Travis turns 10!

As you already know, Travis celebrated his 10th birthday earlier this month. We decided to make a real big deal about him turning double digits!

First, the day before his birthday, we put him in the car (which was already packed) and took him to the Pope's house. There, we swapped one boy for another. We left Riley with them and took Miller with us. We then drove 3.5 hours to Charlotte. The only thing we told them was that we were taking them to see Madagascar 3 that night, and that we had a surprise for them, but that they would have to wait to find out. That was enough info for them apparently, because they happily rode the entire 3.5 hours without asking anymore questions. They played their video games and watched Madagascar on the DVD player and said lots of "Dude!"!

We got to Charlotte, checked into the hotel and honestly, I think that alone would have been enough for them! We got a suite, and they had their own room and beds and bathroom and they felt BIG about that! Then we grabbed dinner and went to the movie theater.


They choose the 3D version. We all really enjoyed the movie!


The next morning (Travis' actual birthday), we told them we were taking them to Carowinds which is full of roller coasters! They were excited, but you could tell they weren't real sure what we were talking about, but once we got on the highway, it was right there and they could see the rollercoasters and THEN they were REALLY excited! It took a little bit for Travis to get over his nerves, but once he did...it was ON!

We were there when the park opened.


The park was NOT crowded at all, and we walked right on pretty much every thing we rode. This was the first ride of the day.


Lots of little boy giggles over this!


Now...something y'all may not know...Jay does NOT enjoy rides.  But he took a few for the team! I don't ride hang upside down rides, because they give me migraines. So...Jay hoped right on the pirate ship with Miller (Travis didn't want to ride this one...this was in the first hour, before he warmed up to the thrill rides)


Miller and I braved Afterburn right away.


Then, we got Travis on it. We are in the very last row..Miller is on the outside, then Travis, then me. You can kind of see us waving. This is the very beginning. This is my new favorite roller coaster. Miller and I rode it 6 times total, Travis 3 I think and Jay twice!!!


Here we are after

And this one, although it's only our heads...you can see the ride behind us! Yep...those two 10 year olds rode it and loved it!


Here they are on the Windseeker.

It goes waaaay up high.

We rode lots of other rides too and roller coasters, including the Vortex rollercoaster, which you stand up on! And we did the water park for a little while. But the boys FAVORITE ride of all, was The Intimidator. It is billed as the tallest, fastest and longest coaster in the Southeast! Jay took another one for the team their first ride on this one, because I was fighting a headache from riding bumpy old Thunderroad. 



There the go! Up the incline...


Look who survived!


The boys loved it (Jay HATED it!) and they rode several more times in a row...including in the front seat!


We closed down the park, went to dinner, and then back to the hotel to shower and rest. The next morning, we got up and the boys played in the pool for a bit, then we drove home. Travis said it was the best birthday ever! 



Then on Saturday, we celebrated Travis with friends and family. We rented a big, inflatable water slide for the party. Even though the water was freezing, that slide was used a lot!




Look who will swing in a big boy swing now! 






It was a fun day!

Happy 10th Birthday Travis!

Dear Travis,

Ten years ago today, at exactly 13:13 on June 13th...you made me a mother when your 8lb 9oz, 22" long little body made its appearance into this world screaming like crazy. You changed my life in a way I never expected, and I have loved every minute of being your mom. At 10 years old, you are 4'8" tall and weigh about 71 pounds. I firmly believe there is not an ounce of fat on your body. You are one lean kid! You are so athletic, and baseball and running are your current favorite sports. You also enjoy basketball and golf and cub scouts. One year left of both elementary school and cub scouts! Fishing is your other love, and I think you'd fish in a mud puddle if you had the opportunity, because you love it just that much. You know more stuff about boats and fishing than I will probably ever know in my entire life, and you are only 10! You love being outdoors and being active.

You work very hard in school, and get great grades, and we are so proud of you for all that you do. You are kind and compassionate to others, and have no tolerance for those that try to bully others. Your teachers love you and constantly tell us what a great example you set for others, and that just makes my heart swell with pride. You still struggle from time to time with backaches and headaches from your spinal syrinx, and we deal with those when they occur, but very very rarely does that ever slow you down. At 10, you have already completed two 5K races with great times. Currently, you and I go running together and you chatter my ears off about anything and everything as we run along.  And we laugh together about how we pour water all over ourselves, because we don't want to stop to take a sip, so we do it while we are running and it goes everywhere.

Your first 5 years, you enjoyed as an only child. Then, along came Riley. And while I knew you would be a good big brother, and love him, I had no idea just how GREAT a big brother you would be! Riley worships the ground you walk on, and for good reason. You are so good to him. Sure, sometimes, the two of you bicker with each other, but that is rare. You take such good care of him, and play with him and tolerate his busting up your lego creations and all the other little things that he does that could easily upset you. You are teaching him all about how to play baseball, and when he starts t-ball this fall, your efforts will be noticed, I am sure.

Today, for your 10th birthday, we have a big surprise for you...yesterday, we whisked you and your good buddy Miller away to Charlotte, and you two had no idea it was going to happen. You were both basically told to get in the car and ride. Last night, we went to see Madagascar 3 and stayed in a hotel. This morning, for the day of your 10th birthday, we are going to Carowinds, which is a theme park that is full of ROLLER COASTERS and other rides and a water park also. Saturday, we will have your party where everyone else will celebrate you with us.

It's been a great 10 years buddy. I am so proud of the boy you have become, and you make me more and more proud every day.

I love you the mostest,
Mom

Here is a video look at 10 years of Travis, in 4.5 minutes. Enjoy!

Travis is 10! from Lindsey Souza on Vimeo.

Riley is THREE!!!

Riley turned 3 on October 1st! Can you believe it? I can't!





He still prefers to play with his cozy coupe like this


We had a little party to celebrate him.

He blew out his own candles

He mostly opened his own gifts

This is our new favorite way to work on writing letters

A new bike!


Before the party was over, he had to take a little rest.Being 3 is hard work already!

happy birthday to you, cha cha cha

Travis is NINE!

Saturday, we had a pool party to celebrate.
They boys sang Happy Birthday, in their own way...Happy Birthday to you, cha cha cha. It was so cute.

With 10 8-9 year old boys about, and a few younger kids too, NO ONE was safe from being splashed at one point or another.

Those splashed felt good though, it was HOT out that day!

Tomorrow, the big 9 year old returns to Duke for a brain to butt (my term, not theirs) MRI as a followup to his Syrinx. Then we see the neurosurgeon to find out the results. Then later, dinner with friends. We have to leave our house at 5:30am, so gotta go!

Easter Fun

Hunting for eggs that the Easter bunny left:









Let's make cupcakes!
Riley carefully lined the pans

Travis is SUPER serious about ingredients. (and notice: I have moved the mixer from its normal location on my other counter, the bar...because Travis tends to make a mess, and it's easier to clean up here. He's a sweet helper though, so it's worth it!)

We were making pinepple upside down cupcakes...which had a topping on the bottom...Which Riley thought was tasty. He knew it was tasty because he was dipping his thumb into a few of them as Travis and I worked on the cake part of the recipe.



Travis was super excited that Riley was given a small bat/ball. He couldn't wait to teach him how to hit. That quickly changed....



On another egg hunt for eggs that Mema and Grandaddy brought over.



Seems Riley found a better way to transport his basket

Jay hid the eggs...and he made Travis work for them!

It's finally flip-flop weather!

Riley was checking out his belly with a magnifying glass