Chickens!!

 The kids have been talking about getting chickens for a long time! We’ve talked and talked and talked about it. It was finally time to take action. We reached out to Crystal who had offered that we could borrow a small chicken coop and five chickens for the summer. She agreed that we could come pick everything up. I switched cars with Cooper so that I could carry home this large chicken coop. Kaylee and Dawson were great helpers figuring out the ratchet straps. The Farm camp students and us all worked together to lift the coop into the truck. They were great helpers! We drove 25 or 30 mph all the way home and we made it home safely. 

We set up the coop and built a small chicken wire fence for a yard for them. We got everything ready and laid out. We even put a netting over the top of the fence so that other predators couldn’t get in their yard.  Dawson and I had shopped for chicken scratch and feed, A water dispenser and Nesting boxes and all of the supplies we needed. So now all that was left was to pick up the chickens. We had the Oak Farm Farm camp students help us catch the ones that had the most feathers. Apparently, the ones with the most feathers are the best laying hens.  We got five of them in the cages and brought them home and put them into their new home. They were calm and curious and seemed to like their new space. 

All seem to have little personalities and we are excited to get to know them. The kids already named them!

Lavender chicken: Oliver

Rhode Island Red with white wings: Michael Jackson

Rhode Island Red with dark wings: Gary

Light brown: ?

Speckled: Chinaqua

A Snake!

 We came home one afternoon to find a huge black snake slithering across the driveway. It went behind a large pot and coiled up behind it. We taunted it and threw stuff behind the pot and it did not come out. We decided to get grandpa to help us. The boys ran across the street to get grandpa. Apparently, grandpa was in his underwear. So it took him a little while to get dressed for the job. And that he did! Grandpa shows up in a baseball cap and shorts! I don’t think I’ve ever seen grandpa in shorts. He also had athletic shoes on and carried some kind of rod. He rode over on his tractor like a knight ready for battle. It was awesome!

The snake was a black snake, and it was huge. Grandpa did not want to kill it. I was just fine if it was killed, actually I would prefer that. But grandpa wanted to preserve it if possible. It was very aggressive and would strike as grandpa would hit it with the rod. We did not want grandpa to get hurt. So grandpa agreed that it might be best to kill the snake instead of rescue it. He hit it several times and then was able to squish its neck and the thing turned lifeless. It spilled bright red blood all over our driveway. This was the most exciting adventure of the day And we are grateful for grandpa‘s rescue!

Pond Parties!

 Pond parties!

Owen & Irah

Sophia, Nathan & Irah

OG, Dawson, Liam, Evan & Nathan

Fort Wayne FC Ball Kids

 Simplx sponsors the Fort wayne FC soccer team. They became a pro team this year. They built a brand new giant soccer stadium off of I-69 and Illinois Road this Winter. It’s not quite finished, almost done, but they went ahead and started the season! Part of our sponsorship is the ball kids experience. Each home game we gather up to 10 kids and teens to be the ball kids on the sidelines to collect the balls as they go out of bounds. This is such an exciting experience for most kids. They get to be right on the sidelines, right in the action! Nathan‘s favorite position is right behind the Opponents goal. That way when our team scores he can be right there to see it and cheer. We’ve invited friends and family, striker, teammates, school, friends, work friends, and then spread the word through the public with a sign-up genius for ball kids. It is super popular and it’s so fun to give these kids this opportunity. They get autographs at the end, and they get to see and know the players really well. Go Fort wayne FC!

Emil’s Accident

 Dawson’s friend Emil was in a severe bike accident. He was riding his bike on the Pufferbelly with no helmet and was hit head on by a car at a trail crossing. Neither the bike or the car appeared to stop and they collided. Emil was knocked unconscious and was in the hospital in the ICU for a few days. The Oak Farm community has been very worried and has been trying to rally around them all. Today, Dawson and his friends went to visit Emil at his rehab facility. Emil is working through some short-term memory issues and hearing loss in one ear. It’s been a scary time but it was fun for Dawson to visit yesterday with his friends.

Owen Learns to Ride

 Owen learned to ride a two wheeler bike! The last of our kids to learn! He’s put it off for a long time with fears of falling and fears of failing. His body is more than capable and has been for many years. It’s incredible how powerful the mind can be. We were getting bikes out yesterday and I told him to grab his rollerblades so he could ride the trails with us. He hopped on this tiny bike and simply started to ride. He surprised himself more than anything that he could balance! So instead of rollerblades, we packed the little bike and went riding on the trails. He was a little wobbly at first, but as he gained speed he learned that balancing is easier when you go faster. He is so very proud! Each of the kids got a bike a couple years ago at Jaxton’s bike shop, in Rush. I never got Owen one because he couldn’t ride. I told him once he could learn to ride, we would get him his own bike! Well, now it’s time! Next time Jaxton comes home we will go pick out a bike for him. Proud of this boy Conquering his fears!

G & G Hutch

 It was wonderful to have Grandma And Grandpa Hutchinson come visit from Utah. They are so very special and they try very hard to visit as often as possible. They came to visit last Thanksgiving, again in January, and again for the graduation events. I’m so grateful for them and for their efforts in building relationship relationships with each kid in our household. We love them very very much!

Cooper’s Grad Party

 We celebrated Cooper’s graduation on the Saturday after the ceremony. This way, Grandma And Grandpa from Utah were able to attend both events in the same week. We spent a lot of of the week getting the yard prepared and Nate has worked so hard. Our backyard is beautiful. We have a brand new deck that we finally installed with patio furniture, flower pots, and the fountain in the pond. We planned for 100 people or so as an open house style event. So many people from Cooper’s life showed up for him on Saturday. People from church, work, school, Simplx, YMCA, friends, from his childhood days all the way through his high school community. What an amazing thing it is for a community to come together and literally send off a new graduate out into the world with both emotional friendship support as well as solid monetary support. I know he is grateful for those that showed up for him. And I think he feels even more financially stable to head off to Spain.

Graduation 2026

 Cooper has officially graduated from high school. How can that be? Where has the time gone? He was nominated from his class to be the 2026 graduation peer speaker at the ceremony.  My mom and dad, Grandma And Grandpa Hutchinson, flew in from Salt Lake City for the graduation ceremony and Cooper’s grad party this weekend. That was special to have them here this time. This group of kids that is graduating is a special group. Nate has coached many of them in basketball since middle school and Those players hold a very special plate in his heart. They all are doing amazing things and spreading across the country and the world.

Cooper speech was phenomenal. He usually procrastinate, and he did the same with his speech, but he worked hard on it and couldn’t get it down to less than 25 minutes. He had a lot to say and a lot to share. He shared the story about Boy Scout, summer camp, and eating minnows with the older Scouts. He shared the shame and guilt he felt from that experience. He was able to bring that story around and learn a significant light life lesson from that experience. He was able to understand that his perspective as a child was so limited And narrow. He also experienced quitting something and encouraged the group not to quit because of fear or embarrassment, but to push forward and keep going. It’s very mature for him to be able to take an experience that impacted him so intensely and be able to turn it around and find a life lesson out of it. I’m a proud mama! 

The graduates walked across the stage and took their diploma and we clapped and cheered. Cooper has had some amazing mentors at the high school. Those teachers have stuck with Oak farm high school for a very long time now and their presence has impacted the high school significantly. Cooper can call upon any of those teachers as references, mentors, and seek advice from any of them, and they would happily support him.

The graduates include : 

Ryan Kochanski- Bowling Green

Derek Hale-Purdue

Sully McCreary- US Marines

Reid Kaiser-Miami University of Ohio

Ivy Whitmer- Trine

LillyWhitmer-Trine

Lily Mosher-Grace College

Anna Pelance

Olivia Miller-Kent State

Claire Davidson-Butler

Pearston Matney-Trine

Porter Lowe-Trine

Ryker Elias-Tennis for ?

Jennifer NanSamba-Grace College

Cooper Routsong-Academia Guiu in Barcelona