Hindsight is 2020 ... and looking back on the year, 2020 will be remembered most for Covid-19. That virus made such an impact, that it gets it's own post here on the blog (Covid 2020). It topped the news, even over an earthquake, hurricane-force winds and an insane election year. Here's a peek closer to home, at what was going on with the Blackham Bunch.
- Landon and Sol started off the year buying a new home! The papers were signed in January and they moved in February. Landon continued working at LKL, but was promoted and got use of a work truck (which is very helpful in their one-car situation). Sol continued working in the ortho unit at the hospital, and became a plant momma (in addition to their two dogs/two cats and some fosters).
- Cal and Kate had a big year. It started off on the wrong foot, literally. Cal stepped off a ladder at work and broke his foot. Again. Back to crutches and a boot. Cal moved forward at Camsen Electric, becoming a team leader (with a company van) and passed his residential journeyman exam. We had a WEDDING. He and Kate bought a house and got married in June.
- Keaton's Spring school and work had Covid complications. His college courses moved online, and Nike stores shut down. Cal said they could use him at Camsen, so Keaton immediately went to work full-time and ended up staying there, quitting Nike when the store eventually opened back up. Keaton was made a team leader and given a work van too. He bought his first car, bought a "purple" bed and bought LOTS of shoes!
- Cooper was already in online school, so the pandemic changes didn't affect him much. He avoided haircuts for a while, getting shaggier than any Blackham boy has ever been, before letting Keaton give him a buzz. He started wearing a cap constantly after that (not because of that, he just got the cap shortly afterward). Coop reconnected with some friends over the summer, and got his first job (school sweeper). He loves watching Ludwig on Twitch. Ping pong made a comeback at the end of the year, and he participated in the fantasy football league with Uncle Kolby again ... and WON again! $600!
- Colton still got in a bit of basketball despite some Covid cancelations. He finished up his season with the West Jordan 8th grade team, and played with his Wolves quite a bit, including a travel tournament in Idaho. In the fall he made the high school basketball team. With the rest of Utah, he finished his school year online. For 9th-grade, he got on a hybrid schedule, four in-person classes and three online classes (although this was more for basketball scheduling than Covid concerns). At Joel P Middle, with basketball class at the high school on A days.
- Grayson has been busier than ever at work - crazy busy, but there was financial compensation for all his extra hours. He still found some time for his getaways (Seattle, California, Moab, St. George, Bear Lake) and trips to Pineview with the wave runners. He said goodbye to the Sequoya and bought a big black truck. A new grill was added to the garage kitchen, and Tepanyaki style rice was added to the recipe repertoire.
- Jen is still Zumba-ing (although it has been a lot less with Covid cancelations) and working out at home. After hitting a new high with weight, she had some small success on the scale in the last quarter of the year. She feels a little like she's in high school again, as she helps keep Coop on track with his studies. Lots of books and blogging (added Westra blogs) ... delving into some family history as well. No duck duty this year, but still grew a garden and spent some time on home renovation prep.
Gadgets - Added the Occulus at the end of the year. It's another VR set, and the kids have been enjoying it. Coop had really got into Ring Fit on the Switch in January ... but it only lasted one month. Gray switched back to an iphone, and Keaton and Jen got new phones too (with Colton getting Keaton's old 11). Keaton lost his Fitbit, Colton/Cooper didn't wear theirs much. Only Cal was still competing with Mom. Jen added an Oura ring (after the Motiv died) and Amazon Halo devices ... can you have too many trackers?
Getaways - Gray likes to get away, and he did almost every month. A trip to Seattle in January. St. George in February, California with work buddies in March (right before Covid really hit). St. George again in May/September and December. Moab in June, August and September (Keaton went with him that trip). At least seven waverunning getaways (mostly Pineview) and then Bear Lake.
Group Gatherings - We had New Year's pastry wreath with the Blackhams. K&J came into town for the wedding, so there was another Blackham Bash in June. Father's Day with the Westras. Sam's baptism, Thanksgiving and Christmas with the Blackham side, but Covid canceled a planned Westra reunion in the summer and the annual Christmas Eve party.
Home Sweet Home - As Cal moved out, water damage in the wall of his room was uncovered. That lead to a bunch of renovations. Drywall the damage, then paint. We went ahead and painted the whole basement, and then decided to do the upstairs too. New carpet in the basement. New lights and outlets (we have two electricians in the family after all). Lots of purging and donating and organizing (Jen got rid of all her scrapbook stuff). New beds for all the boys (that actually happened early on) room rearranging (Keaton downstairs in Cal's old room, Keaton's room now a computer room for the boys). New washer/dryer, and downstairs fridge. Dishwasher repaired. The elliptical broke, and we looked into a new one, but decided on a repair for the Nautilus. LOTS of work on Maga's house too, then it was sold (Ana's family moved to a townhouse nearby, and Olivia to a condo in Daybreak) and the estate divided and distributed.
Dogs Next Door - Cooper helped out the neighbors a few times, taking care of their dog when they would have a weekend out of down. Another neighbor hired him for some doggie daycare as well. Both dogs were named Remi! Next door Remi had puppies, and it was a puppy summer as we'd go over to play with them and watch how quickly they grew!
Cars - Keaton was without transport since the truck accident at the end of 2019. The repair ended up turning into "totaled" and now Keaton needed a car. We borrowed Grandpa's little blue truck for a bit ... Keaton learned how to drive a stick shift. He finally found a car he liked, but it couldn't be easy! It was a complicated purchase, then Covid shut everything down and the registration dragged on, the title never came in ... finally it was DONE but it was May before he was legal and registered. The driveway was full with Cal's van and charger, Gray's vehicle and trailer, and Keaton's car. Then Cal married, taking two vehicles ... which left the trailer open - and it was stolen. Gray switched out the Sequoia for a new Ford F-150, and then Keaton came home with a Camsen van. Cal had gotten into a car accident earlier in the year (similar to Keaton's last year, someone turning left in front of him) but was in the work van, not his car. Cooper has still shown no interest in driving. Colton turned 15 at the end of the year, so we'll be looking to getting his learner's permit.
WaveRunners - Lots of summer fun at Pineview. Trips with Kate's family and Sol's family and going with Symphony work friends. Dragged the machines to Bear Lake for a final weekend of fun ... and they wouldn't start! Jen and Coop didn't make it to the lake this year.
Derby Days - Gray got in a couple of derbies in January, and had a few scheduled for the year, although nothing like normal (before the whole church/scout breakup). But then ... Covid pretty much canceled everything. All the church buildings were closed, and scout/church/group gatherings were not happening. Gray rented a bigger storage unit and that's where the derby stuff is for now.
Entertainment - Jen hadn't been out to the movies in years ... but ironically hit TWO movies in January. The boys probably would have watched quite a few, but Covid shut everything down. The theaters AND Hollywood. The boys still made it to a few movies here and there. Gray even rented out a theater for work parties a couple times during the year. Gray and Jen went to Hale with Scott's crew. We got Disney+ streaming (first season of "The Mandelorian" early in 2020, second season at the end, "Hamilton" in the middle and Jen got caught up on Marvel movies). While there are now dozens of separate streaming services, Netflix and Amazon provide plenty (with some favorites recorded to keep).
Games - Lots of games going on! Bought a new card table, and then a new eight-sided table at the end of the year. Jackbox is still good for group fun. New game additions were Exploding Kittens, Poetry for Neandrathols, You've Got Crabs, ThrowThrowBurrito and Secret Hitler. Old favorites still enjoyed are Monopoly, Sorry, Ticket to Ride, CTM, The Great Dalmuti, Pirate, Racko and Sharp Shooters. Pokemon made a comeback with the kids, played on the old gameboys. Ping pong was popular again, especially with Cooper and Mom. Colton had basketball games year-round, even with Covid going on. Keaton and Callahan had groups that they would get together with ... but Covid (and the church buildings) did shut those pick-up games down.
Food - Eating out was down with Covid concerns - we still had several family trips to Tepanyaki, although with Gray's addition of the garage grill and his own fried rice, who knows if that will continue to be as popular as we get so spoiled. There was still quite a bit of take-out ... Chick-fil-a, Popeyes and Little Caesars (pizza was pretty much a staple this year). Grayson made yummy cheese puff bites, breakfast casserole and continued with all things sous vide and smoked. Landon has still enjoyed baking, and Cooper tried his hand at making some breakfast sandwiches.
Medical - There was the broken foot, again. Seriously? Jen struggled with eye issues (redness, swelling and she does need to get in to get glasses) and had some dental work done. Keaton had some chest pain, and then some skin issues. Cooper and Colton had skin issues too. Gray finished the year with stomach pain and fever (stressful during Covid, but his test was negative).
As mentioned ... Covid-19 was the big news story across the nation and the world. There were also fires in Australia, and Kobe Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash (I remember Cooper was the first to notice that on his phone and tell us all). Here in the U.S., there was also the ELECTION. Would Trump get re-elected? He didn't, but he didn't accept the results, said they were wrong, that there had been fraud. There were also protests and riots and a big Black Lives Matter movement. Here in Utah, we had another BIG SNOW, which resulted in a "snow day" for the schools (but not for Cooper, as he was online anyway). Then, there was an EARTHQUAKE. While it wasn't huge (5.7) it definitely shook up an already on-edge population! There were some WILDFIRES as well, causing concern and evacuations, although California had it worse. The smoke turned the skies red. Late summer, wild WINDS were forecast and they toppled trucks and a few unlucky neighborhoods were without power for a couple weeks. In our immediate area, there was a bomb scare (a house filled with explosives causing evacuations) and an airplane crash in the neighborhood next door
