Hundreds of Thank you's to send

HI again,
In the hours after Stella passed away, we started notifying people. We had put it on Facebook & I posted it on the blog. As strange as it seemed, it was the easiest way to communicate to the most people in the quickest manner.  It was much harder having to call family & friends to tell them directly. The questions and explanations I had to give (over the phone) were especially hard for me. Having had an hour or so of sleep in the prior 2 days, I was really drained.
I already knew that Kathleen & Dominick have amazing friends, but in the next few days,  their kindness was remarkable! They were right there offering to help, bringing us food, lending a hand. Breakfast arrived first from Dom's Assistant & dear, family friend, Antonella. In the next several days, more food, flowers, cards, calls & visits kept coming.
We have incredible family members as well, calling & asking what they could do.  
First thing, Saturday morning, Jim, Dom, Joe, Rich & I went to the Branch Funeral Home. We had to finalize all of the arrangements. It was so difficult for me to make these kinds of decisions. I kept thinking it wasn't really happening. I kept thinking she was going to walk in and tell us she wasn't gone yet. I walked around the "casket room" feeling so overwhelmed. I walked away because it was just too much to bear. When they asked me my opinion, I tried to think about what Stella would want, but I couldn't focus. Thankfully, the boys all agreed on a specific one & I just said, "Okay."
The decision to have Stella buried with our parents was the perfect choice. She would not be alone. I felt a great deal of comfort in that.
John, the Funeral Director, was so understanding and listened to each one of our requests. He offered his own suggestions based on years of experience. After spending over 3 hours with John, every single detail was put together, exactly as Stella would have wanted it. We were all exhausted; emotionally drained. John, his brother Paul and their father, Henry made us feel like their family. They even had food delivered for us to take home. I could not believe they thought of that, too. 
They never made us feel rushed and made every request we had fit into the service.
When we got back to Dom's, there were family members there. Our Cousins, Mino and Maria brought over tons of food, as did Tracy's sister, Joyce and her daughter, Adrienne. We had deliveries of fruit baskets from Natalie's parents, and many other friends sent food, flowers, and desserts, also.
As more & more people heard the news, the phone was ringing off the hook. Our cousins from Italy called & expressed their condolences. We started a notebook so we wouldn't forget all of the kindness that was bestowed on our family. I am hoping that there isn't a single person that "falls through the cracks" and doesn't receive a much appreciated "thank you". I pray that I can reach out to every single person who gave us comfort during this very difficult time.
For the next day and a half, we all walked around aimlessly. We tried to find things to do to pass the time. It was so hard not having Stella there with us. It was still so hard to believe this was reality. We comforted each other all day. When one of us was breaking down, there was always someone right there to hold onto. Thank you for reading this. I will write again soon.
Love, Grace