Traditions...

Repeatedly, I have tried and failed to instate "official" family traditions in the Travis house. I see these cute things on television, or hear about other families doing neat little things on holidays or birthdays, and I sometimes go into a panic thinking that I'm failing in my duties as "homemaker" by not establishing those types of whimsical traditions in my own home.

Tonight it finally dawned on me that we DO have traditions in our house, traditions that were born on their own, with no intentionality at all...

As I type this, Corban is snuggled up to Cayden on the bottom bunk. Corban is reading the Bible aloud to Cayden. This has been going on after tuck-ins for quite some time now. Corban has this forehead-band light that he puts on, and Cayden listens with rapt attention while big brother reads the Word to him.

Somehow, all the other cute traditions that I've tried to start don't seem all that important anymore. Even if this is the only enduring one we ever have at the Travis house, I'll take it gladly.

I LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR!!!

Sorry it has been so long since my last update. We've been busy with home schooling, MOPS, and general life.

The weather is absolutely beautiful here right now. Our mild autumn and spring weather is VERY short-lived. We go from "hot" to "slightly-too-cool" and back again very quickly. We have some colorful foliage this year, more so than usual. The property we're on has a lot of oaks, so I'm enjoying the view with the lake in the background. I'm going to take some photos this weekend.

For Jesus Celebration on October 31st, Corban was a great Optimus Prime, and Cayden wore Spongebob PJ's. Corban said, "This was the BEST DAY EVER! I had a blast!" There is nothing he loves more than getting in a costume. Our church had dozens of attractions for Jesus Celebration. We had pony rides, tons of inflatable slides and obstacle courses, and a real firetruck for the kids to explore.

We're looking forward to the holidays. We're hosting Thanksgiving at our house, and some dear friends will be spending the day with us. I think we're going to rent an inflatable moonwalk for all the kiddos to enjoy in the backyard.

Cayden is talking up a storm! His little sentences may not be perfect yet, but he always gets his point across. Potty training is coming right along, and he doesn't even turn 2 until January. I'm so proud of him.

Corban is doing second-grade math! I can't believe how much he loves to learn. Math and science are his favorite subjects, and he tolerates handwriting and spelling well enough. I never thought I'd enjoy home schooling as much as I do.

Last night Corban and I had an intersting conversation. I thought I'd share it here:

“Mommy, what’s it going to be like on the last day?”

“What do you mean, Corban?”

“I mean, on the last day of the world.”

“Well, Jesus will come back to take everyone that loves Him to Heaven to live with Him forever.”

“Mommy, how many arms does Jesus have?”

“What? How many arms does he have? Two, I would think. Why?”

“Because, how can he take everybody to Heaven at the same time if he only has two arms?”

“Well, he will give us all the ability to rise up and fly to Heaven, I think.” (That was the simplest answer I could come up with.)

“Like angels. They have wings that make them fly.”

“Yes, like angels. Do you want Jesus to give you angel wings so you can fly?”

“No. I want Him to give me a hang-glider.”

Autumn, where art thou?

Hey everybody.

It's hot. I'm ready for what passes for autumn in Texas!

Corban turned the big 5 on June 25th. We had a Transformers birthday party. He had a blast and told us that it was "The Best Day EVER!"

Among his favorite gifts were a Batman costume...

and an Optimus Prime helmet complete with voice distortion.

We have officially decided to give home schooling a shot. We'll begin Kindergarten with Corban in September. We're excited and just a little nervous! We hope to incorporate lots of fun field trip experiences: Destin, Florida in September for lessons in simple geography and marine biology, and the Creation Museum in Glen Rose, Texas in November for a science lesson. We really love the idea of being able to instill the wonder of God's creation in our children while teaching them ourselves. Not to mention the wonderful flexibility and mobility of home schooling.

Corban and Cayden continue to grow closer as brothers and friends every day. Watching them play together is so sweet.

One of Corban's favorite things to do in this heat is play in his little kiddy pool. I like to keep it under the porte-cochere for sun protection. He goes nuts in that pool!

That's about it for now. Stay cool!

Time for some updates!

Whew, it's been a busy past couple of months. Time to fill you all in on what's been up with us.

We've settled into our new (leased) house and new neighborhood very well. There are lots of little lakes and all of the properties are nicely wooded. It truly feels like being out in the country with the wonderful convenience of a Kroger center, farmers market, restaurants, and our church less than one mile away. Love it!

I had a great Mother's Day last month. Jonathan and the boys got me flowers and an iPod Nano, which has become a new appendage on me. Such a cool gadget! My extensive CD collection is now the size of a credit card. Whooda thunk it?

Jonathan and I celebrated our 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY on May 23rd. We spent a week in Cancun, Mexico while the boys had summer camp at Grandma and Papa's, and Nana's houses. Jonathan and I got pampered in the lap of luxury while the boys got spoiled rotten. Everybody was happy!

Jonathan and I are now working hard to prepare for a 13 week class we will be teaching in August at our church. It will be a study on Creation Apologetics. I am currently taking courses to receive a post-BS certificate on that subject, and I hope to attend training for formal seminar presentations at the Creationism Museum and Answers in Genesis headquarters in Cincinnati within the next year. Check them out! http://www.answersingenesis.org/. I'm also toying around with some t-shirt designs that relate:

Corban turns 5 years old (oh Lord, I'm getting old) on the 25th of this month. We're taking him to Splashtown and having a Transformers party with a few of his friends to celebrate. We are still on the fence between private kindergarten at our church or formal home schooling. Pray for us to make the right decision about that.

That about sums us up for now. Hopefully I won't get so behind again!

Out of the mouths of babes...

Over the week preceding Easter and the days subsequent to Easter, we have been talking with Corban about the death and resurrection of Jesus. Because he's only four years old, we use basic language and simple phrasing while keeping it accurate and serious.

So much for that...

A few nights ago, I decided that instead of talking about the Easter story with Corban, I'd ask him to tell ME the story. He did a pretty good job...but HONESTLY this is NOT how we taught it to him!

"Well, first Jesus died on the cross. Then he went to the jungle where he kicked the bad guys' butts. Then he was alive again."

What could I possibly say about that, other than, "Good job, buddy. That's right."

Easter Sunday

I'm a little late posting about Easter, but better late than never...

We had beautiful weather on Easter Sunday, and we had lots of fun at the church egg hunt.

This was Cayden's first egg hunt, and he was precious. He ate his first Peep. A momentus occasion for sure. (Note the pink Peep drool just about to run down his chin onto his cute outfit.)

It took Corban a few seconds to realize that the egg hunt was not a liesurely game, but a mad rush to find the most eggs. He got the hang of it, though!

He was so very proud to be the only kid with an Optimus Prime egg bucket. Of course.

Before church services began, the praise band hammed it up for the camera. Those guys are crazy. Jonathan plays either the acoustic guitar or the bass.

After church we had Easter lunch at a local pizza parlor with our dear friends Ryan, Shannon, and Sydnie. Ryan and Shannon were the very first friends we made in Texas in 1999! We all go to church together. Little Sydnie came along just a few months before Cayden. She and Corban are facinated with each other.

And below is my favorite shot of the day. This one's going to the framing shop:

New House!

We're moving into our new house this weekend, so this is going to be short and sweet. I will be posting all things Easter and house related next week, when things have settled down a bit (as if our house is EVER really settled).

The new house is right by our church, which will be great. It's on waterfront acreage, and the view out back is breathtaking. I can't wait to post pictures. We're leasing for a year, then we will evaluate the market and make an offer on the house accordingly. We have big plans for the property, and hope very much that our moving days are OVER!

Stay tuned!!!