monday montage - week of 3/17

This past week was perfection and my heart was very happy, all week and all weekend long. This Monday Montage is, by far, the one that I am most excited to share.
Here we go!
First up, Jason started his gig as Coach Ehrhardt at Assumption High School on Monday. Woot! This picture is from Cincinnati when he had to pretend to be a pro for ballkid tryouts. Makes me laugh. :)

On Tuesday, I got another email with a picture of Jason and I's future puppy. He's getting bigger! I think he looks like an old man in this picture. :)

Jason and I went on a hike at Black Hawk State Park in Rock Island on Saturday morning. 

This huge tree had seen better days.

And then we went to the QC Mallards hockey game on Saturday night. That was.... interesting. It was fun but hockey fans are of a different breed (kind of like NASCAR fans). I wanted to see a big fight, but to no avail.

Sunday morning started off with our ritual - a trip to Target. And we wouldn't have a Sunday morning 

 without Starbucks either. Clearly, I felt the need for a Venti. :)

And now my FAVORITE part of the weekend. I got to spend Sunday afternoon with my mom and grandma to see Jim McDonough. He's a pianist from Monticello and does local concerts. He attracts a lot of elderly people who enjoy piano and good, classical music. It's become a tradition for grandma, mom and I - and I wouldn't have it any other way. His Christmas show gets two thumbs up, too!

The reason I love his shows the most is because I can SEE the joy it brings to my grandma and my mom. My grandma is a great piano player. She can't read music and plays by ear, and she's incredible. So much talent in the family because my mom can plunk around on the piano, too!

Grandma getting her CD signed. This is her 10th Jim McDonough CD I'm pretty sure. :)

And this pictures makes my heart so happy. What a great afternoon!

I hope you all have a GREAT week!

monday montage - week of 3/10

Before I start this week's Monday Montage, I want to give a special shout to my dear friend Hattie. She lost her grandpa yesterday afternoon and will be celebrating his life over the next couple of days. The way Hattie talked about her grandpa during our time at UNI always made me smile, laugh and wish I could meet him. I think Hattie said it best in her Facebook status today. Love you, Hattie!

And now back to what I've been up to this past week.

Had a "healthy" potluck at work so I made a healthy fruit pizza. Yummy!

In case you missed Jason and I's Dunkin Donuts extravaganza, you can find it here.

We went to Assumption to scope out Coach Ehrhardt's new stompin' grounds. Found this inside
the grill at the concessions. You sneaky little Catholic kids.

Got to spend my Saturday furniture shopping with mom to get new furniture
for their basement. This was just one of MANY that we saw.

Hope you all had a great Monday!

a tribute to a great man

This post is a tribute.
Jason's grandpa passed away Tuesday out of nowhere. It broke the hearts of Jason's whole family and everyone his grandpa had touched, myself included. Dealing with the death of a family member, even though it may not have been mine, is never easy. Unfortunately, I've been through quite a few. But for Jason, a different story. The first.
When I got the phone call on Tuesday from Jason I was driving back to Davenport from Cedar Rapids. I was shocked and didn't even have words. Our conversation ended pretty quickly because I just was dumbfounded. Nobody expected it. 
I still had an hour left in the car and I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes. Just knowing the pain that Jason and his family would soon be going through. My best friend since high school, Tonya, and I had scheduled a phone call to catch up and so I called her, as promised, and we "caught up" - she is the best at talking about tough things with me. 
I worked a half-day Thursday and then Jason and I headed to Independence to be with family and to attend the visitation. Friday morning was the funeral. There is always one part at the funeral that makes me lose it. It's when they roll the casket down the aisle at the end of the service. So, per usual, I was crying and trying to control myself before we had to walk down the aisle behind him.
Makes me tear up just reliving it.
So where's the "good" in all of this? It's hard to pick out the good in such a terrible situation. But I truly believe that a funeral on Valentine's Day is such a huge sign of love. Don't get me wrong, no funeral is "good" but this is about as good as a funeral could get (although yes, not really good at all). The love he had for everyone in that funeral home Thursday night. The love he had for everyone in the church Friday morning. The love he had for all the family that was sitting in his living room Friday afternoon afternoon.
His love was unending, and I was fortunate enough to have met him and spend time with him over the past year and a half. His wife, kids, grandkids and great-grandkids are all very lucky. To spend time with Jason's family over the past couple days and meet more of his extended family, there was love everywhere.
That's the theme of Valentine's Day. LOVE. It's not all about couples, romance, roses and nice dinners. It's truly about what love all encompasses. Family, friends, support and happiness. 
So this year's Valentine's Day was for you, Don Cottrell. And I cannot thank you enough for teaching your grandson the values of a great man.

monday montage - week of 2/3

And I now bring to you, this week's Monday Montage!

I got home from work after a long day/night of meetings and
I had this waiting for me. It's the little things. :)

Jason and I are part of an exclusive club (joking) but we got these exclusive,
limited time only, Oreos mailed to us. So we taste tested like champs.

Over the weekend, Jason and I went to my parents house to spend time with my family. We got to enjoy supper at the Ox Yoke (which is always delicious) and then we went back home to drinks and games. Taught my parents beer pong and that was a riot. Especially in a fancy kitchen. Can't say I've ever played beer pong on granite countertops with water splashing on stainless steal appliances.

I guess it was a little step up from the ol' 7917 joint back in CF.

And then after a long weekend of activities, this followed:

This boy fell asleep last night at 8:30 while I was watching the Kardashians.

Have a great week!