Edward Petkovsek, WW II Veteran Memorial

Evie and her sisters, Laura and Elaine

Jen, and her two boys, James and Henry

Jill and Evie's sister, Laura

Alex and Aunt Jean

We, Evie and I, and our two daughters, Beth and Jill are staying for a couple of days in the Diamond Resorts condos.  We are all here for the Memorial Service for my father in law, Edward Petkovsek.  We had a service a couple of weeks ago in Euclid, Ohio, and today, we are having one in Scottsdale, where he has lived on and off for twenty years.  Evie's four sisters are in town, as our other family members.  Many friends from the area will attend the service this morning at 10:00 at St Patrick's Catholic Church in Scottsdale.  Unfortunately, my son Tom and his daughter, Marlena, were supposed to be here but he came down with the flu yesterday and had to cancel his flight.  O, yea, for those who make fun of my mentioning my wake up time...I got up at 5:30, too early, but I was awake and could not get back to sleep.

With My  Lovely Daughter , Beth

Hiking the Desert

Yesterday was another day of picking up family from the airport, gathering the family together, and preparing for today's service.  Evie and I did manage to get a walk in, around the Aqueduct, through the desert scrub, about an hour Thursday morning.  We then packed up our things, as we were moving to a condo from my mother in law's condo in the afternoon.  We left for the airport around 12:30, to pick up Beth, my daughter who was flying in from CT.  It was an easy pick up, as the airport has easily accessible cell phone lots, about a minute from the  arrival gates.  We then went back to Evie' sister Claire's house, and spent much of the afternoon there, with other family members.  I picked up a rent a car for the next few days, then the four of us, drove to our condo and got settled.  It's pretty nice, each condo has two bedrooms, living rooms, an appointed kitchen, with dishes, silverware, all the things you would need for an extended stay.  After settling in, taking showers, we went back to Claire's where all the family gathered for a dinner, of baked ziti, lasagna, salad and ham.  We had a fun evening, catching up with Evie's sisters, Claire, Jean, Laura, and Elaine, and their families.  My two daughters, Beth and Jill, had not seen some of their aunts and cousins in almost ten years so it was fun for them to see everyone.  Some of the cousins may not have seen each other for fifteen years, as they are all pursuing their own lives in different parts of the States.  Quite a difference from my father in law's family, who all seemed to live in the Cleveland area , not straying to another state or god forbid, another country like Evie and I did.

We made a early night of it as all of us were tired, especially for those of us from the East Coast, where it was much later than the 9:00 when we headed back to our condo.  Evie and I watched TV for awhile, read, and went to bed by 10:30.

EDWARD PETKOVSEK, WW II VETERAN, FEBRUARY 21, 1919 - NOVEMBER 2, 2012

EDWARD PETKOVSEK WILL BE HONORED TODAY WITH A MASS AT ST. PATRICK'S CATHOLIC CHURCH IN SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA AND A MILITARY BURIAL AT PARADISE PARK CEMETERY ALSO IN SCOTTSDALE.   ONE OF THE LAST OF THE GREATEST GENERATION, HE WAS A WONDERFUL HUSBAND, FATHER, GRANDFATHER AND GREAT GRANDFATHER.  HE WILL BE MISSED BY ALL OF HIS FAMILY AND FRIENDS.

Making Potica, Airport Runs, And Our Kids Arrive in Scottsdale

Evie's sister Jean, with her Endearing Grandson, Henry

Dinner at Jean's Condo

Up at 6:30, a bit lighter than yesterday and the mountain ridges are now visible as I write at 7:00.  It's a chilly 48 degrees outside, high of eighty later in the day.  A tinge of pink highlights the outline of the Mc Dowell Mountains, off to the north of our condo.

Yesterday was another busy day in Scottsdale, starting off with a great hike at the Mc Dowell Sonoran Preserve, about a fifteen minute drive from us.  It's made up of various trails, one a two hour loop around the mountains, the others mostly around the scrub that surround the mountain, including an interesting desert garden, with plants marked and explained for the hikers.  We met lots of people on our hike, half way up the Loop, many jogging with water packs, some walking dogs, even a tour led by a desert botanist,  I assume.  We walked for little over an hour because we wanted to get back to help my mother in law, Dot, put together her potica, a Slovenia nut roll.  When we returned from our hike, the dough from last night had risen, Dot had cooked the ground nuts up with sugar, milk, honey, and vanilla, so we were ready to shape the rolls and bake them.  We split the dough into ten rounds, rolled each one out into a 12 X14 rectangle, spread the nut mixture on the the pizza looking dough, rolled it up, placed three at a time on a baking sheet, put them in the oven till they were light brown, about 35 minutes and 350 degrees, and then took them out.  Lots of preparation, the dough and nuts, but the putting together was easy.

Dividing the Potica Dough

Spreading the Nut mixture on Dough

Rolling up the Nut Rolls 

The Finished Poticas

For lunch, I had cabbage rolls, saved from yesterday's efforts, and then mid afternoon, Evie went off with Jean, her sister, to the airport to pick up Jean's daughter and her family.  Dot and I hung out in the condo till about 5:00, when we drove to the airport, though heavy traffic, to pick up Kathy, Dot's sister.  We went back to Jean's for dinner, with her family, played with her son Henry and James his brother.  Henry was born with some disabilities but is one of the most endearing children I have been around.  He is always smiling and all you want to do is hug him. Around 8:00, Evie and I drove to the airport again, to pick up Jill, our daughter, who flew in from Washington at 8:30 and Claire, Evie's other sister, from Long Island, at 8:45.  Miraculously. I was able to pick both up easily, despite the complexity and confusion of four different terminals, north and south sides, cell phone parking lots, and so forth.  I hope I am as fortunate today when I make two more runs to pick up Beth and Tom and his daughter Marlena.

Mc Dowell  Sonoran Preserve Hiking Trail

Mc Dowell Sonoran Preserve at 9:30

We move out of Dot's condo this afternoon to a time share, The Diamond Resorts, for three days.  All of my family will be staying there, the rest of the Petkovsek family will be divided among Evie's sisters two places, and Dot's condo.  I also will pick up a rent a car today, take all our things as well as the kids bags and settle in the two time shares  A busy day.  By 9:00 tonight, just about all the family should be in town, ready for tomorrow, when we celebrate Evie's Dad's life, with a Memorial Service and luncheon. I am glad my three children were able to make it.  I know it's difficult with family and kids but they wanted to come.  We have made Claire's house party central, so most days the family will be gathering there for dinners and celebrating Ed's life.

Foraging Javelinas on Condo Grounds

A Stuffed Cabbage Kind of Day as Scottsdale Begins to Get Crowded

Evie and Dot Making the Cabbage Rolls

Sixty Plus

Dot Finishing the Rolls with Tomato Sauce

Done

Well,  I am up at 5:30 because I went to bed early, about 9:30, so I am paying for it by getting up at this time.  I had expected to see a light outlining the hills but it's pitch black outside.  I walked out into the yard and there was still a nearly full moon and stars even now, at 6:15.  It's now 6:35 and there's just a soft blue glow above the darkened mountains.  As I sit her writing, the sky has now become a light blue and I can make out the surface of the mountains though I have yet to see an orange color.  If it were April, the last time we were here, the sun would be rising at 6:00, right in front of us, instead of off to the south, beyond our view for now.  It's just about 7:00 and I can see a light pink hue on the tops of the mountains.  It's too chilly to sit outside unless I put on a  fleece.

We had a bright, sunny and warm day yesterday, what else is there in Arizona, a perfect day to enjoy.  We started with a walk of about an hour, along the Aqueduct that brings the water from the Colorado River to Phoenix.  There's a path on both sides of the Aqueduct, obviously made by hikers and walkers and you have to cross an overpass on both ends if you wish to make a circle.  We did work up a sweat by the time we returned, as there was no shade as we walked through the rocky, sandy trails, around trees, cactus, and other bushes.  It felt good to be in the warm sun, something we will lack in Chautauqua for another six months.  And being almost any where warm in the winter is delightful, so out of the ordinary if you are used to winters in the Midwest like us.

7:00AM

7:40 AM

About 11:00, we started our project for the day, the making of Dot's cabbage rolls, with sauerkraut between the layered rolls, a recipe from her Czech ancestry. We mixed 5 pounds of beef/pork with onions, eggs, salt and pepper, and two cups of cooked rice.  After boiling the head of a cabbage for about ten minutes, the leaves fall off. We cut them in half, rolled them with the meat mixture, put them in a large pan, and poured a tomato sauce over them after putting the sauerkraut between the layers.  We cooked them for at least ninety minutes and we had sixty plus cabbage rolls, for the family dinner  of around twenty five later in the week.  It took us about an hour and half to get them in the oven, perhaps a little less. Mid afternoon, Jean came over and took Dot off for a meeting with her CPA and Evie and I just enjoyed the afternoon, spending some time out in the backyard sunning and reading.

Enjoying Happy Hour at the Stone and Vine with Jean White

Around 5:30, Jean, Evie and I went off to one of Jean's favorite early bird spots, the Stone and Vine.  Dot elected to stay home; I assume she needed some quiet time for herself, understandably when you have visitors, even family staying with you.  It's nice to just be alone.  Anyways, we sat around enjoying the atmosphere of the busy restaurant, ordered a few beers, and split three appetizers between us which was quite enough, an egg plant rotini, clams with a garlic sauce, and a Margarita pizza.  We got back around 7:30 and Dot had been busy, grinding nuts for the potica, a Slovenian pastry we all love.  So, we sat in the kitchen, helped her put together the dough for the potica, to let it rise over night, talked and went to bed early, around 9:30.  The dough was interesting, as it has sour cream and eggs in it as well as flour, sugar, and yeast.  This morning, after our walk, we will put together around twenty nut rolls or potica and bake them, getting them ready for the arrival of all the family over the next two days.  We hope to walk the Mc Dowell Sonoran Preserve, an area my brother in law, Henry Kartagener, introduced us to last April.  It's only about a five minute drive from us, just beyond Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright's winter residence.

Dusk, 5:15 PM

A Chilly Scottsdale Morning, Heat to Come

Dusk on Monday

Sunrise

Evie, with her sister, Jean

Dinner, with Dot and Jean

Morning Sun

It's about 7:25, coffee's made, and I am sitting outside under the covered porch of my mother in law's house.  A grand view of the mountains from where I have my coffee, as you can see from the photographs. This is the third time we have stayed here in the last four years and I can never get over how beautiful this part of the US is.  I don' think I would say this if it were July but right now, it's a chilly forty seven degrees outside, the high to be in the mid eighties.  The yard attracts birds so if I sit still, they will fly in and mill around the yard looking for something to eat.  Most seem to be a type of quail and starlings, but others have a red cap, not sure what they are.  The sun is rising to my right, the  south east, and the shaded mountains off perhaps a mile are beginning to take on light.  As I write, I can see seven or eight birds scratching the ground, looking for food.

We had an easy flight from KC to Scottsdale, a little less than three hours, no turbulence, clear skies, so I spent most of my time reading American Rust on my Kindle.  Evie was even able to get some sleep.  Jean, Evie's sister, picked us up at the airport and took us back to our condo, about a twenty minute drive, depending on traffic.  We got settled in at Dot's house, caught up a bit, then went over to Jean's for dinner.  Jean also has a condo, has had it for probably twenty years.  In fact, we stayed in it about this time in 1995, when I had my first sabbatical and we drove across the US.  It's quite nice, two bedrooms, lovely furnishings, a couple of porches, in a well kept community, which includes tennis courts (behind her condo) and swimming pools.  Perfect get away for her over the years.

She had a great dinner planned, of scallops, risotto, salad, bread and wine.  I stepped in with a scallop recipe and she was happy to let me take over.  I browned a pound of scallops on both sides in lots of butter,  then threw in a half of cup of chopped shallots, garlic, white wine and lemon juice. Yum.  The tasty risotto was made with mushrooms, so we had a feast catching up, talking about our grandchildren (Jean has two boys) enjoying the evening and the food.  We had fresh raspberries and blackberries for dessert, with Australian yogurt, Wallaby, of course, and I also tasted coconut milk yogurt for the first time.

We got home about 9:45, quite tired, did some more unpacking and went to bed very tired.

Not alot we must do today, fix some things around the house for Dot, get in a walk, go to the store and we are going to meet Jean for dinner at a place she wants us to try called the Stone and Vine.  By the way, just outside the yard is a pathway which follows the Aqueduct for miles, so lots of people run, walk, or hike it both morning and night.  A couple just ran by, as did a walker with her dog.  And the sun has mostly lit up the mountains, now brown, with little touches of green, perhaps pines of some sort or cactus.

Au Revoir, KC. On to Scottsdale

Sticky Buns!

Creek Side

Hiking with Baba

Newly Built Cairn by Marlena

Marlena's Secret Cave

Marlena Strikes 'A Natural' Pose

Crossing the Creek

A Healthy Late Fall Weed

Another cloudless morning here in Lee's Summit, 29 degrees, a great day to be outside, to hike, walk, work in the yard.  Unfortunately, we will be on a plane, headed to Scottsdale for a week, which isn't so bad.  The best part, our kids, Tom, Beth, and Jill will be flying in on Thursday, along with Evie's four sisters and their families,  for the Memorial Service for Evie's Dad, Fast Eddie, on Friday.  They will fly back home on Sunday, Evie and I on Monday to KC.

We had a leisurely Sunday though it seemed like Evie was doing something all day, getting the sticky buns put together with Marlena, letting them rise, shaping them, then baking them in mid afternoon to the delight of all.  She also made turkey soup for dinner, along with ham and cheese sandwiches. Muy Bueno.  In between, she took Marlena on a hike along the creek.  I, on the other hand, sat around with the boys, watched the Chiefs lose in football, took Bella for a walk, took Bella for another walk later in the afternoon and met Evie and Marlena at the creek.

All of us went off to Foot Locker, mid afternoon, trying to find a deal on running shoes for Evie, but only Tommy got some, the one person who did not need them.  As I mentioned yesterday, we could not forego the temptation to do some shopping.  At least we did not spend any money.  I also browsed Dick's Sporting Goods for deals but nothing caught my eye.

It was one of those days where you just wanted to take it easy, enjoy the day, do whatever you wanted.  Nick, unfortunately for him, had quite a bit of homework, so he and a buddy spent a couple hours working on a report.  He did get his reward, the newest edition of Call of Duty, the hot video game out  that every kid wants.  Marlena was content to help Evie with the cooking, play on her IPAD, either Hangman or Words With Friends with Evie, or on her own.  She is a happy girl

After dinner, Tom, Nick and I watched a silly, predictable lacrosse movie.  It was fun to watch because it was set at a prep school, a lacrosse power house, where the star player had 'an attitude', how unusual for a lacrosse player.  We all went to bed by 10:30, as Nick  gets up at 6:30.  In fact, he just left for school, and it's 6:50.  I hope he took some sticky buns to school for lunch.  He plays his first basketball game today but the coach has yet to tell the team who made the A or B team.  So the kids don't know for sure when of if they play today.  Duh Coach?

Sunny Sunday in Kansas City

At City Market, with Nick and Marlena

Planter's Seed Feed and Spice

Relaxing in Sun at City Market

Son and Father B Ball

Tom, Mary and Kelly and Mike Burlingame

Turkish Spiced Ground Lamb

Grandma Gigi's Rice Cakes by Nick

Another clear sky, sun rising off to the east of Tom's backyard, as four of us sit in the living room, sipping coffee, playing or reading on our IPADS or computers and watching CBS Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood.  It is warming up here, which is nice, forty degrees right now, a high of fifty five later today.

Yesterday, we met Tom and Mary at the Kansas City Market, in downtown KC, much like the West Side Market in Cleveland.  We parked in front of our favorite hardware store, The Planters Seed Feed and Spices,  three large old fashioned spaces, with lots of bulbs, spices, shovels, bird houses, pots and even bags of seed or fertilizer.  They even sell jams and crackers, the whole ball park.  We ended up buying the Cadillac of bird feeders (a lifetime guarantee!) and some gloves for Evie.  They also had a a brand of tools from Germany, called Wolf Something, which were neat.  You could buy a handle and every kind of device would fit on it, whether a rake, shovel,  hoe, broom, whatever.  Tempting.  We then walked around the market stands, filled with veggies, spices, and ethnic foods, either Asian, Arabic, or Italian.  No Slovenians or Poles or Hungarians here, like the West Side Market.  We ended up buying various spices like sumac, for our Turkish kofte dinner, some lamb, a couple of packages of fresh, soft pita bread and baba ganoush.  We got home around 1:00, watched Ohio State defeat Michigan and then went off with Tom's neighbors to bowl for couple of hours.

About 7:00, the Burlingame's came over, neighbors and good friends of Tom's, whom we have met many times before.  They have a son, Peyton, Nick's good friend, and Kelly was Marlena's kindergarten teacher.  We had, as mentioned, a Turkish dinner, kofte's (spiced ground lamb), over toasted pita, with a tomato sauce over both, and then a dollop of yogurt, a family favorite.  For dessert, we bought baklava and revani at the market, neither as good as the kind Evie makes.  The Burlingames's stayed till about 10:30 and then we all debated watching a movie but went to bed, putting it off till tomorrow.

Today, we may give in to the temptation of the nearby shopping center, with many stores, perhaps go for another hike, of just watch the Chiefs lose on TV.  Evie is making her famous sticky buns, so she's up at it already, putting together the dough so it can rise.  We have decided to make this left overs day, with turkey and sides, turkey soup,  as well as kofte's from last night.  This will be our last day with the family for a week because we fly to Scottsdale tomorrow.

City Market Saturday in Kansas City

Plaza

Plaza

Plaza at Dusk

Another clear but cold day here in Kansas City; right now it's twenty three degrees out, not a cloud in the sky, the kind of weather which reminds me of this area...huge, empty skies, and either cold or very warm.

It's about 8:00, Marlena's up, working in the kitchen with Evie, making turkey soup, Bella's on my lap, her usual spot when I am on the couch, Nick's sleeping and his parents had a night out and are staying down at the Marriott in the Country Club Plaza.  For some reasons, our kids tend to leave us alone with their children when we are in town and take off for the weekend or just a day and night.  Understandable and fun for us, as we have the kids to spoil, with no parents intervening and saying NO.

Yesterday was a cold day, hats, warm coats and gloves were in order for much of the day.  Tom and Mary went to work out mid morning.  Nick was still asleep, recovering from his 5:30 morning basketball practices, so Marlena, Evie and I decided to take a hike in a nearby park called the Winterset Summit Park, about a half mile away.  It follows the same creek behind their house, but this section is much wider, lots of big rocks, a couple of trails to follow and longer, so it was great.  Crisp and sunny, perfect for following the creek, climbing over rocks, avoiding soakers as we crossed the creek, climbing up paths, all the things Marlena loves doing with us.  It so much fun to have an enthusiastic child along on the hikes to liven it up, open our eyes, as we see things we missed because of her eyes.  We walked for little over an hour, out and back, and though we did not snack or picnic, other than apple, it was great fun.  We all want to do it again.

Going for a Hike

Hiking the Creek

Raking Leaves with Bella

The Good Son Earns a Buck

Marlena

Left overs for lunch, for me, a warmed plate of turkey, mashed potatoes, dressing and gravy, the good life.  Then, about 3:00, we all drove down to the Plaza, to walk and eat, taking two cars as we were bringing the kids home.  We had a Genius appointment at the Apple store, to try to solve an ICloud problem and found out the most likely cause of the lost of Photo Streaming was  that Evie's IPAD's memory was filled with photos, thus she could not import any new ones.  The store was a mad house though we were able to get help right on time.  We then took some pictures of Tom and family, for a possible Christmas card.  And we walked, to the kids dismay and shopped some.  It is a stunning area to walk, especially at dusk when all the Christmas lights are turned on.  It is literally like a Christmas wonderland sans snow.  Every building roof, every nook and cranny, had lights.  Amazing to see.

We went to P. F. Changs for dinner, sat at the bar for about twenty minutes, then ate an assortment of Asian meals, all quite tasty.  I think Tom's Kung Pao shrimp and my eggplant in Sezchuan sauce were the two favorites.  My Dan Dan noodles and Mary's chicken in black bean sauce seemed to be the least favorite.  Lettuce wraps and endame for an appetizer were both hits.  We walked some after the dinner, then said good by to Tom and Mary and drove home, Nick giving me directions via his IPhone as I was not familiar with the route.  We did not get home till about 8:30.  Evie put Marlena to bed then the three of us watched a movie, Unstoppable, with Denzel Washington, a true story about a run away train in Pennsylvania.  I enjoyed it and was pulled in to the tension of the train, of whether it could be stopped.  It was directed by the late Tony Scott of Top Gun fame and had the same kind of action and tension.  He was a master.  We went to bed around 11:15.

Today, we are having the Burlingame's over for dinner, a buddy of Tom's from the neighborhood who also happens to work at USA-800.  And this morning, we are going off to the City Market in downtown KC, much like the West Side Market in Cleveland.  We went last year at this time and all of us had fun shopping the vegetable stands and ethnic markets.