It's Sunday night and the girls are all in their beds, presumably sleeping. At the least, they're being quiet. It's been quite a week for the Spicers, beginning last Sunday with Halloween; this may be the most exhausting holiday of them all!

Tuesday was Election Day, something we had been looking forward to and working towards for several months. When I made the decision at the beginning of the summer to go ahead and file for re-election to the local school board, we all talked about the commitment it would take as well as the time necessary to run a campaign. In Wyoming, local SB candidates do not file until after the primary election in August, so we had some time to get ready and get a game plan together. That's not saying we actually did any of that; in fact, we really didn't do much of anything until the first or second weekend in September. Credit Maggie for finally pushing me to design and order signs (which she went ahead and did). We worked hard for several weekends pounding stakes into the rock-hard Wyoming dirt, studied traffic, and copied other candidates. In the end, we placed nearly 140 signs in and around Rock Springs advertising my candidacy.

Elections are something that I am superstitious about. While I wasn't nervous about the election results, I was unwilling to make predictions or post-election plans. Something about karma and being humble drives my thinking. Anyway, we made plans to attend an election-night party with two other candidates, one for SB and another for RS City Council. Then, it was time to huddle in front of the radio and wait for the sketchy election coverage to announce the winners. I expected to hear results by 7:30pm, 30 minutes after the polls closed. However, the results were delayed and in particular the SB results were simply not announced until 8:00pm or so. When they were announced, we heard that I had carried all but two precincts in the county, but my friend who was also at the party had not won a seat. Winning this year was bittersweet, because I was sure that he would win.

In the end, I'm thankful that I won my seat back, and I'm optimistic about the future of education in Sweetwater Co. I'm thankful that the election is now over with, and I can concentrate on other things. Finally, I'm thankful for the support I received from my family and friends, but particularly the support I get from my wife; she made sure that my name was visible out in the community, and she stood beside me during the whole process. Thanks Maggie, I'm thankful for your love and support!