Whatta Summer!

OK, it's nearly been 2 months since I've blogged here. The best part of the summer of course was Nic and Gina's wedding on August 28, it was beautiful! They are beautiful and so much in love. We spent 2 days in Manti, Utah, a quaint little town in central Utah that is off the beaten track. It has a beautiful, old, granite temple there, and that's where they were married. All of David's siblings were there, most of mine also. Gina's family was also well represented, nearly all of her aunts and uncles made the trip too. People come from Colorado, Utah, Nevada and Arizona to be there with them, with Heather and Jared flying in from New Hampshire. We even had friends drive all the way from Canada! Joining the family's together makes the name game quite interesting- Gina's father and brother are David's, one of her aunts is Elaine, they both have aunt Debbie's, two Tom's, two Tim's, the list goes on. It was wonderful, and most of Gina's immediate family are coming down this weekend for the Open House we're having for them here. My family won't be here, because my nephew Dylan is getting married tomorrow, and they are going up there. I love our family, they are so willing to come and support each other, it's awesome!

Ok, now the hard part. My dear friend Julie Hutchin's father died the same day Nic and Gina were married. His funeral was the day before Mom Farr's memorial, that was a really, really tough weekend. Gene and Barbara Hutchins are like my 2nd parents, when we were in high school I stayed with them all the time. Even when Julie was down at ASU, I would drop in and visit them, I love them so much. Gene was 91 years old I think, and he lived life OUT LOUD! He was an amazing entrepeneur, however you spell that. He was so funny and creative, he loved to travel; he and Barbara have literally been all over the world. Barbara wrote a book about South America in the '70s, and wrote for the Prescott Courier for years. It was hard to say goodbye to him.

The week after the funerals, another friend, Larissa Castilleja, was hit and killed while riding her bicycle in Kingman. One minute here, vibrant and alive, the next she's gone, because of a hit-and-run driver. So, frankly, I've been in mourning for the past couple months, trying to say goodbye to people that were so important in my life, while also celebrating a new marriage and trying not to be too morose. It's taken a while to be able to even write about it.

Anyhow, what I've gotten out of all of this is to CELEBRATE LIFE! I want to live out loud, do the things I've always wanted to do, and not be afraid to be myself. Here's to wonderful tomorrows!