Summer has begun...

The last day of school...

DANCE FESTIVAL!!!

The entire school performs on the last day of school.

The second grade performed a dance to the cutest montage of snowman songs.

Thanks to Julie...The song they danced to is playing...

The melting snowmen...

I would have posted a video, had I not messed up and pushed pause instead of play. Oops. I have officially been banned from the camcorder. Thank goodness my hubby is a great photographer!

Ash with Mrs. Thurgood

The cutest teacher with the cutest kid
Thanks to everyone{Grandma's and Pa's, Morgan, Lisa and Katie bug} for coming to support Ashlyn moving on to the 3rd grade. WOW, another year flew by. Now i need to find something productive for us to do this summer. Or, shall i say... for Ashlyn to do!
Wish me luck.

WAY TO GO CHASE!!!

He did it...

We are so proud of you Chase!

PHS Class of 2009!

Now on to real life...Best of luck to you stud muffin...

Success means having the courage,

the determination,

and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be.

~George Sheehan

Remembering...

Remembering...That is what Memorial day means to me.
Remembering those who have passed.
Those who have served our country.
Those who died for my freedom.
Those who fight everyday for our freedom...

This year we headed to Moroni and Mt. Pleasant with Sam, Sybelle, Sarah, and Morgan. Dad Blackham took us on the "trek" around the cemeteries. I appreciate the time he takes to learn more about his heritage so he can teach us. He had great stories to share with us. Sam made the comment about how Ashlyn was different this year. She is grown up and understood so much more about honoring those loved ones. She also was quite concerned about not being able to put flowers on all the "Blackham" graves. If you have ever been to the Moroni cemetery, every other grave seems to be a Blackham. So, she went along picking every dandelion and placing it on the "Blackham" graves. Running around saying"here's another Blackham". She is so cute, I love her thoughtfulness.



I am grateful we were able to spend time as a family remembering...

Another great movie...

Loved, loved, loved it!

Hilarious!

Laughed so hard i had tears!

Hank Azaira is so funny.

I am already making plans to go see it again.

Two thumbs up...WAY up!

Enchanted...

Ashlyn has been a part of the wonderful acting group, Up With Kids. Her class performed "Enchanted." Ashlyn's parts{which she chose} were: Celia(from Monsters Inc.), mouse and a bride. She did an exceptional job...even the president of Up With Kids commented on how well she did. Ashlyn is a natural drama queen, and has a memory like no other. She can recite talks she gave in church last year. Up With Kids is an acting/confidence building group. I am not so sure Ash needs the confidence building part...She is so secure in who she is, I could use some of her confidence. She takes her acting serious, and takes direction very well. I wish I could "direct" her so well...

Before the performance. In her Celia costume.

She was awarded the outstanding performer award from Miss Allison.

Ashlyn with Miss Allison

We are very blessed to have family close so they can share these experiences with us!

It's your birthday!!!

Any man can be a father,

but it takes a special person to be a DAD...

My dad is the best dad in the entire world. He is kind, selfless, loving, humble, generous, a great business man & a hard worker. I have often been told "you are just like your dad..." This is a compliment, a huge compliment. I love you daddy! Here's to many, many more birthdays.

Here are a few people who love you too..

My handsome nephew Chase...

Here are a few graduation pics Sam took of my nephew Chase.
There are many more. I will post them after graduation :)

True miracles...

“Love works in miracles every day: such as weakening the strong, and strengthening the weak; making fools of the wise, and wise men of fools; favouring the passions, destroying reason, and in a word, turning everything topsy-turvy.”
Marguerite De Valois
Working in the NICU has made me a bit of a fool...The last two days I had the privilege of taking care of a true miracle. I love having a new perspective on life, and my career. I am blessed...

BACK to school...

For both of us...

A WICKED Day 5...

DAY FIVE... WOW! What a great end to a fun spring break. We went to see Wicked. LOVED it!
Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability, and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to become the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly, and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil. I posted a few fave quotes in my words of wisdom.
Wicked was by far the BEST play I have ever seen. Totally appropriate for kids [ 4 and up] and the grown-ups loved it. I highly recommend seeing it. If you need someone to go with, I want to go again;) We loved it so much, we are thinking of planning a trip to L.A. to see it again.

We had great seats...The 2 1/2 hours FLEW by...

WE LOVE WICKED!

We are blessed to have had such a great weekend. Thanks for everything mom! Thank you Dad for watching D3{"dearest Momsie and Popsical"}. Sam and Sybelle for watching tink. And last but not least, LISA for having an "in" and getting us such great tickets!

Spring Break...Day 4

Off to Salt Lake City...

First stop.

If you have never eaten at Moochie's, it is an absolute MUST! These cheesesteak sandwiches are close to the real deal.

Then we were off to ...

WE PLAYED IN THE OCEAN...

Under the Sea 3D transported us to some of the most exotic and isolated undersea locations on Earth. Allowing us to experience face-to-face encounters with some of the most mysterious and stunning creatures of the sea.

I would pay to see it again if given the chance.

Ashlyn forecasted the weather...

Walked on the moon...

Went to mars...apparently turned into an alien;D

Went swimming at the Hilton . Ashlyn loves to swim. She could care less that we did not go to San Diego for spring break as planned. She loved our trip to SLC just as much... They have swimming pools in the hotels. That is what matters the most to our little fishy!

After swimming for a few hours we went to eat...

Great gourmet burgers. Fun modern place.

I loved that we did things out of our "norm".

After dinner we picked up dessert at PF Chang's{great wall of chocolate- yum!} went back to the hotel, dived into dessert then, dived into the POOL again!
Great Spring Break day 4!!!

Spring BREAK...Day 3!

CLEANING!

Hey...It can't be all fun ;p
Notice...no toys on the floor! Yippee!
Getting ready for a yard sale or D.I. One of the two.


Forecast

Today
Mostly Cloudy
High 57°
Low 38°

Tomorrow
Partly Sunny
High 60°
Low 42°

Sunday
Mostly Sunny
High 67°
Low 46°

Monday
Mostly Sunny
High 72°
Low 49°

Tuesday
Mostly Sunny
High 76°
Low 50

76*. Can you believe it? Too bad it is one week late...

SpRinG BrEAk...Day 2

What a great day...despite waking up to 8" of snow.

Welcome to "SPRING" in good ol' Utah.

I think this photo says it all. One half winter one half spring.

{this photo was taken in snowless Sandy}

We started our day at the Living Planet Aquarium in Sandy. The girls had a great time...

{what a cute group of girls}

After soaking themselves in the Stingray pond...

We HAD to get new shirts at the new Nordstrom Rack.

After our unexpected shopping trip, we attempted to go to lunch at the Mayan...No such luck.

Closed for lunch.

We headed to T.G.I.Fridays. Had fun & ate way too much!

After lunch, we ended our day at Jordan Commons megaplex...

Great movie!

{a little more violent than i expected}

We had another great day with our great friends!

Bring on Spring break days 3-5, and the sun that has been promised to me :p