Crossley twins (and Kate!)

Monday, June 30, 2014

April - June 2014

During the spring, Kate had her first ballet recital; she was really excited about this. Anna continued to dance with the ballet, too, and Jack continued to play soccer. Dad seems to only get good action pictures during throw-ins. Thankfully, Jack is very good at those. Jack got to compete in the Cub Scout council-level Pinewood Derby; his car won one heat, but his combined time was not quite good enough to get to the finals. We all took a trip to South Dakota to visit Great-grandpa Bill and Great-grandma Sally. At the end of June, Anna and Jack ran with Mom in the Hyde Park Blast. This was their first-ever 4-mile race. Kate did the kids' race, and we've got a video of that. She was looking for her cheering section, and once she saw us, she took off...

At Purdue's Springfest

Council Pinewood Derby at Tippecanoe Mall

Kate rehearsing for the ballet recital

Throw-in 1 (toes on the ground)

Throw-in 2 (drag the back foot)

Throw-in 3 (over the defender to your teammate)

Ready to go to the recital

Anna before the recital

Don't worry, its a fake snake

The climbing structure inside the South Dakota Children's Museum

Kate's Muffler and Brake Shop (if Kate can't fix it; it ain't broke.)

Jack, Susan and Anna heading towards the finish of the Hyde Park Blast

Kate's finish for the Hyde Park Blast Kids' Race

Monday, March 31, 2014

January - March 2014

We started off 2014 at home this year. Lots of snow this winter and more cold than usual. We did get in some sledding and some ice skating. Just after New Year's is when the Lafayette Ballet Company presents the Nutcracker. This year Anna made her debut as one of Mother Ginger's girls. We got back to swimming lessons (indoors, of course). In March, we took a short trip during our Spring Break to St. Louis, where we got to see the Gateway Arch and several museums. Jack and Anna got to celebrate their birthday on the trip. Even though Spring started in March, the snow and cold persisted. We are looking forward to the weather warming up.

Mother Ginger's girls at dress rehearsal

Jack helped by handing out programs for the Nutcracker

With Mother Ginger
(maybe Dad should have cropped the random hand out of the photo)

Kate smiling; notice her new shorter hair style

One of our many major snowstorms (this is right before the final show of the Nutcracker)

Our ballerina extraordinaire after the last show

Kate in her first season of ice skating lessons

Sledding near the Purdue campus

One of our several stops atop Slayter Hill for sledding

Jack at the ice rink

More ice skating class

Swimming lessons are indoors, of course

Jack with his second place pinewood derby car, trophy and half his "pit crew" (the other half took the picture)

Spring break in St. Louis

At the top of the Gateway Arch

Posing near the base of the arch (north side, if you're curious)

The beanstalk climb at the Magic House

at work at the Magic House

Kate considers a career in pet grooming

or, maybe as a bulldozer operator

or, maybe as POTUS

Anna learning about bubbles and surface tension

Tuesday, December 31, 2013

October - December 2013

We moved through fall into winter, not knowing just how cold and snowy this winter would turn out to be. In October, Anna's soccer team made it to the championship game for her age group. They fell short in the final game, but they were a very respectable second place finish after a close final game. We spent some time at the "exploration acres" corn maze and attractions (check out Jack with the corn cannon - he won a two-liter bottle of Dog-n-Suds root beer for hitting the target). We went trick-or-treating with our friends for Halloween. A visit from Oma and Grandpa Barry was a good reason to see the cranes at Jasper-Pulaski. At Thanksgiving, we visited Granny and Grandpa; while we were there we visited the train display at the Museum Center and we saw the floral display at Krohn Conservatory. Once the snow started, we got to build our first snowman of the winter.