Daddy's Duckies

This post is looooong overdue. But if I'd posted more promptly, I probably would have had a dozen or so smaller posts all about our eggs, ducklings, and the activity in the following months. So yes, that means this is a BIG post, because the duckies were a huge part of our lives last Spring, Summer and Fall. 

It all started with the great egg experiment ...

Grayson ordered duck eggs and an incubator off the internet. The small incubator held seven eggs. Eight were shipped, an extra in case of breakage, but they all made it. We felt bad just leaving that one little egg out in the cold. After a couple weeks, we "candled" the eggs. In a dark room, you place an egg on top of a flashlight, and it gives you a peek inside. An "egg ultrasound" if you will. Duckies are social little creatures, so we needed at least two to hatch, to keep each other company! We could tell that three of the eggs were developing well. Two had something going on, but weren't the same as the other three, and two ... nothing. 

As we neared the month mark, we started watching the eggs closer. One day, I noticed a little crack in one. There was a lot of "egg"citement that evening! A second egg started to crack too. They would rock back and forth a bit. The second egg soon passed up the first, we could see the little duckling inside, and with just a bit more waiting, we had a moist little duckling. It's recommended that you leave them in the incubator for up to 24 hours, before bringing them out into the big, wide world. We watched the second egg, but after the initial cracking, it just wasn't making any progress, even hours afterward. We were very worried, but when I woke and checked on things in the night, there was a second little duckling! 

Then began ducky days ...

We had a setup in the basement. A big box, with a light warmer, food and water. Grayson originally put the box in our utility room, but with it's sliding door that was a bit tricky to close all the way, it only took one close call, finding our kitty Oreo in the box with the ducklings (he hadn't hurt them, but it was a heartstopping moment!), and I moved them to another room where we could keep the kitty out easier.

This began the duckie days ... every morning we'd take them out of the box to clean up the poop and spilled water. We'd fill up the bathtub so they could practice their swimming, and when the weather warmed up a bit, we'd take them for "outside time" in the morning and evening. 

When ducklings attack ... #daddysduckies

A video posted by JenB (@jenblackham) on May 23, 2015 at 12:11pm PDTThose little buggers were hard to catch  to move from box to bath to play and back to box!

Those little buggers were hard to catch to move from box to bath to play and back to box! The boys named them Joe and Andy ... although we had a hard time telling them apart. Almost every time we took them outside or put them in the bath, it would become a family affair as everyone gathered round.

Then tragedy ... 

Joe died. We'd been worried about him for a day or so. He just seemed lethargic. Not really eating, not really running away. We weren't sure what to do, then it was too late. He was gone. Poor Andy. Ducklings aren't meant to be alone. She would just peep, peep, peep missing her brother so much. There were human tears shed too. We tried putting a mirror in the box with her, and she would snuggle right up to it. We gave her a lot of extra attention while we obtained a couple more ducklings so keep her company.

Here is Andy chasing Mommy around the front yard ... 

A little duckling cardio ... #daddysduckies

A video posted by JenB (@jenbsjourney) on Jun 5, 2015 at 11:41am PDT

It was well past Easter, when Cal-Ranch and other stores have ducklings in stock, but Grayson was able to pick up a couple from a local contact online. Two more feathered babies, quite a bit smaller than Andi (and quite a bit more skittish), but it did help! The new ducklings were named Alex and Pedro (that was Landon's suggestion from the mission field).

Duckies on Daddy

 Daddy digging worms ... yummy!

Our flowerbeds and gardens were actually weed free.

It didn't take long for the new babies to catch up in size, and we moved all three ducks outdoors. At first, we'd just leave them out in a pen during the day, still bringing them in at night or when the weather turned, but eventually they moved outdoors for good.  Of course they outgrew the bathtub too ...

So we got them a pool ...

Bought a big pool for the duckies to enjoy... #daddysduckies

A video posted by JenB (@jenblackham) on Jun 29, 2015 at 12:08pm PDT

The duckies liked it, and we liked watching the duckies. Every morning, I'd prepare them a "big salad" of lettuce, grapes and tomatoes. Change their water and give them time to play. In the evening, we'd bring out a plate of peas and corn, or if they were really "lucky ducks" they would get crickets, goldfish or mealworms. Oh ... they LOVED mealworms and would eat them right out of Daddy's hands.

He could even get them to jump!

Feeding the feathered babies... #daddysduckies

A video posted by JenB (@jenblackham) on Jun 30, 2015 at 6:46pm PDT

Ah worms! Gray would pick them up from Petsmart, but found them cheaper online ... we did have some struggles with them being shipped (opening up a box of dead worms! Ewww. A box of live worms isn't much better ... but it does smell better). I was SO happy (that is sarcastic) when a box came while Grayson was at work and I had to empty out the box and of wiggling mealworms! These would actually end up in a container in the fridge. OUR FRIDGE. Ewwwww. I deal better with earthworms, which the duckies definitely loved eating up too! I think we dug up most of the worms in our yard, so Gray ordered earthworms to restock.

While the ducks were quite tame, and would eat out of our hands, they sure didn't like being touched or picked up! Gray would try to catch them sometimes, just to see if he could. I've seen videos of ducks that acted more like dogs ... but our ducks were just ducks.

Daddy duckie time in the morning. We were out of worms but the ducks looked at Gray with such expectation that he made a trip to PetSmart to grab some (and some feeder fish too) #daddysduckies #spoiledducks #feedmedontpetme

A video posted by JenB (@jenblackham) on Jul 24, 2015 at 9:02am PDT

As the summer ended, the ducks would sometimes fly out of the pen as we brought them out for the evening duckie time. They would fly across the yard and we knew at some point they would probably fly away ...

Duckies take flight! They have been flying across the yard for a bit now. We weren't sure if they would fly, one being a domestic duck, and considering how very well fed they are (fat duckies). Will they fly away at some point? #daddysduckies

A video posted by JenB (@jenblackham) on Jul 27, 2015 at 6:04pm PDT

I remember the first time, Alex, our big boy (Andi and Pedro were girls) flew up and over the fence into our neighbor's yard. We could see him there, looking confused. We went and knocked on our neighbor's door, and they let us into their backyard (luckily their dog wasn't out) and we walked Alex back to our house. Whew! A few days later, Alex flew again, he made a big circle up in the sky and then landed (crash landed) back into our yard. A few days after that, Alex and Pedro flew up over the fence ... and away. Poor Andi didn't get the memo, and was left all alone again. We really hoped our two duckies would come back home, but they never did.

Again, left with a lone ducky ... Grayson made arrangements for a new home for Andy. She went to live with a bunch of other ducks, from the place where Grayson had picked up the two baby ducklings. Hopefully she's enjoying the company of many other ducks, and maybe she'll find a man. It was a bit of an emotional goodbye. The end of ducky days ... we missed them.

Then, some neighbors just to the South of us reported a pair of ducks that was getting in and out of people's backyards, leaving a mess and making a bit of a nuisance of themselves. We were asked if they were our ducks, but these two weren't mallards, as ours had been. Gray investigated, and we think they had been raised as pets and released. They couldn't quite seem to make it over to the canal, where many wild ducks lived, so Grayson grabbed them and brought them home. We had ducks again. These two big boys were too fat to fly! We never bothered penning them up, but just let them have the run of the backyard. They liked the pool, and the worms ... they were not a fan of the big salad, as our ducks had been. We kept them for a couple of months, it wasn't quite the same as with OUR duckies, but we still enjoyed them. When the weather turned cold. Grayson found a place down south, kind of a "humane society" for fowl, and he dropped off these two ducks there, and I think they were quickly adopted into new families.

And that is the end of our ducky days for 2015. 

What will 2016 bring?


We had SO many more pictures and video clips ... I made a muvee.
It's probably a little long for anyone else to enjoy,
but I think our family will always look back on 2015 with fond memories!

Halloween 2015

 Colton's Candy Collection

What I really love about the picture above, it that I didn't take it! Cooper did. I usually do take such a picture, but didn't get around to it this year, and Cooper kept the tradition alive. *Ü*  I actually wasn't sure we'd even have any Halloween pictures this year. The boys didn't seem to care about trick-or-treating. Cooper has been on a health kick ... exercising a lot and improving his eating.He has pretty much given up treats and sweets. In the end, both boys did go, although Cooper gave his haul to Colton as he wasn't planning on eating any himself. 

There was the truck-or-treat over at the church ... I can't remember what we had that night, I think one of the boys had a game. Of course there was the parade and class parties at the school. Cooper wore his "Lego Man" costume he wore last year, and Colton went as a basketball star on a box of Wheaties.

After the parade, the 6th graders have a tradition. They perform the dance "Thriller".  As Cooper is in 6th, he was part of this production. I enjoyed it a lot more than I anticipated (there is a little clip down below). After the dance was finished, it was off to Cooper's class for their party.

The entire 6th grade was celebrating, split into groups and moving from classroom to classroom for different activities. In our room, we broke the kids into smaller groups and rotated them through a few games. An "eyeball and spoon" relay race, monster toss, cup crash and Picture-eek-a.  In the other classrooms they were doing a picture scavenger hunt (using ipad cameras to capture the items on the list), decorating pumpkins, and ... I don't know what all else! It took a couple hours to get through everyone! And I wasn't done yet! Colton's class party was in the afternoon, so I was helping out with it too. There, I manned the "bingo" station. After it ended, there really wasn't time to go home before I'd have to come back and grab the kids, so I just waited until school got out. Just spending one entire day at school really makes me appreciate teachers and all they do (and put up with!)

... as promised, here's the clip of and "thrilled" Cooper

(small Instagram clip HERE, updated/longer YouTube video below)

 

https://youtu.be/w5iQGPtf60s

I even dressed up as I went to help at the school ... one of the items on the scavenger hunt was "a parent in costume" so even though it was just ears, I got my picture taken lots of times for that game.

... as I mentioned above, the boys weren't super excited about trick-or-treating. They went with simple, but coordinating costumes. We actually let them go out alone, just around our little block. As it went over an hour, I began to regret that decision (worry wart mommy here) but of course they got home just fine. We didn't have very many trick-or-treaters come to our door, it was pretty slow.

As Colton wasn't wearing the Wheaties box ... 

the kitties decided to get in on the action!

I DID go through all the costumes this year and pared them down by over half ... keeping just what would still fit the boys, and only things I thought they'd actually wear. I'll pass some on to cousins for dress up, and to a neighbor who collects and loans costumes out. We still probably have way more than we need, but at least I eliminated a couple of bins and got the mess cleaned up!

A Tale of Two Kitties

It wasn't that long ago, that we Introduced Oreo. We love our cute kitty and can't really remember life without him! Uncle Kolby had said from day one though "get a second cat" as they can keep each other company, learn from each other what play is too painful ... and, two is better than one!  Daddy wasn't too into the idea (even if it was his brother suggesting it), but then Daddy extended his stay in Europe a few more days ... which gave me a little extra time to find a kitten to add to our family (Oreo had been added while Daddy was on a trip to Las Vegas. While Daddy is away, the family will play!)

Oreo had been adopted from the local shelter at four months old. We missed out on his cute kitten stage. This time around, we definitely wanted to enjoy a baby. I found an ad in the local classifieds and Cooper and I went out ... and came home with a kitten. 

She was such a little ball of fluff! I did feel bad taking her from her mommy and siblings, but she was going to get a lot of love here at our home too.

A little fun with a little kitten ... #blackhamkitty

A video posted by JenB (@jenblackham) on Jul 18, 2015 at 9:14pm PDT

Cooper named her "Joy"
She got a LOT of love 

Even Grayson accepted some snuggles!

... except from Oreo!

It's been over two weeks and we still have been unable to integrate the kitties. They attack each other almost immediately. Not sure what to try next... #twocattroubles #blackhamkitty #ataleoftwokitties

A video posted by JenB (@jenblackham) on Aug 5, 2015 at 5:45pm PDT

I'd read up on how to add a kitten to a household. We tried all the tricks. Keeping them in separate rooms first, so they could hear and smell (and get used to) each other. Putting them together with toys or food to keep them busy. But if they were ever actually in the same room, the fighting would start! As Joy got a bit bigger, she actually seemed to be instigating things and holding her own against Oreo. Some people said to just let them fight it out, but it totally stressed us out! For weeks, we'd keep them separated. Calls of "I'm letting the kitten out, where's Oreo, I'll put him downstairs" or vice versa.

Then, Uncle Kolby and his family came to visit. They gave both kitties a lot of loving, and then we put the kitties together so they could witness the attacks. And the kitties put on a good show. Uncle Kolby just laughed and said that they were playing. He gave us a convincing inner monologue of what Oreo was thinking, and it did make us relax and let the kitties "play" more often until finally we did dare leave them alone together. Life was SO much easier then.

The two kitties still "fight" sometimes, enough that we break it up ... but they also love each other and are always snuggling and licking and playing! We love both our kitties!

St. George & Cedar City

October 2,3,4 ... Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Gray booked a house in St. George. Cal couldn't get away from work and basketball. I stayed home with him, and the ducks and the cats. Maga, Ana and her boys joined them though.  The boys loved that the house had a pool and hot tub, and that it was all for them! 

Here's Colton's recap (email to Landon) ...  we went to Saint George! We (Keaton, Dad, Cooper and I) went with, Amare, Aidan, Maga and, Anna! It was so much fun. We stayed at a house instead of like a hotel or condo. At least there was a pool and hot tub in the back yard. Throughout the entire trip, we were in the pool about 11-12 hours! The first night I slept pretty bad. I slept on the couch. But the second night, Dad blew me up a mattress so I can sleep on it. Also we went to this breakfast place called, "Bear Paw" It was so good, just I soaked my pancakes with syrup so they were soft. That same day we went and visited the Jensens! We went into the basement a had a serious pillow fight. The day we left we dropped by Dad's foster sister's house. She made us some delicious Navajo tacos! She was Navajo.

Look at the hair on Amare!

... and that face!

 They went out to see the sights ...

... and of course some yummy eats!

... exploring the red rocks

Here's Keaton's recap ... Saint George was way fun with the Aidan and Amare! We spent about a total of 12 hours in the pool at the house dad rented instead of a hotel (which I totally prefer). We had a very triumphant pillow fight at the Jensen's house while we were down there. It was also fun to coincidentally drop by on Jenna's birthday. It was very princess-y when we got there. We stopped by dad's foster sister in Cedar City. Her name is Rosie and she made us Navajo tacos today for lunch, for she is Navajo. Dad also let me drive in a huge parking lot at a church up in Cedar City! Cooper and Colton were in the car though, so they pranked me a few times with the old, "LOOK AT THERE'S A CAR!". I hated that.

... visiting Rosie's family in Cedar City

This same crew (sans Keaton) would hit Vegas and the Hoover Dam later in the year. 

Take a Hike

Cal and Colton - Kings of the Mountain

Several years ago, Gray and I had gotten out hiking several times (see post), but then nothing for years and years. We had done our little nature walks earlier in the season, but then we got in quite a few hikes this summer as well. I don't know that the kids actually enjoyed them at all ... Colton once commented "what is with all this hiking?" in an exasperated tone. We were hit by a storm which had Cooper, our weather phobic child, completely stressed out, and between the crowds and getting soggy shoes, our final hike was dubbed "The Donut Falls Disaster." But we made some memories :)  Gray also got out with some of the guys on my side of the family a few times too. Here's a picture recap ...

Ensign Peak - June 2015

Gray took the three youngest boys, 

picked up Ana's two boys and Maga for a quick climb.

Suspension Bridge in Draper - August 2015

Our first family hike, sans Callahan (and Landon). Quick and close, but it was quite a climb at the start, and my heart rate got up there for a few minutes. Fun to compare everyone's Fitbit stats (steps, stairs, etc.)

Cecret Lake - August 2015

For this hike we were joined by Callahan (and his girlfriend) and the entire extended Blackham family. This was the hike where thunder rumbling had Cooper completely in tears. I pulled out some headphones and an ipod and hoped that music blasting in his ears might be able to distract him somewhat. Luckily, the storm never really materialized. It was a bit chilly, but we didn't get wet. Pretty views up at the lake, and fun to see the salamanders swimming in the water.

 You get pictures like this 

when you leave your phone where Uncle Clay can get it.

Amare got rides for much of this hike.

Hidden Falls/Donut Falls

Labor Day - 2015

Daddy thought it would be great fun to head up the mountains the morning of Labor Day. Much of Utah apparently thought it was a good idea too. Oh, the crowds. Cars parked all along the roadways. The trail got backed up at one point, it felt like we were waiting in line at Disneyland. Trying to traverse the trickling waters under the falls, the boys shoes got soaked and they were not happy. But Callahan is still giving us a smile and a thumbs up in the photos (it's his new picture pose).

Bells Canyon - September 2015

When Kolby and Jami were in town this summer ... of course we had to do another Blackham Bunch hike! We decided on Bells Canyon, nice and close. Gray and I had hiked it alone years ago ... it was a lot steeper, rocky and more challenging than I had remembered. We only went to the reservoir ... or the large puddle (I also seem to recall the water level being much higher on our previous visit). It wasn't a long hike, but it was fun. We were missing Callahan again, who had to work.

Westra Guys Friday Night Hikes

Summer 2015

Dad and Chris have been going hiking for years now. This summer, the other Westra guys (and Gray is included, having married into the family) went up the mountain trails several times. The girls were invited, but the guys tend to go faster/longer/later than I think I could have handled. Besides ... boy's night, ya know? And it's hard to compete with Scott's classy hat. I'm just not that fashionable ;)

Callahan and Amanda went hiking several times together too.

The cooler weather has now hit, so our hiking days are done for this year.

What will 2016 look like for hiking?

Homecoming for Cal

Ah ... Homecoming at the high school. Callahan didn't go to the dance last year, so this was his first Homecoming dance. He asked his girlfriend Amanda, and went with a huge group of friends. 

Previously, for PROM, I had to help out with the ordering of the corsage, picking out a tux and such. Here, he had everything covered himself. 

For the "day date" portion (which wasn't a thing back in the olden days when I went to school dances) the guys rented big inflatable balls. You know, the kind you actually insert yourself into. There was rolling down hills, colliding into each other, and an attempt to play soccer. He said it was a lot of fun, and luckily there were no injuries requiring a trip to the emergency room.

Then it was home to shower and dress for dinner and the dance. Callahan's original idea was to hit Italian Village (a hangout from MY high school days) but apparently he wasn't the only one with that idea (it was packed with people from CHHS) so they went elsewhere. 

Then group pictures and the dance. Following the posts on twitter and instagram, it seems like everyone had a great time.  Here are more pictures ...

The day date activity.

Travis and Cal ... off to pick up the girls.

He got the Girl :)

 Group Shot

 Just the Guys

Boys will be Boys!

Happy Homecoming!

A Plethora of Pears

A plethora of pears! We've been feeling a bit fruity here in the Blackham home, our cousins #McMullinOrchards dropped by a bunch a bit ago. Peaches, pears, plums and apples. I DO love fresh pears! When I was growing up, my mom would buy boxes of them and then we'd bottle them. My job was to peel them ... one for the bottle, one for my tummy, one for the bottle, one more for me. I know ... I SHOULD eat them peel and all, but alas, I'm just an appealing person!

It was so nice having unlimited pears for a week or so. We ate a LOT of them every day (as I'm not a bottling person myself). It was nice getting them green, and then waiting for them to ripen. It seems like when I try to buy pears at the store, I go for the riper ones (because I want them NOW) and I can't get them home without bruises and other damage. These pears were great!

Keaton was really into pears a while back. I bought some canned pears, and some of the little plastic, one serving packages for lunches. But it was a phase for Keaton, he only wants fresh ones now.

Back to School Stuff

It's the most wonderful time of the year ... for parents anyway! I do like the return to routine, even if it does mean getting up early, making lunches, shuttling kids to/from school and helping with homework. 

Callahan is a Junior at Copper Hills. He has early morning seminary, which starts at 6:00 in the morning. I must admit, I wasn't up early enough to catch him for an official "first day of school" picture, but grabbed one his girlfriend shared (thanks Amanda!).

Keaton is a 9th grader at West Hills. King of the school this year!  Cooper and Colton are still at Terra Linda Elementary. Cooper is in 6th, with Ms. Fulmer as his teacher. He was a bit bummed that none of his best friends are in his class this year. Colton is in 4th grade with Ms. Matthews. They are out in the portable out back. We'd worried about the portable situation, with Cooper's weather worries, but happily HE has never been in one. Colton says there are advantages ... the a/c works a little better in the single room, and they have a water dispenser for nice cold drinks.

Here are the school pictures taken a month or two in ...

Here are the two elementary boys. I thought they turned out cute.

... and my bigger, no teeth smiling boys.

Not the best, but not going to go to the bother of redoing them.

The little boys had a fundraising carnival at the school. They had fun!

Belated video post ... Going through old clips and never shared the boys playing on the wrecking ball at the school carnival ;) Cooper still has his wristband on!

A video posted by JenB (@jenblackham) on Dec 30, 2015 at 5:08pm PST

As always, I spend a bit more time with Cooper and class than the other kids (as he usually has anxiety issues and such, but he's really doing well this year!). I am a class mom, helping out planning parties and such. I went to the school to help make t-shirts for their "Olympics" ...

The kids groups (countries) had picked out three shapes to represent them, and then positioned them on colored t-shirts. They then sprayed bleach, and then vinegar to counter-act it. Cooper still wears his shirt even after the Olympics finished up. He competed in the three lap run, and came in second. It was fun to see the kids cheering each other on. Cooper's country/team won the Olympics!

Then they moved onto studying medieval times. 

Cooper had several projects for that. 

Here is a hennen (a woman's hat) and a shield.

We had parent/teacher conference in November and both little boys got rave reviews from their teachers. Excelling academically, and just great kids all around ... not that I need anyone to tell ME that! The older boys did great in school too. Keaton got a 4.0, perfect attendance and all honors, which awarded him the "Triple Crown". Callahan made honor roll as usual too. Great job Blackham boys! Keep up the great work!