Crouch's Conundrums

Spring has Sprung!

Happy Spring Everyone!  Despite allergy season in full swing, we LOVE spring around here!  We like to stay busy - I am sure that surprises some of you!  HA!

In March, the boys were able to participate in another community art event in Jeffersonville.  We are thankful for all of the opportunities to have the boys experience art!  They participated in five different stations to help make art pieces for the new Jeffersonville Police Department building!

 

As Cooper finished up indoor soccer for the Winter II season, Collin started the Spring Soccer season with the YMCA.  It was a bit chilly for his first game, but he had a blast!  We are thankful to the wonderful volunteer Coaches for his team this spring - GO Barracudas!

On opening spring soccer day, Cooper also competed at the Mayor's Cup competition for Quick Recall.  We are very proud to report that he received 4th place in Language Arts and 4th place Social Studies written assessment!  He also helped his team earn 3rd place for the Quick Recall Academic Team event.  Go Farmer Dragons!!

Of course, we cannot end the month of March without celebrating a birthday around here!  I can hardly believe it, but Cooper is now 11!  We celebrated with an afternoon of laser tag with friends the weekend before his birthday.  We then had a lovely sushi dinner with Aunt Lolo, Uncle Clay, and Lila!  Yum!

We have had big projects at school too!  Collin is now a published author!  

 

We love stories from our own "Crazy Kickin' Collin"!!

And, Cooper wrapped up an important Social Studies project with Historical Character Day!  We like to introduce you to Walt Disney!

Be sure to check back soon - we have had a fun-filled start to April!  

Catching Up!

Wow!  It has been waaaay tooooo long since I have posted an update to the blog!  Let's see, the last time I visited was back in October!  We had just enjoyed a long weekend at Green Turtle Bay with the Daughaday family.  We celebrated fall with Book Character Day and some trick or treating in the cold!  Take a look at Collin - a.k.a. Rocket the Raccoon!

What is Halloween without some Minute It to Win Games?!?  

 

In November, we were able to celebrate Lila Jane's 5th birthday with Mickey Mouse and all of the princesses!  It was a fabulous trip over Thanksgiving Break!  Many of you followed our vacation highlights with Andy's FB posts, but here is one of my favorites :-)

December was another month filled with wonderful Christmas activities with family and friends.  Although she doesn't like to get her picture made very often, I did convince Nana to get a "selfie" made for me during our Christmas get together.  With her leukemia progressing, this was a very special Christmas for all of us!

It is hard to believe that we are almost to the end of March 2015!  The first couple of months have flown by!! The boys are both continuing to do very well in school!  They just got their report cards last week with ALL A's and O's (Outstanding in Special Areas)!!  Cooper was recently initiated as a Junior Beta Club member at Farmer Elementary!  This was the first ever members at Farmer Elementary!  Job Well Done!

Collin earned his Red Junior Stripe Belt in karate at the end of February!  (I had a small malfunction with the big camera, so I apologize for the dark picture!)  He had his heart set on moving up to a solid belt, but he is already working hard to the next color!

During the first week in March, we did get to experience the "12 inch snow" here in the 'Ville!  The boys enjoyed their new sleds that they received at Christmas from Nana and Papa!  

In March, we have also had the opportunity to participate in some awesome community art events in Jeffersonville.  The boys made water molecule mosaics two weeks ago!  We cannot wait to see these displayed on the flood wall in a few weeks.

Today, we got to help make art pieces for the new City of Jeffersonville Police Department.  It truly was a fantastic morning, and the boys had so much fun.  Momma even got to help with one of the canvas pieces.  

Today also wrapped up Cooper's Winter II Indoor Soccer Season.  His team won their last game, and Cooper had a nice goal!  He also worked very hard as goalie today.  Collin starts outdoor Spring Soccer at the YMCA next week!  He is very excited.

We also wanted to share a praise with everyone and to express our sincere appreciation to all of the prayer warriors that have prayed for Cooper (and Momma!) during his middle school application process.  I am very excited to share that Cooper got accepted into....drum roll please...The Academy of Shawnee!  It is the Aviation and Engineering magnet, and he is super stoked!

Cooper will also be competing next week during the JCPS Mayor's Cup competition on the Farmer Quick Recall Team.  He competed two weeks ago during the Written Assessment in Social Studies and Language Arts.  

Yes, it has been a fun-filled yet very busy first quarter 2015!  I hope to be sharing updates again very soon!

We wish everyone a very Happy Spring and a Blessed Easter holiday.

 

 

 

Green Turtle Bay!

Wow!  We have had a wonderful and fun-filled start to fall!  We enjoyed a long weekend at Kentucky Lake at Green Turtle Bay Resort last weekend with the Daughday family.  And, Nana stayed the WHOLE weekend!  We were truly blessed that she was able to join us all weekend.  She played games, enjoyed some fishing, and even found a walking stick!  

All of the cousins were together the entire weekend, and had a blast!  I don't recall another time where all six of the cousins were able to spend that much together...truly blessed!

Speaking of cousins...check them out!

Thanks to Papa John and Nana, we didn't leave Grand Rivers without enjoying a fabulous meal at Patti's!

Playing a game of Uno!  Collin is great at this game...better watch out!

 

 

Thanks to AC, we enjoyed homemade waffles and bacon on Saturday morning!

 

 

 

 

Did I mention fishing?  They fished Saturday morning, Saturday, afternoon, and Sunday before we left!

Happy Fall to everyone!!

Collin's Baptism!

What a praise!  We have shared with many of you that Collin accepted Christ on May 15th, and we were able to celebrate his decision today with his baptism among family and friends!  After service at New City, another church graciously let us use their facility to host two baptisms today.  Collin even recited the entire Apostle's Creed without skipping a beat.  Our hearts our overflowing :-)

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We also enjoyed a fun-filled adventure on Saturday exploring the Falls of the Ohio and the fossil beds in the lower pool of the Ohio River.  It was a beautiful morning to enjoy the paddle and see all of God's wonderful creations.  With the addition of the locks and the canal built over time, there are only two natural waterfalls left in the Falls of the Ohio.  We were able to enjoy them yesterday!

Oh, and did I mention that Cooper was elected Mayor...for a day?!  He ran for mayor along with 11 other candiates and was elected to represent his class!  His entire 5th Grade class enjoyed a day at the Junior Achievement BizTown facility.  There are 16 businesses in the BizTown, and every business has a CEO, CPA, and several employees that each have specific job duties for the day.  They all earn a paycheck and get to learn to balance their paychecks, and make saving and spending decisions throughout the day. He did a fabulous job on Friday!  He had to give two speeches and sign forms, documents, and speak to the citizens throughout the day.

Stay tuned for more updates...we still have one more week in September!!

 

Awesome August!

Wow!  I am a bit behind in getting updates posted to the blog!  It has been a busy month getting the boys ready for school and back into the homework routine :-)

We did start August off with a blast - we were able to attend the 96th Annual PGA Championship Golf Tournament at Vahalla right here in Louisville.  It was so exciting to be able to see the pros in person and experience the excitement of a PGA Championship.  Collin was a real trooper that day...he didn't want to go, but didn't want to miss out either.  We had a great day and an awesome experience!

The following week was school registration.  The boys started 5th grade and 2nd grade this year, and they have had a fantastic start to the new year!  Collin got his same teacher as last year, as she moved up to 2nd grade this year :-)  He was all smiles on registration day!  Cooper was very pleased with his homeroom teacher as well.  He changes classes four times during the day, so he actually has 4 teachers in addition to all of the special area teachers.

First Day Pics:

 

This week was Open House at Farmer.  I love this time of year, as the parents can go check out the classrooms and see all of the great work that they are doing so far.  Collin had several pieces of work in the hallway leading to his classroom!

Cooper wrote an incredible poem...you may have to enlarge the picture to read it :-)

Collin has already won an award this year!  He earned the Dragon of the Week award for Using Respectful Words!

Not that school keeps them busy, but they are active after school too!  Collin is still in the Black Belt Club classes in karate, and is enjoying a weekly after school soccer program for the next 8 weeks.  Cooper signed up for band!  He is learning to play the trumpet two days a week during the school day.  And, he is working toward basketball try outs at the end of September.  He still enjoys soccer, and he will be playing in the Spring.

September and October are both shaping up to be fun-filled months!  We have two more kayaking events on the calendar, and a weekend fall trip planned in early October.  We pray that everyone has a wonderful fall season!

Summer Projects!

It is hard to believe that it is already the beginning of August!  The boys have had a fun-filled summer with lots of stories and learning opportunities!  Momma really likes the learning opportunities part :-)

They have enjoyed day camps ranging from karate camp, art camp, science camp at the Parklands, science camp at the Kentucky Science Center, and TWO weeks at Mim and Pop's house in Mayfield with LJ!

When they were at home in Louisville, we also had the opportunity to take our kayaks out to enjoy Floyds Fork and the area parks.  We even took them out in the evenings for a peaceful evening full of fishing and enjoying the sunsets.

Speaking of kayaks, Andy has been on the lookout for a bigger, "sit on" kayak that is more adapted to fishing and carrying extra gear.  Ater much research and a trip to Frankfort, he finally settled on one!  We are now the owners of 4 full-sized kayaks as well as a junior "Wave" kayak for Collin (aka the Green Gorilla)!  

Now, you might be asking how we transport all of these kayaks around town!  We had been able to transport three full-sized kayaks on top of my van with Collin's kayak in the back of the van.  With the additional kayak, we needed another option!  Never fear, the engineer had a plan!  Plan A did not get approved by the accountant, but Plan B turned out to be a fun project for all the whole family...well, Momma might have just observed the workers :-)

Portable Trailer that can be collapsed and stored INSIDE the garage!  The boys even got to help put this trailer together.

Once the trailer was built, the engineer wanted to build some sides as well as a frame for us to haul our kayaks.  He is rather handy to have around the house I must say...

And, we are very excited to report that all four kayaks will fit on the trailer!  Woo Hoo!  Nice Job, Daddy!

We are now awaiting appointments for trailer hitches to be installed on both vehicles.  We are very excited to try out Daddy's new kayak.

Check back soon for another update!  We are trying to get ready for the first day of school.  We have the school supplies stacked in the dining room, new shoes ready to wear, and uniforms washed and ready to go!  And, yes, new haircuts for both boys!  Now, it is the countdown to the first day...t minus 10 days!

School Is OUT - Finally!

After a looonnnggg winter, the boys finally celebrated their last day of school on Friday!  Yippee!  Cooper celebrated the end of Fourth Grade on Wednesday!  He earned the Leadership Award from his class!  We are so proud of all his accomplishments this year!

He was also recognized for his participation in the Mayor's Cup for Quick Recall, Bluegrass Book Battle Team, and his service on the Safety Patrol Team!

They are both enjoying their first week of summer break at home!  They have a fun-filled summer ahead, so keep checking back often for more updates on their adventures!

First Grade Academy Awards!

Rolling out the red carpet for the wonderful First Grade classes at Farmer Elementary....drumroll please!

At the end of every year, the First Grade classes present the annual Academy Awards as the first graders celebrate the end of the school year and get ready to Move On Up to the 2nd Grade hallway!  Check out Collin stylin' before school.

With music playing and parents lined up on either side of the red carpet, the doors open for Collin Thomas!  Check out his pose!

After walking the red carpet, we proceeded to his classroom for the Awards Ceremony and a class video of all the great things they did all year.  Collin won the "Future Detective" Award for asking the Best Questions all year!  Way to Go Collin!  Collin has had a fabulous first grade year, and is reading like a champ.  He has set a lofty goal for his summer reading program, and he is already excited about picking out books to read!

We also celebrated Daddy's 40th Birthday on Thursday!  Momma might have planned a surprise birthday lunch after Collin's Awards Day at his office.  He "tells" me that he didn't figure it out!  He looks surprised, though!  It was a fun lunch and he was smiling the whole time.

We ended the birthday evening with Sushi for dinner!  Cooper decided he was ready to try sushi and loved it!  

Check back again soon...the 4th Grade awards day is this Wednesday!  The boys are very anxious for summer break...only five more days of school left.  Yay!

Magnificent May

I am a bit behind in posting pictures this month!  I can hardly believe that the end of May is this week!

We began the month of May celebrating Derby Week here in Louisville.  Andy and I were able to visit Churchill Downs two days before the Running for the Roses, and we had a great time.  That night, we celebrated Collin's 7th birthday at dinner with Mim, Pop, Lolo, Clay, and LJ!  

On Derby Day morning, Collin and a few of his friends celebrated at his Karate Kiai Birthday Party!  We had a special guest show the "students" some Karate forms and they also got to practice "breaking boards"!

Enjoying some outside time with the new basketball goal!  The boys have very much enjoyed their new birthday gift this year!

And, we even had a hulu hoop contest!

And, we cannot forget the cake and ice cream!

We also have someone else getting ready to celebrate a big birthday this week!!  Come Thursday, you might want to wish AC a Big 4-0!  And, Collin will be celebrating the end of his first grade year with the Farmer First Grade Academy Awards on Thursday morning.  More pics to come!

We pray that everyone had a safe and happy Memorial Day with family and friends as we honor those that have served and continue to serve our Country.  

Exciting Easter

Hello Friends and Family!  We hope everyone had a blessed Easter last weekend.  It was a joyous time with our new church family, as we were able to celebrate our first Easter at New City Church!  We had several visiting families last Sunday and many new activities getting ready to kick off in the coming weeks!

Of course, it is a MUST that Momma have pictures on Easter morning BEFORE we head to church.  It doesn't matter if we are on time or running a tad bit behind :)  There might have been some poking and pitching goin on in this picture...

After church, we got ready to head to Aunt Lolo's house for a FABULOUS Easter dinner and a fun Easter Egg Hunt organized by Lila Jane (with lots of help from her crafty Mommy)!

Did I mention that Lolo out did herself on the Egg Hunt...there were 247+ eggs for three children!  All of their baskets were overflowing :-)

 

Last minute instructions before rushing outside to find ALL those eggs!

 

 

I love where Uncle Clay hid this egg!!  

Emptying all of the eggs to find the treasure!  Aunt Lolo rocks!  She hid three entire puzzles in all those eggs along with some candy and money!  After opening all of the eggs, the kids had to sort and organize all of their puzzle pieces!  So Cool!

You might ask where Andy is in all of this commotion??  He was hiding....

We hear that Mim and Pop have decided to migrate back North to Kentucky!  We haven't seen them yet, but we MIGHT get a visit in the near future!  Check back soon...someone else in the Crouch household will be turning 7 next week!