My 3rd Mom

I changed families for the thrid and las time almost a month ago now. I live with Graciela, the mom of Miguel (who is the other half of my exchange living in the States) and with her niece, Eugenia, who works as a dentist down the road.
It´s really nice living with them. We don´t eat lunch together, but Graciela and I go to the gym together and we go to Corrientes and hang out for dinner the three of us.
Graciela is a really involved mom. Lately, she´s been taking me to get to know all the little towns in Corrientes.
We went to Saladas, her home town, and met ALL of the family. She is one of 6 siblings and I met all but one of the siblings and their families. Her mom is a great cook and had me eating delicious food all weekend! The house that Graciela grew up in is also beautiful. It´s in the old Spanish colonial style huge tall rooms that all connect and open up into a central garden with all different types of fruit trees and places to sit. It as a really beautiful visit.
Growing up with a mom who´s crazy about cooking, I think Graciela realy caught the bug. Last Sunday instead ofeating asado, we went on a day trip to a little town in Corrientes: Itati; famous for having a virgin who did miracles. People walk there every year to go to masses for the virgin which take place in a gigantic cathedral with gorgeous stained glass windows.
We had looked at the church and were talking a stroll down to the river when GRaciela saw the grapefruit tree. She culdn´t get over how full the tree was with ripe grapefruits.
-It´s such a shame that no one eats those grapefruits
She kept on saying. Luckily for her, there was a woman standing n the other side of her wall, watching us.
-do you by anychance have a hook and some plastic bags?
Asked Graciela, appoaching the woman and the fruit tree. Well, the woman was happy to help us get the grapefruit don. I climbed up on the wall and knocked them down while everyone ran around picking them up. We finished with three bags of big ripe grapefruit.
We continued our walk to the river without another interruption until Graciela looked over into the graden of another house and saw none other than a little tree full of kumquats! KUMQUATS. It was such a shame, such a shame that no one was eating them that Graciela went up to the gate of the house and clapped her hands to get the owner to come out.
- Will you give us some of your kumquats?
She asked the lttle old man who attended the gate alongside a big grey dog. The man was happy to share his harvest and ushered us into the house, gave us bags, and followed us out to the tree,talking all the time as we picked kumquats about his dogs, his chickens, his childhood in Buenos Aires. When we had two bags full of kumquats (although we had made no impact on the numbers still on the tree) he brought us back to the house to show us the room her was making for when his kids visited, the wood stove he had had installed, and even brought us intot he kitchen to try some dulce de kumquat.
So when we finally left Itati, we had 5 bags of fresh fruit, a new friend in the little town, and a good story to tel you all about how serious Graciela is about making the best out of any fruit tree she sees!
I´m reall yhaving a good time in this last family :)