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C H R O N O F H O R S E . C O M FA L L 2 014 75 WE CAN HANDLE THIS e Crookses have a winter base in Wellington, but the family spends most of their time on the West Coast, and by 2008, "With all the kids, it was time to slow down," said Mike. at's when they relocated Stella Farm from Washington to Idaho. ese days they don't teach lessons to outside clients or have boarders at home, and Mike flies to Washington to teach just one day a week. ey're plenty busy caring for the 10 children who still live at home. eir two eldest (Mike's from his previous marriage to Cathy Langston), Lauren Crooks, 26, and Sean Crooks, 28, run Crooks Show Jumping out of Clearview Inc. in Snohomish, Wash., and Evergreen Equestrian Center. Cath- erine, the niece they adopted, is now 21 and lives in Laramie, Wyo. at leaves biological daughter Ciara, 16, and son Hunter, 15, still in their parents' care, along with adopted Ruby, 13; Kai and Millie, both 12; Sophie, 11; Holly, 10; Jade and Jonah, 6; and Mahlia, 5. "When we first started adopting, we were scared of special needs, but now we've adopted kids with cleft palates and missing limbs," Jenni- fer said. "Jade was supposed to just have cerebral palsy, but she's also vision-impaired and was basi- cally just locked in a room for five years. When we went to get her, we were walking out of the hotel room, and she was having a massive fit— scratching at her face and pulling her hair out. "My two biological kids were walking in front of me, and I said, 'Can we handle this?' " she con- tinued. "ey just looked at me like, 'Duh, of course we can handle this.' " After nine months with her new family, Jade has made a dramatic turnaround. "She's the most incredible child," said Jen- nifer. "She was probably months away from dying, but she's amazing and very bright and strong-willed. She's developmentally behind and will take some time to catch up, but she rides her pony, and Hunter carries her around on his shoulders all the time." e Crooks family gets plenty of support from the equestrian community as well. Janet Fall, who works at the in-gate during the HITS ermal Desert Circuit (Calif.), has known the couple for years and has become a close family friend. She's now Jonah's godmother, and she went along to China when the family adopted Jade. "When they adopted Kai, he had some ter- rors, so he'd just be standing by the ring, scream- ing," said Fall. "Jennifer would be like, 'I can't leave him!' And I'd be like, 'It's fine. Just go warm up, and I'll stay with him.' "ey're just such a cool family," she contin- ued. "Mike is probably the most patient person I've ever met, and they just have this ability to love openly." When they're heading to horse shows, the Crookses travel together in two RVs. ey started homeschooling in 2008 with the help of teacher Mary Cunning, and they also have a nanny, April Woelk, who travels with them and helps at home. "e kids go everywhere with us," said Jen- nifer. "We're like a caravan going down the road with the two RVs and the horses. It's like a circus act, but we have it down to a pretty good science. "In 2011 we went to Europe for 12 weeks, and we were basically moving around every week. It was just a riot," she continued. "Mary would pack the kids up and take them to a castle while we were at the horse show. ey got to do so much fun stuff." While both Jennifer and Mike admit there are times when sibling rivalry comes into play, the children generally get along beautifully. "It's amazingly easy to have a big family," said Mike. "People think it's hard, but it's not, really. You just have to have a bigger stove. e kids Their days may be busy, but quality time spent with one another— whether around the breakfast table, at the barn, or just before bed- time—is the top priority for the Crooks family. SHOSHANA ROSENBERG PHOTO "IT'S AMAZINGLY EASY TO HAVE A BIG FAMILY. PEOPLE THINK IT'S HARD, BUT IT'S NOT, REALLY. YOU JUST HAVE TO HAVE A BIGGER STOVE." —Mike Crooks

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