11:00 P.M.

                                 Around 11:00 P.M. starts 'my time'.  Waking at 4:45 a.m., work, tracking down bambinis, getting groceries, making dinner, packing lunches, getting clothes ready for school, laundry, etc.  Etc.?  Not sure if that exactly covers it - and the questions...Autumn: "Dad.  How was your day?".  Tonio: "Is there anything I can help you with?"...feeling guilty that I am looking forward to 11:00 P.M.!

 

Best part of the day!  Mary and Ami get the little ones a lot for us.  Our kids have formed quite a bond.  Brinley loves these guys and climbs right up on their laps to play.  We planned to steal her today, but chickened out!

 

Kimmy - LOVED that 'belly laugh'!!  It's definitely one of the wonderful characteristics Kim had...And little Cody, in awe of Geoffery the Giraffe. Big Ralph in background.  He worked at Toys R Us as a supervisor.  Great guy - people worked hard for Ralph and had fun doing it.  He stands about 7'5", can dunk a basketball without his feet leaving the ground - I dubbed him 'Quicksand Jesus' after the early '90's hit by Skid Row by same name, due to his 'stache, beard and shoulder length hair.  Kim thought that was great. He once redid our shower stall at our old home, after we had a leak, which resulted in the green wall rotting - and supporting an ant colony!! 

I'm not even kidding you, when Ralph pulled away the tile, their was a quarter sized hole in the green wall and ants were pouring out of it!!

 

 

Kim on Halloween - must have been '99.  She made Cody his T-Rex costume.  It meant so much to her to create Cody's costume with her own hands, especially since he loved dinosaurs.

 

 

Kim racing Cody around in his stroller and Marvin the Martian hat - which Tonio still wears!  This shot was taken at her folks house on 5th ave in Bethlehem.

 

Kim and Cody - these two were sooooo tight.  Maybe just now catching up to this young man.

 

                                     Yeah.  Not sure what Kimmy might be doing in this photo, but, love the eyes and smile...she was amazing.

 

Cajun, Cody and Kim enjoying the day...

                                                         Kim has Cody dressed to kill!

 

This was Cody's first Thanksgiving back in 1997.  Kim baked him a Cornish hen, so he could hold the mini drum stick and use it as a pacifier.  What I love most about this picture, is Kim of course - the set of her mouth...

 

New Year's Eve 1998!  Kim got Cody a little top hat - just like Baby New Year in the animated children's classic.

 

 

Another appearance with Geoffrey!  This one was C.A.R.E. Fair - a community outreach event.  It was held at Pueblo High School on the southside of Tucson.  Kim had helped with this event, which gives the community a chance to get free services, like health care, shots, eye check ups, bus passes, etc.

 

Thanks again for reading.  And your support.  I was telling someone tonight that sometimes I 'just don't want to'.  And I think of our fabulous support group and get strength and inspiration.  Always someone worse off - front page of Yahoo.com today: "Girl, 18, watches family drown in Pacific".  Young lady, at the beach with family and pup.  Dog gets swept to sea and brother, 16, dives in to save him, getting hit by a 10' wave.  Parents dive in to raging sea to save son...only to perish.  They still have not found her brother, but, the dog survived the ordeal. 

So, now orphaned at 18, she watched, helplessly from the beach as her family was swept to sea.  The parents bodies were recovered several hours later, but the son has yet to be found. 

 I count my blessings!

                                 One of my favorite times with Kim's dad, Ken...at his gun club...

 

Kim was good fun with a hand gun!