The Walk

          Another near perfect day dawned on Saturday, March 3rd.  A Klimb 4 Kimmy 2 was about to commence.  We'd take the walk from Pima County Community College West, surrounded by saguaro and the Tucson Mountains.  It is a stunning vista.  There are so many saguaros you could not hope to count them.  Or want to.  You just take them in, enjoying each limb and anticipating the flowering in another two months or so.  This year's walk promised to be another beautiful one...and we couldn't wait.

        The night before, turned out to be an interesting one, as a doorway from my past blew open with hurricane force!  Tonio and I had just pulled into the driveway, coming home from school.  I spotted a white vehicle pull slowly by, waved absently, and helped Tonio down.
         Again, the car.  Slower now.  I thought the car looked similar to my neighbor's ex-wife and thought she had stopped by to pick up some of her stuff.  But it rolled by and stopped, tentatively, at the corner...
         ....the doors flew open and out burst two men.  It took me a moment to recognize them and another for my brain to process who they were...old college roomates...My first thought was to run, but they were closing fast!  So I yelled "Get inside the house Tonio!!! Dial 911!!!"
            I hadn't seen these guys in 10 years.  We'd lost touch - as sometimes happen.  Brian Duffy and Andrew Martin had slipped back into our lives, forever to become "Uncle Duff and Uncle Spike".  Brian, coming in from Denver, Co - he had come out to visit when we were there back in the early '90's, fell in love with it and there he is, a Jersey Shore boy in the Rocky Mountains.  He had brought Cody a Colorado Avalanche outfit for his 1st birthday (Cody says he does not remember that).  Andrew "Spike" Martin had flown in from Harrisburg, Pa, the armpit   capital of the state, where he owns a 200 year old stone farmhouse complete with stocked pond and 52 acres brimming with wildlife.  Spike had been in our wedding and had also come out to visit after Cody was born and then Autumn.
             There they were in my driveway.  They had just found out about Kim.  "I lost her in a knife fight." I'd told them.  How far off from the truth is that?  They decided they needed to come out and honor Kim and walk with our family.

Here's a shot of Spike, to the left of my Dad, on our wedding day (below, we stuff cake into each other's mouth...best day of my life)

We started the day off on time, after a fitful 2 hours of sleep.  Nearly all of the same crew from last year arrived, within about 15 minutes of each other in the southeast corner of the community college parking lot.  Sporting coffees to speed the waking process.

By the time we all greeting each other and helped each other get ready...it was about 8:30 a.m.  and we were the last group to set out.  Janene had to work at her salon this day, but told her husband, Brad, a Tucson motorcycle policeman, to keep an eye out for our group.  When he finally saw us, he told us that Janene had just called and he told her he didn't think we were coming this year!  And it would have been hard to miss a group our size!

Brad is a motorcycle policeman.  He escorted our group of hikers to the intersection of Pima and Anklam to safely cross us, giving us a "Kimb 4 Kimmy!" call over his loudspeaker and following us a little ways with bursts of his sirens that all of the little ones enjoyed!  It not only made it festive, but made us feel somehow more important - VIP walkers! 

Unfortunately, I did not do a great job with photos - if anyone has any good ones, please send them to me!

Autumn took a few...here's some of the walk from her perspective, starting with some wildflowers...

    
                                       Chloe, Lexy and Autumn ready to climb 'A' Mountain!

It was a mild winter.  I can't remember if it rained much, but the flowers are blooming all over in a kaleidoscope of color!

Kim so enjoyed the wildflowers in Tucson.  We'd often go and hike in Sabino Canyon this time of year so she could take in the color.  Today's walk did not fail to disappoint, as there were plenty of flowers lining the walk, along the road, through the desert and all the way to the top of the mountain.

Another of our favorite things about the walk, is going through the old westside neighborhoods as you find your way from Pima to the foot of 'A' Mountain.  The architecture is so different and full of character. 

Autumn and her friends particularly liked what these homeowners had done to decorate their walls.

Here's one of my favorites:

The walk used to begin downtown at Presidio Park when we first began these hikes back in 1994.  It was an 8 mile roundtrip journey.  Presidio is definitely more scenic than Pima, but, the walk today, through the neighborhoods along the way, is much more pleasant.  It ends up being 6 miles roundtrip this way.

The streets are lined with orange cones, so the over flow of walkers can be safe from traffic.  As you can see, we had no problem with either!

Last, but not least...Here come Jack (designer of the cool t-shirts!), Duff, Roshan (pushing Micah and Maleah), Spike and me...

Autumn, Lexy and Chloe making their way...

Cody and Antonio climb the "A"!!  This has been a yearly ritual...dating back to '94, when Kim, Cajun and I made the first climb.  It is pretty steep - I always expect one of the bambini to come sliding back down in an out of control surge...but, so far, that has never happened!

Duff and Spike shoot the...uh, converse with Shawn and Dawn Ball near the top.

One of Ami and Brian Bunches triplets, Colton, has captured the prize for making it to the top:  A shiny, red balloon!!  Aye, their be treasure here matey's!

Last year, Mary Montes hiked this walk very pregnant with Brinley (along with Kim, who was very pregnant with Maleah!).  As I've told you, Kim hiked in '97 8 months pregnant with Cody, in '00 she was 6 months pregnant with Autumn when she hiked and in '03, she was a mere 4 months pregnant with Antonio.  She chose to sprint that year.  All 6 miles.  And she didn't ever break a sweat.

Yeah, Duff, Spike and I made it...hard to believe!

Ami and Brian sure get extra exercise pushing the Bunchkins up this mountain!!

Roshan, Andrea, Sandy, Jack and Kim at the top!

Sandy, Maleah, Micah and Roshan.  The little ones were so good for this long walk!!

A little mass confusion as we tried to regroup for the big moment...wait for it...wait for it....

  Ta da!!  Roughly left to right, we had Andrea, Mariah, Hunter, Chloe, Lexy, Autumn, Jaimelyn, Kim, Maleah and Micah.  Sandy, Renee, Ami, Mary, Colton, Cassidy, Chris, Brinley, me.  Ethan, Brian, Jack, Duff, Spike, Shawn, Dawn and Roshan.

Kim always loved this part of the walk, too.  The group shot!!  We had made it to the top.  It was a long walk, but we were all smiling - a beautiful day - and then we went on to the food and festivities.

In the early days, the event was sponsored by Bruegger's Bagels and Eegee's.  Some years, there were hotdogs at the top and various sport drinks and waters.  The last couple of years, we have been overly blessed with El Molinito Mexican food!!

The girls went on the jumping castle and checked out the fire engines at the top, after enjoying some snacks and drinks.

At the top, they always have a banner for walkers to write something...to somebody or for somebody.  Kim always wrote something sweet for those we have known who have beaten cancer (Sandy, thank God!!) or were taken by this nasty disease - like her father, Ken, who we walked for for many years...

 

Cody, contemplative, takes time to remember his Mama..

The banner is full of well wishes, nostalgic messages, heartache, triumph...and, as it did last year, it brought me to my knees...fortunately, as was the case last year, I found myself alone in this moment...everything catching up to me and flooding me....after a moment, I was able to pull it all back together...the memories rewinding in my head like an old VHS tape...and rejoined the crowd...

We had made it to the top, it was Tonio's first year walking the entire 6 miles!!  Last year, Breanna and Tonio had a blast being pushed in a double jogger by Cody for most of the way!! We enjoyed the festivities and slowly began to make our way back down...well, some of us were slow...Autumn, Lexy and Chloe literally ran back down the hill, pausing long enough to snap this photo.

It was an incredible day for a walk...and to talk.  It was neat how we all got to talk to one another as we made our way up...and then back down.  The hours seemed to pass so quickly, so enjoyably.

When we finally dragged ourselves back to the parking lot - that last couple of blocks is brutal, we realized we were hungry.  Another long standing tradition our family has had, is to eat some great Mexican food on the westside of town!

And we found some marvelous Mexican seafood at the Mariscos Chiuaua!!  This is a beautiful place on Grande, just south of Speedway.  Everytime we used to pass it on our way home from the Desert Museum or Old Tucson, I'd tell Kimmy "Take me there for my birthday."  We never quite made it...

This day, we ate shrimp and fish, chicken tacos for the girls and Spike, calamari for Tonio, his signature dish "Antonio!  You cannot order calamari the rest of the time we are here!" Duff told him, as he had dined on it the night before for dinner at Viro's.

The Mariscos is decorated beach style - making you feel as though you are there...

Later that evening, we went to Kim's favorite, Zona 78, to keep the day going in her favor...Tonio ordered calamari....

....and afterward, Frost for some gelato!!

It was a long day, but a good one. What makes this walk so special?  Friends.  Companionship.  Full of new memories, we made it home late - the girls set up in our 'sports room', planning to stay up all night watching movies, while the boys set up in the living room, planning to stay up all night trading war stories...of sorts....

Near the top in '02!! A decade ago. We used to travel like we were staying for a week!! Kim thought of everything.  Snacks.  Change of clothes.  Hats.  Gloves.  Drinks.  Baggies to collect 'treasure' along the way. Here, we are holding a flag we had made in memory of her Dad....

Thank you all for joining us, making it a special day and helping us to remember all of the wonderful times....

Special thanks to Duff and Spike, for reappearing like apparitions...or maybe Kim was trying to keep me, protect me?,  from the nefarious ...

I spend my days going faster. Faster...because of what I see in my rear view mirror...

St. Joseph's Chapel

        The walk up 'A' Mountain (Klimb 4 Kimmy 1 & 2)...Kimmy's Kut-A-Thon...A Night in Italy for Kim...Relay for Life...Kimmy's Kitchen cookbook...

         All of these events have brought in nearly $20K!!  Thank you all for your participation, prayers, positive thoughts/energy...and support!!

         Nearly $12K of that money raised will go towards building a new chapel at St. Joseph's.  All faiths.  All problems.  All anxieties, well wishes, prayers, tears - will be able to come here and find shelter.  From the storm.  Solace and comfort.

         Tomorrow, around 4:00, ground will be broken on the chapel...

         ...I spent some time on the 5th floor at St Joseph's.  Wandering the halls...running the stairs...always searching.  From time to time, I would end up at the end of the hall, 100 miles from where Kim fought in quiet, unyielding, determination...in the makeshift chapel.  Although it used to be office space for nuns, I still could clear my mind there and re-energize for Kim and the bambini...Yet, one day, as I pushed Kim along in the wheel chair, she happened to catch a glimpse of this chapel as we passed by.  'Is there where you come when I fall asleep?'  she asked, those deep, beautiful blue eyes searching mine.  'It's nice, but...'

           So I look forward to the day that patients, visitors, family, friends, doctors, nurses and all the wonderful staff at St. Joseph's, will be able to make their way through a colorful garden...and through the doors of the new chapel and find some peace.

            I'll try to get some photos and keep up with the progress as it goes...

                                                    Thank you!

St Patrick's Day 2012

             Happy St. Patrick's Day!

             You know, for years I'd joke that this is another holiday tied into the Italians somehow.  People would say 'What??', and I'd say, surely you know that St. Patrick was not born in Ireland, he was not Irish.  Most people are aware that he was born in Scotland/Britain area, abducted at an early age, sold into slavery in Ireland.  He escaped and went on to teach people about God - using the shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity.  So, then, I'd joke that his parent were actually originally from Italy, making him Italian and therefore, the root of this holiday is Italian. 
             And here it is, right from my friends at Catholic.org, who are kind enough to send me a daily email with the 'Saint of the day'! 

             http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=89#.T2VZ7pIsBGs.email

             St. Patrick's parents WERE Italians!!!

           Anyway, aside from this hilarity, we took time to remember our good pup, Zona, who died this day in 2010 from spleen cancer, beginning the erosion of our family and our version of reality.  Now  it may be safe to read 'The Art of Racing in the Rain' by Garth Stein, if you have not already.  When Zona died, my Dad told me about this book.  But warned me to wait a period of time before trying to read it.  I tried to wait, but after a couple of months of staring at it each day I went to work at Barnes & Noble, I finally picked it up and cried like a baby...
            Zona was  a good girl, part Lab, part Aussie.  Kim loved that girl, once she got through the first 6 years of mayhem.  And, like Kim, Zona was never sick and showed no signs right up until the last three weeks of her life.  She literally allowed the bambini to use her as a pillow while they laid on the floor watching t.v.. She allowed Tonio to ride her like a pony.  She loved their extra strong hugs.  Her passing was quite a shock to us...and, looking back, Kim was starting to slow down, preferring to stay around the house rather than explore our beautiful city and state as we had become accustomed to over the years we lived here.
            Today, we lit candles for Zona and told our favorite 'Zona Stories'  Autumn loved the story that Mama used to tell her about how she was planting flowers, working with her head down and placing the flowers about 3' apart.  When she was finally done, she looked up to appreciate her hard work and admire the flowers...only to see that Zona had followed her down the line, pulling out the flowers and tearing them up!  She also remembered Mama telling her about how, at our old house, when Zona was a pup, we used to sequester her and Cajun in our hallway at night with a baby gate.  One night, we heard noises through our bedroom wall in our living room.  'Burglars!' we thought!  We carefully crept into the hallway, where Cajun greeted us with a 'I tried to contain her.', apologetic look...we entered the living room to find Zona on our couch happily shredding the throw pillows!  Cody said he loved playing tug-o-war with her.

              And this morning, I remembered our first St. Patrick's Day in Tucson, back in March of 1994.  Kim had discovered that there would be a parade downtown and off we went.  It wasn't on the scale to ones we had seen before, but we surely enjoyed ourselves.  We took her Mom and Jim to see this parade when they came out for Kim's 40th birthday - the kids fondly remember that! 
              So they were pretty excited when I woke them up to go see it (except for Cody and Brendon, who we took to see the University of Arizona NIT basketball game on Wednesday and ended up staying with us until Saturday!  We dropped those guys at the skate park!).

              Autumn took the pictures today....

She loved to see the Italian flag flying from Super Mario's hand!

And the camel...we paid $75 to fill up the Expedition on our way to the parade, speaking of camels.

My two little leprechauns (thank God for spell check!).

The British want to take St. Patrick back...

Autumn was scared of the clowns, relieved that they stayed on the other side of the street!

Tonio's little classmate, Bailey was on the other side of this float.

Autumn loved the Beagle rescue group

Tonio's favorite was the pirate ship...

And the intersection of Stone and Pennington had a great big shamrock painted on it!!  The little ones thought the parade was great and then wanted to celebrate St Patrick's Day by going to McDonald's for a shamrock shake!

Kimmy's Birthday

                3/1/2012

                At the San Xavier Mission by 8 a.m., this place always takes my breath away as a flood of wonderful memories filter their way through my mind...Our time there was precious - for our wedding, Cody's baptism, Native American events, Mass or just to walk, hand in hand, to the top of Grotto Hill, always pausing to soak in the view of the little farms, so startling green against the desert background...

              (here, in this courtyard, Kim and I had our wedding pictures taken.  There is a large, beautiful Spanish fountain in the center with old olive trees surrounding it.  Hummingbird darted everywhere!)

              The hardworking caretakers of the Mission, Toni and Ivan, greeted me at the large, aged wooden doors leading into the church.  Over the last 15 months, we have come to know each other pretty well.  Feels like I've known them my entire life.  "Your heart looks sad this morning." Toni said after we exchanged 'good mornings'.  I explained to her that it was Kim's birthday and went inside to light her a candle.
              I soon felt a presence on either side of me and was surprised to see Toni and Ivan flanking me.  They proceeded to sing in their native tongue a birthday song for Kim.  They followed it with our birthday song, but in their language.  They then led me in prayer with a Lord's Prayer followed by three Hail Mary's.  It was moving and what an honor!  I could literally see Kim, smile beaming, tears streaming down her cheeks...

             In the afternoon, we had Father Harry come over to our house.  I knew I needed to have some snacks on hand and thought "What would Kimmy serve?".  I thought a cheese and cracker tray and some sort of veggie tray would do it.  After Mass, I stopped in Fry's thinking they would have pre-made trays.  Not so much, and certainly not Kimmy's way, anyway.  I didn't panic, instead choosing some veggies, a couple types of cheeses and some fruit.  I nearly forgot crackers, but made it to the overwhelming assortment available these days!  "OK Kimmy!  This is too much!!  What do I do?"  I pleaded to the Heavens.  As if on cue, I leveled my gaze, staring straight at some townhouse crackers flavored with olive oil and sea salt...perfect.  "Thank you Kimmy!" I sighed.
             Angie came over for the ceremony.  Father Harry was inspirational, leading us in prayer.  He then had each bambini take some holy water, say their own prayer and sprinkle Kim's ashes and the nitcho.  Angie and I followed.  During the prayer, the sun shone brilliantly and there were some beautiful clouds overhead...Kim's presence was unmissable, if that is a word.
            
             How appropriate that Kim's 47th birthday should fall on a Thursday?  Autumn talked about that all day!  It was on to Viro's with Father Harry packing extra holy water to bless Rose and Vito's bakery.

David and Cody shared calamari and mozz sticks.

Bri made Angie and I her famous cappuccino's and a white chocolate latte for Andrea.

                                   Little Maleah kept everyone entertained and Lexy, Mariah, Kim and Micha enjoyed some gelato.

                            Once everyone was in a food coma, Father Harry kicked it up a notch:

                            He began in Rose and Vito's office....

                            ...and doused the bewildered bread makers in the back with holy water...

Here's where Rose makes her magical pastries...duly blessed!

                          Our parade ended where it began, at our 'big table'...it was a nice day, one that Kim would surely have enjoyed...


                        And that was that.  It was a great feeling having Kimmy's ashes blessed...again?  I can't remember, back in the days of walking under water, if Father Harry ever blessed them for me.  Andrea believes he did...but, just in case!  So, it all made for a great birthday to remember.  And to celebrate...

                           Happy Birthday Kim!

Cucumber Salad

        I didn't start out to write about cucumber salad tonight, but, once again, I am so jammed full of stories and it has been awhile...as I try to steer around the flotsam and jetsam, and carefully thread my words...so here's another great recipe for you to try...
    ...because we still find such comfort in the kitchen...Kimmy's Kitchen..

                                 Cucumber Salad
 
       1 large cucumber
       1/2 cup sour cream
       1 tblsp of vinegar
        paprika
        salt and pepper

        Pare cucumber and slice very thin, place in a bowl and add salt and fresh, ground pepper to taste.  Add the 1/2 cup of sour cream, vinegar and paprika.  Stir until all slices are fully coated.  If desired, chopped chives or sliced onions may be added.

         Try this.  It is refreshing.  I like it with thinly sliced onions added - no chives please.

         This is a recipe from Kim's mom, Carole.  Her and Kim's stepdad, Jim, gave us so much support during those nightmare days when Kim was staying at St. Joseph's.  They were always cleaning, running the bambini places, or cooking.  "What can I cook you?" Kim's mom would ask me.  I never knew, but, one day, I had a flashback to one of her fabulous Thanksgiving day feasts...cucumber salad.  "Can you make me cucumber salad?" I asked.  She laughed, told me sure and it was as good as I remembered, so I asked for the recipe.

          Andrea continues to supply us with vegetables...this past week, there was an abundance of English cucumbers...Autumn loves cucumbers.  So do I.  And we ate them with salt.  Ate them in salads.  Put lime juice on them (Andrea taught us this trick, it is delicious!).  And finally, it came to me...Carole's cucumber salad!!! 

Here's the next thing, as seen on the FB:

Kim Conca...my Angel

secure3.convio.net

Kim was the kind of person that when you met her, you felt as though you had known her forever...she set you at ease with her smile and the sparkle in her eye. She cared so deeply for people, our community, our schools and gave a lot of time and energy towards making our world a better place. Even when she received... the diagnosis of cancer, the smile never left her face - she inspired everyone and touched so many lives. She fought hard and continues to motivate people to this day. To do better and to give unselfishly. I was so blessed to have her in my life and work daily to keep her spirit alive, along with our three children, Cody, Autumn and Tonio. On May 18th, we walk for you Kimmy - with smiles on our faces, making it look easy...just as you always did.

Thanks for reading,

 Dave

Zucchini

             Our lives have become a blur as we race between school, work, real estate, volunteer work at too many places to mention, Cody's track, here comes the little one's swim lessons...and on and on.  But who isn't busy these days?  I guess that I was so insulated from this feeling due to the partnership Kim and I had - it didn't quite feel this wacky - we always shared the duties/activities, so neither of us felt the strain.

            Today, things 'slowed down' for about an hour as Cody hit the skatepark with his buddy Alex leaving Autumn and Tonio to help me...in the kitchen.

             It's in the kitchen that we find comfort.  Recreating Kim's wonderful recipes.  You can fool your subconscious for awhile and find peace.  I also find it is a great time to teach the bambini 'life lessons' as we talk about cooking technique (heat up your olive oil before you put in the minced garlic), friendship (do not dwell on those who have let you down, rather rejoice in those who continue to hold you up), school, gardening, etc.  Cody's pretty proficient around the kitchen and the little ones are eager to learn, soaking it up like the sponge we use to clean the counters when we are done cooking!

           We were blessed to have Andrea's zucchini to work with today.  I had Autumn break out the 'nice pot' and get the rice started while Tonio and I sliced zucchini.  We diced some of the banana peppers and Roma tomatoes Andrea had brought us.  Autumn placed a little olive oil in our 'big pan' and minced the garlic into it once it was hot.  We added the sliced banana peppers to the oil and then the diced tomatoes, stirring to coat them all.
           Once the tomatoes began to break down, we added the zucchini and a little water.  I put some sea salt and ground pepper over them and stirred.  Let them simmer on a low heat for about 15 minutes or until zuc begins to soften.  Right before it was done, I chopped up two fresh basil leaves and stirred them in.

THEN, we began to make Kimmy's famous zucchini bread!

Ingredients:

 3 1/4 cups of flour

 1 1/2 tsp of salt

   1 teaspoon of nutmeg

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

3 cups of sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs, beaten

1/3 cup of water

2 cups of grated zucchini (about 2 medium sized ones)

1 tsp of lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350.  In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, nutmeg, baking soda, cinnamon and sugar.  In a separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, water zucchini and lemon juice.  Mix wet ingredients into dry.  Bake in 2 standard loaf pans, sprayed with nonstick spray, for 1 hour or until a tester comes out clean.

The bambini and Andrea's girls loved it!  We've had a lot of fun with all of the produce she has brought us over the last few weeks!! 

I think that's about it right now - the bambini are good - we've come through the 'haze' and have seemingly settled into what is our new journey...surely making some mistakes along the way and bumps and bruises withstanding, it's all working out (a favorite phrase my Dad used to tell me over the years 'it'll all work out').

'Kimmy's Kitchen' is kicking butt, thank you all so much!  We've sold 300 copies so far!  They are still available at Unique Identity Salon (Janene's place!), Viro's Italian Bakery, Cottonwood Elementary School, Desert Willow Elementary School and Desert Sky Middle School.  Last week, St. Joseph's Hospital and St. Mary's Hospital added them to their gift shops and soon they will be available on Barnes & Noble's website.  The money raised (all $15.00 of the purchase price!) goes towards helping build the new chapel at St Joseph's Hospital.  Ground breaking will be on March 21st.

"Klimb 4 Kimmy 2" has more than doubled since last year!!  Again, thank you so much!  We are looking forward to walking this coming Saturday - it's been 80 the last two days - hopefully we have another spectacular day to walk like last year.  Jack's t-shirt design is amazing (we sold 52 shirts!) and he has graciously donated his time, considerable talent and the materials so that all $15 can go directly to the foundation (deadline was 2/24 to order)!!!

Thank you all again!

                             Rafa Marquez, of the NY Red Bulls and Mexico's captain...can't believe it's been a year already since we last saw MLS in Tucson...but it's back!

Fresh Produce

Calabacitas!

Lately, I have not had to make any produce runs to Fry's. Or Sunflower Market. For two weeks. Andrea has brought us an invariable cornucopia of veggies.  Eggplant (I made eggplant parm -Lexy really liked it! and Caponata - pg 7 of 'Kimmy's Kitchen'!), tomatoes (Beefsteak, Roma, cherry and yellow!), peppers (sweet, jalapeno, red and green bell), cucumbers (English and American) and copious quantities of squash!!  Before dinner each night, Autumn will say a prayer for us.  Sunday, Autumn added this to her prayer: "And thank you God for all of this produce that Andrea brought us!". 

Cooking is comforting.  I have had so much fun making things with all of this stuff.  Antonio loves to help and is getting very good in the kitchen. With all of this produce, I have barely left the kitchen. Kimmy's kitchen  And Sunday, after I worked (Andrea took the bambini to church for me and to Viro's!), I baked squash and eggplant.  Monday, I made fresh salsa and decided to try the Calabacitas that Angie makes so well.  So I initiated the cooking conference call and had her walk me through it:

4-5 good size squash or zucchini, cut into cubes

1 tbsp of olive oil

2 tbsp diced yellow onion (or to taste)

4 diced up Roma tomatoes

1 cup grated Longhorn cheese (or to taste)

1 can of yellow whole corn

1/2 tsp salt

pepper to taste

Steam the diced squash until tender and drain.  In a pan, saute the onions and tomatoes in the oil for about 15 minutes and stir into the squash, mixing it well.  Add the salt and pepper to taste and continue to heat.  Add corn and stir in.  Add grated cheese and allow to melt.  Serve when cheese is fully melted.

Came out fantastic!! Angie is always a big help!

I used a lot of the peppers in salsa and made peppers and eggs one morning.  But, it has been many, many years since I've tried to make jalapeno poppers.  Kim and I once grew jalapenos on the balcony of our apartment back in Pennsylvania.  We had a small, planked balcony, overlooking 5th Ave.  We liked to sit out there in the summer.  At night, sharing a drink.  We had the classic hibachi that we used year round.  I'd shovel off our balcony after a snowfall, digging out the hibachi to grill out.  The jalapenos grew well and we decided to make poppers, our favorite bar food.  As we prepped them, a seed popped up and lodge itself in my eye, underneath my contact.  The pain was immediate and searing.  Kim guided me into the shower and forced my eye open to try to sooth it and get the seed out.  I was quite red eyed, but Kim's poppers turned out great, no surprise.

Eh.  They did not turn out as good as Kimmy's and the oil splashed all over the stove and floor.  Dammit.  Cody and I ate quite a few anyway.

For dinner, I made shrimp scampi (pg 27 of Kimmy's Kitchen), arborrio rice and Italian green beans. One of Kim's treat for us on many Valentine's Day.

The bambini ate well.

Happy Valentine's Day Kimmy!

I know it's a day late, but, on Valentine's Day, we enjoyed our regular Tuesday 'therapy' day at the Barrios' home.  In Lupe's Kitchen, a feast was brewing for this holiday.  She made us taquitos (rolled beef tacos - one of Kim's favorite, drive through meals at Filibertos or Nico's), Mexican rice, guacamole.  Antonio begged for seconds! 

And for dessert...these beautiful cupcakes!

It was sweet of Lupe and Manny to include us in their Valentine plans...and continue to help us heal - they've seen me stumble and fall...and helped us transition with their family and sharing meals.  We sometimes try to figure out just what the hell happened...and talk about challenges and rising above obstacles.  The family looks forwards to Tuesdays!

Just two and a half more weeks until we walk up A mountain for Kimmy!  It is sometimes hard to believe that a year has passed already.  We've learned so much...and I know we have a lot more to learn...