Elementary Artwork

Part of the school day at elementary is dedicated to art. When the kids are small, we hang their masterpieces on the fridge. I do still have Cooper's 3-D snowflake (Winter Weather) from a previous year. This year I came in and volunteered once a week. Often my duties were hanging up the recent works of art that the kids had worked on. It was fun to see all the variety from all the kids. The school had an evening activity to show off all the kid's artwork. I snapped pictures of Cooper's projects. Sometimes it's hard to store the actual papers, but pictures are forever ...

It's always good to see the creative push, not only academics.

Check out some of Cooper's past artwork in older posts ...
Draw Something and Drawing Dragons

I don't remember if all the artwork was sent home (or if I saw it all when it was) but I volunteered in Cooper's classroom during the year. Many of my "jobs" were to create displays for the artwork. You can see a little more about that in my "Coming To Cooper's Class" post.

Derby ... Done

It's that time of year ... Derby Time!

It's actually Derby Time almost every month of the year for Grayson, as he runs various derbies all over the area all throughout the year. But April and May, those are the busy months. Not only does he do several derbies for other scout groups, but he also runs the one for OUR scout group. And that entails more than just the day of the derby. 

A couple weeks before the derby, Grayson opens the garage, welcoming fathers and sons to come work on their cars. They can use the tools and techniques they might not have access to otherwise. Here's a couple snapshots from the workshop ...

... and of course Daddy had to help Colton and Cooper make their cars too!

Then it was the day of the derby ... I made a muvee

(see just the highlights, the night reduced to about three minutes)

And another photo collage ...

Another derby down!

Glimpses of Gray

So ... I'm a little behind in my blog. I really don't want to get behind! April was busy and there is a lot to blog about. Gray and the two older boys went to New York, I'm still needing to get all the pictures organized from their trip. Gray has had a lot of derby duties. Landon has been finishing up his senior year, studying for his AP tests. Callahan and Keaton have been busy with basketball (open gym and Spring Fling). Easter was in there as well. I need to spend some time here updating everything.

Until I do ... I thought I'd share this great photo with you all! Clayton (Gray's brother) was a little bored at work one day and ended up creating this great little lego picture. Grayson is infamous for just having a bit of him in the selfie shots. Clayton didn't know that there was an ACTUAL photo almost identical to his creation.

Here are a couple more "corner dome" shots ... but when I DO get around to getting New York pictures up you'll see a LOT more. 

...sometimes Gray gets a complete selfie. I've had these on my computer for a while. If you take them, I will blog them ...

 

that's my "appealing flake" 

(someone needs to wear sunscreen on their scalp!)

Glimpses of Grayson

Bouncing Blackham Bunnies

Belated happy HOPPY Easter from the Blackham Bunch! Much better than last year! We had the annual Easter Egg hunt and family party on the Westra side on Saturday, and got together with all the Blackham's on Sunday. 

In the days preceding the party, I enlisted the boys to help fill the eggs. Keaton and Colton really did about all of them! In addition to the usual edible inclusions, I like to buy toys, stickers and balloons as well. At this point, we have more older kids (hiders) and not that many seekers!

I brought the big jump rope, and it was a hit. I didn't jump myself, but I got a pretty good arm workout! Grayson got some fun action shots! We brought the jump rope to the Blackham Bash on Sunday and it was a bit hit there too!  Although Keaton did some different jumping on Clay and Courtney's tramp ...

Gray catching fun action shots again!

Sometimes I go a little overboard on Easter ... it's a little more like Christmas. Not this year. I ... (I mean the Easter Bunny) kept things pretty controlled. Callahan really wanted the DVD Frozen (I'm not kidding, he really did) and so I, and the other boys, finally got to see what all the Frozen fuss was about. It was a cute movie! Some candy, clothes ... and one more bouncy thing. A pogo stick. 

Just getting the wiggles out before church.

Saturday evening, while the Easter Bunny was waiting for littles to go to bed ... there was a shake, a little roll of the house. Gray and I looked at each other and asked "was that an earthquake?"  Yes it was. 3.2 in Tooele. The two little boys were asleep, but the older boys had felt it. 

So that was OUR Easter.

How was yours?

New York New York

Grayson had hit New York last year and said he'd like to go back. When Kolby and Jami planned a trip, Gray decided to go along, bringing the two oldest boys. Maga joined them too. I was invited ... but I'm not a New York type of gal.

... and they're off!

They left Saturday, April 5th. After Gray shared a few photos of them traveling, I wondered if all the pictures of the trip would have a similar theme (Gray's head in the corner, Callahan making a  funny face, Landon being a bit blurry...)

The actual reason for the trip, was for Kolby and Jami to see their friend Will Swenson playing Javart in Les Miserables on Broadway.  Will was a good friend of mine in high school too, and I would have liked to see him perform, just not enough to brave the big city! Callahan fell asleep during the production.

 The hit all the sites ...

... and enjoyed all the eats.

The "great white way" at the Shake Shake was a favorite.

I was impressed with all the pictures Grayson took, I put them into an album slideshow (NYC2014). Jami took a ton of photos, and I'm sure Pammy has too. I still need to look through all of them. It was a great experience for the boys ... now they just need to catch up on school after missing an entire week!

The Voice & What I'm Watching

I remember my mom telling me about "The Voice" ... that it was one of the shows she enjoyed. I used to watch American Idol, but it's been a few years. Now, I really don't watch "live" tv. I only watch while I workout. I had to wait until series hit DVD or Netflix before I could indulge. So I never watched any of the reality shows.

A couple years ago, the boys (Landon, Keaton and Cooper at least) did get very invested in "The Voice". I think it was season 3, the year Cassadee Pope won. While they were cheering for her at the end, she hadn't been their top pick early on. I remember them getting SO upset when one of their favorites didn't move on.

Since then, I've discovered a service called PlayOn/PlayLater, which allows me to watch anything I could watch on my computer, on the television screen (using my Roku box). Now that I could watch current programming while working out ... I have been. I'm still not live, I wait until the day after a show airs, when the network posts it to their webpage. I record it (I can skip over commercials that way), then stream it. Now I'm keeping up with a few shows ... Grey's Anatomy, Scandal, The Good Wife and The Voice. 

As I used to sing myself, I enjoy singing competition shows. I like the blind auditions, and the battle rounds are my favorite. I love duets and harmonies. At times, I maybe would like to purchase one of the songs on Itunes, but they only provide the winner's solo, not the duet version (which is what I liked).

I am SO glad I have the show recorded so I can skip over all the commercials. After only watching Netflix or DVDs for a few years, I have NO patience for commercial breaks! I get a little tired of the sad, sob story backgrounds. I feel like they must pointedly ask the performers expound on their tales of woe. I do think it is a little unfair how someone who does not get chosen for the show still gets a full spotlight, while some who make it, don't even get any air time (this will impact them in the voting rounds I think). 

I don't know who I'm rooting for this year ... or even if I'll stay watching beyond the battle rounds. I did recognize the very first person to audition in the blinds. I've been a fan of one of her YouTube videos for a while ... LOVE this cover!

Do YOU watch The Voice?

What shows keep you coming back?

Basketball Cal

 I wrote about the boys winter basketball seasons (Big Boys Basketball) but Callahan, being the basketball boy he is, had a few other things going on that I thought I should mention.

The church puts on a region contest each year. A "slam dunk" and "3-point" challenge. Each stake in the region gets to send a representative or two. Callahan as nominated for the 3-point contest from our stake. Happily, the contest was held right at our church, so it was convenient and close. And ... he won it! The three-point champ. He hit 10 baskets in 30 seconds.

The team also went to Idaho for a tournament there (March 28-29). Callahan LOVED hanging out with his basketball buddies all day and all night. That is just a dream come true for this social kid. Of course, I can't coax a smile out for a photo! That face! They won all their games and made it to the championships, but lost there. 2nd place seems to be the status quo for them this season. Still, they felt they held their own against an all-star Idaho team.

Beyond the basic Saturday/Thursday games in the regular season, Callahan and Co. did take part in a few tournaments. They did the Holiday Tournament last December (they didn't win a game there). Then the President's Day Tournament in February (pictured above ... NICE high school set-up!) They won the first game there (highlights here) but lost the other two.

At left ... a picture of one of his knee pads. It's not very protective if it has a hole in it! We stopped at the store before his next game to get a replacement.

Callahan suffered a blow to the thigh during the final day of the district games. He actually didn't remember any specific impact, but he was aware of the pain after the game (and then they still had the championship game an hour later).  Although we couldn't see any physical signs (bruising or swelling) it was really hurting him, and he was limping around for a week. Then the state tournament schedule came out. Back to back games every day the next week. I wanted to be sure he wouldn't hurt himself more, pushing through the pain and playing, so I ran him into the doctor. The doctor said he was ok to play if he felt up to it and prescribed some physical therapy. We went to a few sessions of that. Callahan played and it was all right, although he still didn't feel at 100%. 

So ... not entirely sure what is in store for Spring.  We think the high school is pulling the kids into a couple teams for Spring Fling. Callahan really wants to go to Dixie this year (he missed last year, having just recovered from his second broken foot and the dates conflicting with youth conference). I've told him to start saving up his money! This kid LOVES basketball!

Miscellaneous March

I'm really trying to stay up to date on the blog, but I've gotten a bit behind. So instead of individual posts, I'm just going to do a March wrap-up ...

Grandparents Lunch

March 13, 2014

We've switched schools, but there is still the annual "Invite your grandparents to lunch" day. I always feel a little guilty putting them on the spot, but we've had some fun memories the past few years as both Grandma and Grandpa and Maga have made it out (last year 2013, and the year before, 2012). I sent out the invite and both my folks and Gray's mom said they would come. My dad ended up at the Instacare that day with a medical issue, but the boys were happy to have Maga come and eat lunch with them. Maga got to see the boy's new school too!

"Pi" Day and Girl Scout Cookies

March 14, 2014

I'd ordered some girl scout cookies and as I wrote the check, I couldn't help but notice the number fourteen. Repeated three times right there in the corner (a check earlier and it would have been four times). But THREE times also happened to tie into "pi" day ... 3.14. Certainly serendipitous! I SHOULD have taken a picture of the girl scout cookies ... they were gone SO quickly I'm not sure they were ever really around! Thin Mints, Samoas, and TagAlongs. Yum!

It's Is Actually Easy Being Green

March 17, 2014

We're not a big "St.Patrick'sDay" family. I see a bunch of stuff on Pinterest, leprechaun tricks, etc. I don't really do that. I did buy some foil chocolate coins one year (St.Pats2010). I had picked up the shirt Landon is wearing ... I made sure I pulled it out for one of the kids to wear. Callahan was actually looking for it, but Landon had it on already. Keaton went on a search for the green glasses ... I was a little surprised we were able to find them. He and Colton both wore green basketball jerseys and the glittery green hats.

Blackham (BettyCrocker) Brownies

The Blackham family likes brownies. This really isn't a new treat trend, it's been going on for quite a while. I have actually tried a few other mixes and several from scratch recipes, but the basic Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies are the family favorites. 

It was several years ago that I invested in an All Edge Brownie Pan ... it was a huge hit and we ended up making brownies a lot. Then I bought a handy-dandy pre-sectioned pan, and was surprised when the kids told me they actually didn't like the edges, in fact the middle, no edge pieces were prime. 

Landon always claims those  middle ones...

Personally ... I love the edges!

I'll generally make a double batch (using both pans) and then the kids can have some hot out of the oven, and I package the remaining ones up for lunch treats for the week.  But Landon, naughty Landon always sneaks into my stash. Big trouble if I don't have enough for lunches for the day!

The "Baker's Joy" is also almost essential to good brownies ... 

At least if you want to get them out of the pans. 

I just stocked up on boxes of brownies. They were on sale for $.79 at Maceys this past week. I feel a little bad checking out with so many, but we go through them quickly. Hopefully I get around to cutting off the boxtop and donating the 10¢ to the school too... another benefit of the Betty Crocker brand. Grayson LOVES the boxtops. That is sarcastic, in case you didn't catch it, he HATES the little cardboard scraps around!

Brownie batter is also in demand. I always have kids clamoring to be the one to get to lick the bowl and spoon. Callahan calls it "brownie soup" and would love to dig in before I even pour it in the pans! I know the whole "don't eat raw eggs" danger, but we have survived ... and have certainly put it to the test! 

Are you a brownie fan?

Do you have any specialty brownie pans?

Do you like the edges?

Prom Pictures

 

Time for Prom Pictures.  Herriman had their prom March 8, 2014. At the state capital, as it was back in the olden days when Gray and I went to high school. Landon asked, Sam answered. Landon got the tux and corsage (he took care of it all on his own, I remember needing to drive him to the fitting a couple years ago when he went as a sophomore). Daddy even let him borrow the Tundra for his dates. I say date(s) because now, they do a big "day" date prior to the dance. It's often earlier in the day, but Landon and his buddy did theirs the night before. They went go-karting and had mini-murphy pizzas. They played some games, Landon introduced The Great Dalmuti and Progressive Rummy.

The day of the date, they went out to dinner at Buca di Bepo. 

Then it was off to the capital for dancing and pictures.

After the dancing was done 

they stopped off at Maga's house for some skookie.