Hawkins Family Reunion

We had the Hawkins Family Reunion a couple of weeks ago.  They wanted to come here so that mom could participate and not have to travel. Mom has an official diagnosis of Visual Alzheimer's. It has been hard to accept that life is not going to go the way we hoped and planned.  We were all so excited for mom and dad to be able to travel and enjoy time together after Dante and Alexys moved out.  Dad has had to accept that his health isn't what he wanted and he can't hike anymore, which was a huge blow! And mom and dad have had to accept mom's diagnosis and all the struggles that come along with it. It breaks my heart to see mom and dad have to deal with this. They continue to have hard curveballs thrown their way.  They work so hard to plan and prepare and then they don't get to enjoy the fruits of their labor. It's a hard pill to swallow.  They continue to amaze me with their resilience, positive attitude and faith. Hopefully they have lots of good times and experiences in their future, but they will also have a lot of challenges. Us kids are ready and willing to help and support them!

The reunion kicked off with a barbecue in Provo Canyon.  Hallee wanted to stay home, but decided to come along. I was so glad she came, but she wasn't so sure when we stayed way too late and kept visiting when she was ready to go home.

Hallee was happy that she got to spend time with grandpa and grandma. 

I was so excited to Matt and Lori came up for it. It was much easier to say goodbye to them on the cruise knowing that we would see them the next week.

Caitlyn drove up after work and joined us.  She was happy to see Matt and Lori! I loved showing my girls off to the family. 

Wyatt was sad that he missed the reunion because he had camp.  He wanted to see Ron, he loved getting to know him during the last reunion.

Friday night we all went to Lindsey's house for dinner and fun activities.

Hallee was so happy that Tessa came that night.

They set up a shop in their playhouse and Matt was their best customer. 

Tasha did a game where they asked all the siblings questions, like who was on the phone the most growing up.  They all agreed on most of the answers.

It was fun to hear their answers and laugh a lot!

Then they brought up the spouses and asked them questions about each other.

Mom and dad agreed on some of the answers, but it was funny to see them disagree on a few.

Lindy came with us on Friday and Saturday.  Everyone agrees that she looks like Tiff! Lucky girl!

Ron played old videos from Christmas Eve and the video of grandma from the family reunion in 2013.  I loved hearing her voice again. It was fun to hear her say that she hopes we will stay close and get together.  I'm sure grandma and grandpa were so happy to see us all gathered together.

Pam talked for a bit, she talked about how good looking we all are, ha! She talked about what a blessing it is to have such a close family that we can all rely on. She talked about how much it means to her to talk to me often and how that helps her feel close to Chris.  I feel the same way, I feel like I have Chris back for a minute when I talk to her. 

Don pulled me aside before we left that night and gave me this envelope.  He kept trying to talk, but kept crying so it took him a minute to get it out. He said, " I have felt Chris tell me that he wants me to give this to you." Then he cried again and said, "he used to say, just do it dad and this is what he has been saying to me." Then he walked away crying. There was $1000 in the envelope! That meant so much to me.  I texted them this response, "Thank you so much for your generous gift. Not only does it help so much financially, but it makes me feel so loved and seen! Chris was always so patient and worried about me when I was anxious (back when we didn't even know what anxiety was). To think that he is still helping me is the best gift you could have given me.  Thank you for keeping me connected to him and supporting us through everything. We love you guys."  I will keep that envelope forever, that means so much to me.

On Saturday we went to Brick Oven for lunch.  We weren't going to go, but after everyone's generosity Keith and I decided to go.  I have so many emotions with so many people giving us money and helping us out financially.  Sometimes I feel really bad.  Everyone works so hard for their money and life is so expensive for everyone right now. I feel guilty taking other peoples hard earned money.  Mostly I just feel pure love and gratitude though.  I can't believe how much people love us and how much they are willing to sacrifice for us. I'm crying while I type this, I just get overcome with love and gratitude. Not only do I feel loved by my family, but I feel loved by my Heavenly Father. I feel His love through my family.   I hope and pray that everyone will be blessed for their generosity to us and that we will be able to pay it forward soon!

Don pulled Mel aside at Lindsey's and gave her an envelope and said it was for Amarie and Caitlyn. He said, "tell them to work hard in school, but have fun too." I guess Caitlyn and Mel talked to Don in the canyon about college and they talked about how expensive it was.  He gave Amarie and Caitlyn $150 each. Caitlyn cried when I gave it to her. Then I told her about his gift to me from Chris and we both cried. Pam and Don have always been very generous people. They give so much and they never want to talk about it, they don't want any thanks, they just want to help people. 

We were in a crowded room at Brick Oven on three different tables.  I'm glad I got to sit by Pam and Lori.  We are such a big group, so it's hard to visit with everyone, but I think I got the opportunity to visit with almost everyone.  It was a fun few days. I'm sure grateful to be part of the Hawkins family. I hope grandma and grandpa got to see us all gathered together and hear us talk about how much we love and miss them.