarriage and lost her twins, so Bishop was kind of down.  We had a great church though, and when I came home Kaylee had made us some great Yogurt, Parmesan Chicken, and it was tasty.  Then, I visited a friend, and came home and spent the evening with my family.   Things I learned today, 1st, Yogurt and Parmesan, while they sound like they would go together like Ketchup and ice-cream, are actually very tasty when combined on chicken! 2nd, It's easier to be nice to yourself sometimes than it is to be nice to others. 3rd, It's hard when you see a friend sad and there's nothing you can do about it.

Friday, December 24 and Sat. December 25th, 2010 - 15th and 16th Day

The day before Christmas is always one of my favorite days.   I got up and did some last minute shopping, then I went home to get dressed for a bike ride with Mike Anderson, Clair Buchanan, Kerry, and myself.  It was 50 degrees out and beautiful.  I was so grateful to be out riding again, I'd forgotten how much I enjoy it.   Then, I came home and played some games with my family, and we had a great ham dinner.   We then had our Christmas program, which consists of singing songs, opening our Christmas gift (pajamas), opening white elephant gifts, re-enacting the Nativity, and watching Luke II on video.  It's one of my favorite nights of the year. The spirit of Christmas is like no other.  That night, Hunter decided to try and stay up all night by watching episodes of Psych until Christmas morning came.  The rest of us went to bed.  At 6:00, we all woke up and found Hunter asleep on the family room couch, with the T.V. blaring in the background.  He had made it until just after 5:00.  Needless to say, he wasn't very happy that he was less than an hour short of his goal!   We then all opened presents and began a day of playing games and sleeping a lot from the lack of sleep we received the night before.  I then got to go on another bike ride with Chelsea, Kerry, and Debbie and Brian Bowling and it was 60 degrees outside. We went slow and had a great time talking about everything.  Sometimes the slow rides are the most fun because you get to enjoy the other person's company, rather then just seeing their backside as you race down the road, panting like a big dog running after a squirrel.   We got home and enjoyed leftovers, visited my brother and his family, and then came home and went to bed.  It was a good day.  Things I learned today, 1st, It's much more fun to see people open your presents then it is to open your own.  Seeing Hunter and Logan open the PS3 I surprised them with was priceless, I thought Logan's head was going to explode the way he was holding on to it and screaming.  2nd, it's really nice to have my entire family home.   The older I get, the more I realize that my kids won't be with me forever and I need to cherish them.  3rd, Orange rolls and yummy, but if you eat 6 of them, you are going to feel anything but yummy.  4th, Bike riding on Christmas day in 60 degree weather with friends and family  - it doesn't get much better than that! 

Thursday, December 23rd, 14th Day

Today was another great day.  I had another big sale, and a group of Metals companies said they had decided on our product.  I celebrated with the family by taking them out to Olive Garden to eat.  We were nice to the waitress, and she was nice to us.  We then went to the tabernacle and listened to Brody Perry's group sing.  They were good, but not as good as Nicole (I'm not even a little bit biased).  Then Nicole and I went shopping, and we came home and read a Christmas story and talked with the kids.  I decided to not eat so much candy, even though people keep bringing it by the truckload.  It was another day where it wasn't hard to be nice to people.  People were nice to me, and it's always easier to be nice to someone when they're nice to you.  Things I learned today, 1st, it's fun to sneak around and buy your family gifts that they are not expecting.  2nd, Logan is really working on getting six pack abs.  I told him that if he had six-pack abs like Hunter's by Valentine's Day I'd give him a $100.  He is doing box jumps, running, and eating less.  He only ate one bread stick at Olive Garden! (I didn't even know that was possible)   3rd, Harvest Company bread is delicious! (The Wade's brought us some for Christmas).  4th, Nicole calls today Christmas Adam (because Adam came before Eve, get it).  5th, I can't wait until tomorrow, not only is it Christmas Eve, but I get to go on a bike ride (it stopped raining finally).  

Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010, 13th Day

Today was another great day!  Work was so slow, I felt like a turtle caught in molasses.  However, when I went home we got to make our homemade salsa and run it around to 40 of our friends and neighbors.  Every year we make salsa and send to the neighbors.  This year, it was a little late in coming, so I had quite a few people say, "Hey, where's my salsa!"  For those of you who haven't tried it, you've missed out.  I also got to go to the gym with my family, and there was a really loud, obnoxious man there and I wanted to say, "Hey, obnoxious guy, can you quiet down a bit, some of us are trying to work out without screaming and grunting!"  However, due to my Christmas commitment, I simply smiled and didn't say anything.  So, I'm not sure if I'm becoming a better person, or maybe just bottling it up inside and one day I'm going to unleash on some little old lady who cuts me off with her shopping cart in Walmart!  No, seriously, this has been a lot of fun.  Things I learned today, 1st, when you make salsa, it's fun, but it's messy.  Our kitchen looked like a CSI crime scene.  Kaylee had tomato sauce flying all over the kitchen!  2nd, don't rub your eyes after making salsa, especially if you've been cutting the jalapeno or habanero peppers. 3rd, I have some great friends!

Monday and Tuesday, December 20th and 21st, 2010 - 11th & 12th Day

Monday was so slow, that there is not much to report.  We had three phone calls all day, and two of them were from the same person!  I was nice to him, so that was pretty easy.  At night, our family went shopping for a family in the ward and we had a blast.  It really helped us feel the Christmas spirit.  We were able to buy presents for all their children, and the parents, and we bought stuff for their Christmas dinner.  Then we went home and wrapped them.    We then had one of our friends, who didn't know the family at all, go to their door and deliver the presents and the money.  It was a lot of fun.  Then, Tuesday morning I woke up and went to the Summit (a local gym), and worked out with my two oldest daughters and my 17 year old son.  My son, Logan, had me doing box jumps, and medicine ball throws, and lunges, and bicep curls, then we ran for 30 minutes.   By the end I was really sore.  Then, when we went outside, we noticed the river was overflowing the banks, so we spent the next 3-4 hours shoveling dirt into sand bags and helping the city sandbag so the Washington City residents wouldn't have their homes flooded.  It was really nice to serve, but now I'm sore!  Things I learned today, 1st, Don't try to keep up with a 17 year old boy when lifting/running at the gym!  You will not feel very strong, even if you have convinced yourself all these years that you could whip up on any 17 year old!  2nd, refer to #1 when sandbagging with teenagers, they can fill 200 sand bags and then go play a football game.  After I fill 200 sand bags, every part of my body hurts, and I'm whining to my wife like a little girl! 3rd, If you are 44 years old, and attempt to carry two 50 pound bags of sand at the same time, you will pay for it later - bad!  4th, sometimes, things that make your body hurt,