Around here. . .

My documents for starting my grad degree 

are due this week and there was something wrong with them.

It made me happy to know that the school has great tech support

but it took us a long time to find the answer. 

So that's where I was yesterday.

However, this came in the mail.

I am pretty excited.

Over the weekend we headed out to Dillinger Days.

A step back into the 1930's at Tucson's Hotel Congress.

Behind here is my favorite Farmer's Market at Maynards. 

And the famous reenactment of John Dillinger bank robbery in Chicago,

leading up to their time in Tucson when the third floor of the Hotel Congress was burned.

I made a slew of baked goods. Mostly it was cookies, but mini cheesecakes are my favorite

and we made it special on Sunday. Oh they were good with strawberries on top.

Kevin even stepped in to help with the dough.

I think I'll keep him.  Wink. ;)

Last but not least, I opened this hot chocolate 

from Silver Bean Coffee and it's definitely a favorite.

Hope you had a lovely weekend!

P.S. The blog design is underway!
I know the links in the nav bar aren't working yet and there's more to add.
I hope you like the changes so far!

Reflection

A mural in downtown Tucson.

It's been one year since the tragic shooting took place

in a parking lot, across from my favorite Whole Foods store.

All of Tucson came to reflect as more than 25 events were held all over the area.

It was amazing to see how many people showed up to support one another and remember.

We definitely were able to reach beyond what happened and have Tucson shine.

The area that I live in lost a great young man.

I only hope that I can be remembered for service and kindness.

He was a wonderful example and great loss to the community.

A special wishing well. To remember that dreams never die.

It is remarkable to me how Senator Gabrielle Giffords is always smiling, happy and brave.

As she stood leading everyone in the Pledge of Allegiance at a vigil light ceremony, I

couldn't help but think how far she has come and she is always so positive.

We as a community are strong and we will remember and took the time to reflect

on how we could be better.

In Green Valley, they had art canvases in which they asked everyone to contribute and to 

leave their feelings and impressions on. 

Hope for best.

Hope that we will always be strong.

Hope for a better future.

Then, finally-Love NEVER fails.

During the vigil light ceremony the Secretary of State, Ken Bennett left us with the words,

intensive care.

Always give intensive care.

That's what people here are doing.

It's definitely my goal to do that as well.

I'm so blessed to live in such a strong, amazing community.

Words cannot express the love that was felt and shared that day.

The Simple Things-Weekending

Our weekends are very coveted time.

It's our time to finally take a break and relax from the week.

There's so little time to spend together before Kevin has to go

to bed and wake up early the next morning.

So on weekends, we try to go all out.

(from the top)

Wilderness Trail in our community Rancho Sahuarita
along with a blooming cactus and sunset on Friday night.

After our walk, we went to see Kung Fu Panda 2, hilarious!
A must "take your kids to see that movie."

Saturday we headed out to Sir Veza's Taco Garage
(hence the license plates).
Great tacos and the BEST churros EVER!

After we headed to the pool for some much needed R&R.
Both of us are starting to get tan.

Last but not least, our amazing new appliances that I've wanted since we got married.
Kevin surprised me with a new KitchenAid when I came home from Cali.

Over Memorial Weekend we picked out new furniture and the lovely washer/dryer set.
The nice people at Lowe's delivered the washer/dryer to us yesterday! So exciting!
It'll be so nice not to go to the laundromat or use parent's washer and dryer.
The furniture comes Tuesday.

On top of everything else, we made huge run for groceries at Fry's.
We're hosting our first dinner/game night tomorrow.
I'm hoping for a great game of Seafarers!

Happy Weekend! 

Kevin's World - Micha's

At the recommendation of our realtor, Lisa and I tried a new Mexican restaurant on our trip down to Tucson.  It's a little family-owned place named Micha's.  I ordered the chile relleno con carne asada, and Lisa ordered some chicken flautas.  I can say without hesitation that it was the best Mexican food that I have had since I left Mexico.

Eating that food took me back to Mexico, and the memories flooded my mind.  The chile relleno reminded me of a new missionary, recently arrived to the area.  A local family invited us over to eat and served us chile relleno.  Instead of telling us it was chile relleno, though, they told the new missionary that it was a fried mouse.  Being the adventurous greenie that he was, he figured that if everyone else was eating it, it couldn't be that bad, so he dug right in, much to the amusement of the locals.

Sometimes, I miss Mexico.  However, if home is where the heart is, and the way to the heart is through the stomach, there's nothing like a good meal to take the sting off of being away.

Kevin's World - Land of Saguaros

Many of you know that Lisa and I are planning on graduating from the University of Utah this semester and moving to the next stage of our lives.  For me especially, that means starting a career, which first and foremost means getting a job.  Luckily, I've had a little help in that category.  Last fall, at a job fair at TECHCON, I met a representative from Raytheon.  I didn't think much of it until I got a call from Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, Arizona last October.  They invited me to visit them to interview and see their facilities.  After a few days of wining and dining, I left very impressed with the company and with the community.  Since that time, I have accepted a job offer.  Our current plan for next summer, for those of you who don't yet know, is to move to Arizona as I start my new job.

While I was in Tucson, I took a bit of time to see the city.  The first thing that struck me was the number of saguaro cactuses (cacti?).  They are everywhere down there, and they are even larger than I realized.  This last Christmas, I told Lisa that next year we'll have to decorate a Christmas cactus instead of a Christmas tree, just like Spike from Peanuts.

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I also took some time to look for potential places to live.  After talking with a real estate agent about some of the areas on Tucson, I went to look at a planned community called Rancho Sahuarita.  It looks like a great place for kids and families and is currently at the top of places that we would like to live down there.  You may notice that the name Sahuarita seems familiar.  It is, in fact, a variant of the word saguaro.  It seems like there is no escaping them.  In a few more months, we will be writing to you from the land of the cacti (cactuses?).

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