radio station
My son-in-law, Travis Royce is skilled at a number of things. He worked for a number of years at a radio station in Casper, Wyoming, and the commercials he did there, were so good that they still use some of them today…8 years after he moved to Washington state. We are always laughing when we hear one of the ads these days, because we know how long it has been since he worked there. One time my sister, Alena Stevens heard one of his ads, and called me to “discreetly” ask if he had moved back, without my daughter, Amy Royce, who is his wife. We all got a really good laugh over that one, since they had been married 25 years at the time, and almost 28 now, so Travis wouldn’t move anywhere without Amy.
Travis’ latest venture is building furniture. He is really good at it, and I would go so far as to say that he’s a natural. I think he would also be very good at refurbishing furniture too. Travis is just getting started in that 
business, but he enjoys it very much, and on the plus side, he likes working from home, now that Amy also works from home. Travis and Amy love spending their time together and on their off hours, love being out in their back yard, which they have fixed up beautifully. It is an ongoing project that is very dear to their hearts.
When Travis and Amy bought their house, a riding lawnmower came with it for the large yard. Recently that lawnmower died, and they had to buy a new mower. The old mower was a red Scotts riding mower, but now, they are the proud owners of a John Deere. It is a beauty of a machine, and for a mowing fanatic like Travis, it is a big step up. Everyone knows that John Deere is the Cadillac of farm, ranch, and yard equipment, so now 
Travis can honestly say that he owns the Cadillac of tractors. Now that the weather is warming up, Amy will know where to find Travis, because he is either in the back yard enjoying the day, or in the yard mowing…if he’s not working, that is. Travis has always loved mowing, and he even mowed our yard in Casper, before they got a house of their own, so he had his own yard to mow. We sure missed having him mow our yard back then. My husband, Bob, Travis’ father-in-law, would much rather work on a car than do yard work, so it was nice to have a mowing fanatic in the family, and we sure do miss it now that they live so far away. Travis, you’re welcome to mow here anytime you want to. Today is Travis birthday. Happy birthday Travis!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
From the moment his sister, Siara was born, my grand nephew, Jake became her protector. It didn’t matter if someone was bullying her or simply teasing her, Jake took it upon himself to make it right. That’s the kind of guy he is. When Siara was little, she hated to eat anything that was broken. Her dad thought this was hillarious, and so when her mom, my niece, Chantel, gave the kids a Little Debbie snack cake, her dad would flick the cake, breaking the frosting before giving it to her. Siara would fall to her knees and wail mournfully, “It’s broken!!” Even though Jake was only 5 or 6 years old, he would quickly say, “It’s ok CC, lets trade!” Immediately the situation was all better. After, his parents’ divorce, Jake became the man of the house…a role he had practiced for all his little life. There was nothing he wouldn’t do for his sister.
Growing up in a home without a dad, Jake had to deal with the influence of a single mom and a 
sister. We all know that the driver of the car gets to pick the radio station. so in the mornings, Jake had to listen to the music his mom liked. Chantel liked to make sure the day started out with everyone in a good mood, so singing on the way to school…to Chantel’s favorite songs…was the way the drive went. To this day, Jake knows every word of Shania Twain’s “I Feel Like A Woman” and Jake..in typical Jake style says, “Hey, I was raised by a single mom, and I have a sister. Don’t judge!” I say it takes a man who is comfortable in his own skin to be able to say I sang that with my mom and sister, and I have no regrets.
When Chantel’s current husband came into their lives, Jake just wasn’t sure he wanted to trust another man in the house again. He tried so hard not to like Dave, even telling Chantel that Dave looked like a serial killer…a statement as far from what Dave is like as the Earth is from the Sun…but Dave was very different than Jake’s real dad, and he soon won Jake’s respect, and more importantly his heart. Three weeks later, Jake asked if he could call Dave…Dad. Jake’s days of having to carry the load of being the man of the house alone, were over.
Still, there was the Siara issue, and as Chantel says, “The door swings both ways.” One
day, before Dave was a true member of their family, Jake in normal kid style, pushed his sister down on their trampoline. Apparently, it’s ok for Jake to pick on his sister. Since Dave was in the back yard, Siara did the logical thing and told on Jake. Dave went to the trampoline and jerked Jake to the edge so that he could tell him never to push his sister again, but before Dave to say a word, Chantel tells me that he saw a little blond vapor trail and heard the slamming of the screen door as Siara ran into the house to tell Chantel, “Mom!!! Dave is hurting Jake!!” It just goes to show you that while siblings might pick on each other, no one else gets to pick on their sibling. Today is Jake’s birthday. Happy birthday Jake!! Have a wonderful day!!
