Tita

On July 7, 2010 my Tita passed away with the family that she loved and created by her side. We lost a matriarch/mother/grandmother/great-grandmother; Heaven gained an angel. While there are many details I'd like to share, I just can't. Words cannot express the love that I have/had for her. It has been two weeks that she's passed, and yet this is the first I can write of it. The post following this is a slideshow tribute to her. Below is what I read at her Rosary/Viewing.

Good evening. On behalf of the Trujillo family, I’d like to thank you for coming to pay your respects and support our family during this difficult time.

I am Kathy Ponce Kavanagh, Maria’s granddaughter, and mother to 2 of her great-grandchildren.

To say that I’ve lost just a Grandmother is a complete understatement. In some families, a grandmother is a person whom you solely visit on the holidays. That is not the case with this family.

I had the unique opportunity to be watched by my Tita when I was little. I remember her always cleaning, doing laundry, and when it was done, we’d get to go out to just about every store known to man. Swapmeets, Kmart, Zody’s, Sir George’s buffet – it didn’t matter. She liked to go out and take us along.

I have fond memories of that time; her letting me get a bag of M&M’s and open them and begin eating them before we’d pay. Looking back from a parent perspective, I’m not sure if she’d do it to keep me quiet, or to make me happy. Either way, I’ll remember it fondly. When I’d wake up for a nap, she’d have my lunch ready. I could do just about anything I wanted. I was always happy, clean, not always matching, and shiny from the cream she’d put on my face.

My Tita was always very giving – she’d buy small gifts for everyone. Whether it was socks, shirts, ribbons, bows, and the infamous ruffled chonies. I will say this much, the woman had a thing for ruffles.

Tita would come to any event you’d invite her to; birthday parties, t-ball/softball/soccer games, school concerts. She’d go, sit, and smile.

As we got older we got to go and do more places with her. We would go to Disneyland – rain or shine- and to Vegas. I clearly remember in Vegas that we’d be in line for the buffet and Tita would have her cane in one hand, and a Corona in the other. At times she’d focus solely on the Corona, and leave the cane behind.

In 2002, everything changed as my Tita suffered a stroke that left her right side paralyzed. Looking back, I’m not sure just how hard this was for her. She had to learn to do everything with her left hand, and get used to others helping her.

It was at this time that I witnessed first hand the sacrifices my Nino Raul, Uncle Jimmy, Mom, and the rest of my Aunts and Uncles had to make. They will tell you that they would do it all over again in a heartbeat, but I’m not sure if anyone else knew of their sacrifices.

Tita’s stroke never stopped her, or us, from enjoying life. She still continued doing things with us and enjoying our company. She still went to Disneyland, and Vegas, but it just took more planning and more work. It was these times that the family took advantage of the time we had left with her.

I’ve been told by various family members that my Tita was a tad bit bossy, very decisive, and ruled with an iron hand. I never personally experienced this as her grandchildren could do just about anything they wanted. Her grandchildren could do no wrong, and her great-grandchildren could do just about anything short of burning down the house. They could play with fake fruit, push her around in the wheelchair, anything they wanted. She enjoyed having them at her house and making her laugh.

My Tita is sorry she could not be here. She’s sorry that she will not see anymore grandchildren get married, witnessing births, or enjoy any more birthdays, but she has given us all she’s had. It is now time to take her example of adapting and enjoying life to its’ fullest.

I, like many of you, will miss my Tita. But remember you will not have to look far. You can look at any one of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren and see her. In us you can see her loves of entertaining others, cooking, and enjoying the daily chiseee3me. We are her legacy and we will carry her spirit on.

Tita- te quiero mucho, and nunca te olvidera.

4th of July

This year we opted not to go to the parade. We decided to kick back and take it easy.

We began the day at Doug & Heidi's swimming. Lexi attempted to take a nap, while I watched my dad attempted to play bartender. Most people bartend in the kitchen, my dad decided to make his masterpiece in the garage.

Miss Lexi Kendyl getting ready to swim

Mr. Jeffrey James ready for the pool. The only thing he is missing is nose plugs : 0

Lexi in the pool

After swimming we went to my Tita's house to have tacos made by my Nino and Polo. I think we were the only people eating tacos on 4th of July. We had a great time. My Aunt Sonia brought her LCR game, which we made into a drinking game.

Everyone was there. My Tita was there in the middle of it, having fun, and watching her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren have a grand ol' time at her house.

We ended the night by doing fireworks. Some people in surrounding neighborhoods were doing the major illegal fireworks, you know the ones. The ones that rival Disneyland. Alexis saw one that was so big that it dumped in my parents yard. That was it, she wanted no part from that point on. While Lexi may not have enjoyed the fireworks, my mom did.

She really enjoyed the sparklers. Here she is with Jeffrey enjoying the sparklers.

All in all, it was a great 4th of July. We were surrounded by family and friends, all while having a blast.

Stitchy in da house!!!

The kids have wanted to have Stitch visit for the longest time.

We often give Stitch aka Stitchyroni, Chi-Chi, a hard time. Let's put it this way... if he was a boxer, he'd be in the heavyweight division. Also, since I've moved out of the house, he's become soft - he has a cat-like attitude about him. Aaron put it best... "Fozzy knows his place. He sleeps at the foot of the bed... because he knows he's a dog. Stitch sleeps on my pillow because he thinks he's ME!"

Everytime we would try to 'kidnap' him, but my mom and dad would force us to take him out of the car.

Here are some of the reasons we could not take him:

'He'll melt' - okay true, but we have the a/c

'Someone will take him' - if he doesn't leave the a/c we don't have to worry about him.

'He'll miss us' - quite possibly the only valid point, but he's still eating and playing.

'You know Kristina will cry about it.' True, but if she's on her Honeymoon she'll never know.

Once Kristina got married, they were outvoted. Stitchy has been visiting. He has not been his usual self...

He loves it! He has been playing and acting puppy like. He loves the kids and has gone quite a few places. He loves sleeping in Jeffrey's room because he's realized that it's the coolest room in the house. He'll go in Lexi's room till she's asleep, paw his way out when she's asleep, and then move to Jeffrey's room till he's down.

It's been a lot of fun. The best part about Stitch is that he's great at posing. The only problem is I may have created a monster.

Perhaps Aaron will let us have another one?