Day 31 - Monday, January 31, 2011

Day 31 - Monday, January 31, 2011 - Found this in a notepad that I had grabbed to make a list. Written by Liam, whose football jersey is number 24 and whose password, and sense of self, apparently, is awesomeness.

Day 30 - Saturday, January 30, 2011

Day 30 - Saturday, January 30, 2011 - A rare sleepover with west side cousin Allison. PJs, Pillow Pets, popcorn. Good times.

Day 29 - Saturday, January 29, 2011

Day 29 - Saturday, January 29, 2011 - The Garden of Prayer at White Chapel Cemetery is where my dad is laid to rest. Despite not yet having a grave marker, my sister was able to locate his grave by traipsing through the foot of snow, guided by my Aunt Doris via cell phone, whose husband (my dad's brother Uncle Carie) is laid to rest right by my dad. I made snow angels next to the statue, while my sister looked for the grave site. When she found it, we knew we were at the right site because of the three white floral arrangements placed upon it, with the ribbons "Our Poppa", "Best Dad Ever", and "My Guy".

Do not stand at my grave and weep.

Day 28 - Friday, January 28, 2011

Day 28 - Friday, January 28, 2011 - Happy 40th Birthday to Kid Rock and Amy!!

Day 27 - Thursday, January 27, 2011

Day 27 - Thursday, January 27, 2011 - The Shellnut ladies lunching at Red Lobster. Denise, my mom, me, Vicki, Shawn, Aunt Erma, Tina, Aunt Thelma, Aunt Doris. Another circle of love.

Day 26 - Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Day 26 - Wednesday, January 26, 2011 - Who needs toys when there's a cardboard box around?

Day 25 - Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Day 25 - Tuesday, January 25, 2011 - After two years of saying she would NEVER wear high heels because "I'm too tall to wear high heels!" She has finally agreed that even tall girls can wear them. I'm so proud of her!

Day 24 - Monday, January 24, 2011

Day 24 - Monday, January 24, 2011 - So much love and support. It's been less than a week since my dad passed away and I've been lifted by all of the words of encouragement. Thank you.

Day 23 - Sunday, January 23, 2011

Day 23 - Sunday, January 23, 2011 - Owen's new favorite toy, rag doll Ash. Available in stores soon.

Day 22 - Saturday, January 22, 2011

Day 22 - Saturday, January 22, 2011 - A winning Pinochle hand was one of the many little treasures stashed in this gorgeous arrangement that my cousin Sara put together.

Day 21 - Friday, January 21, 2011

Day 21 - Friday, January 21, 2011 - As the funeral procession approached the chapel at the cemetery, firefighters from the Hazel Park Fire Department were standing guard in front of a ladder truck outside of the chapel. (On the coldest day ever!) After holding it together pretty well through out the funeral, this sight caused me to lose it. What an honor.

Day 20 - Thursday, January 20, 2011

Day 20 - Thursday, January 20, 2011 - All dressed up for my dad's visitation. Surrounding my mom with love. Smiling through our sorrow. Game faces, everyone. Game faces.

Day 19 - Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Day 19 - Wednesday, January 19, 2011 - The love has started to pour in with this gorgeous arrangement from Kevin's family.

Day 18 - Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Day 18 - Tuesday, January 18, 2011 - Liam's Resolutions of 2011: Promise #1 - I promise to get better at my handwriting. Promise #2 - I promise to work harder in wrestling. #3 - I promise to spend more time with my grandpa. :(

Day 17 - Monday, January 17, 2011

Day 17 - Monday, January 17, 2011 - My mom called me this afternoon to tell me that the hospice nurse said that my dad only had two hours to two days. After packing an overnight bag and collecting all of the kids from three different schools and driving for what seemed like days, I arrived at their house about 15 minutes after he passed away. These beautiful flowers were blooming at his bedside as we all said our goodbyes, shed our tears, and sang one of his favorite hymns, It Is Well With My Soul.

Day 16 - Sunday, January 16, 2011

Day 16 - Sunday, January 16, 2011 - Owen's first big homework project...a timeline of his life on a green poster board (his favorite color). He helped adhere the photos and the letters, which explains why they are not perfectly aligned, and he insisted on drawing a candy basket (since one of the photos is from a past Halloween). I love that he added his own little touches and wanted to be involved in the process.

Day 15 - Saturday, January 15, 2011

Day 15 - Saturday, January 15, 2011 - I love it when a plan comes together. Last minute tickets to Kid Rock's 40th Birthday Party concert. So. Much. Fun.

Day 14 - Friday, January 14, 2011

Day 14 - Friday, January 14, 2011 - Dinner and games at my parents' house with Jerry and Sara. Sequence is definitely a family favorite.

Day 13 - Thursday, January 13, 2011

Day 13 - Thursday, January 13, 2011 - Liam's unacceptable behavior report from the bus yesterday is simply unacceptable. There's a first time for everything. Let's just hope this is the last.

Day 12 - Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Day 12 - Wednesday, January 12, 2011 - When I asked Owen to set the table for dinner tonight, he insisted on "making it special". He wouldn't let anyone come to the table until it was "ready". And by ready, that meant that he had wrapped both a knife and a fork inside a paper napkin and fashioned napkin rings out of rubber bands and placed them on top of every plate.