This is the first big trip that we have taken as a family both since Dave passed and for about a year. It has it’s moments where it doesn’t feel real that Dave is gone. Even though he is not physically here.
To start our trip we went to Edmonton and stayed over night in a hotel. We did this for the pool and that we haven’t stayed in a hotel for a long time and the kids had been asking to do that. It was far busier than I expected it to be in the middle of the week, but the kids still enjoyed the experience and it was a nice stay.
Something to keep in mind when visiting hotels post-covid is that they really have changed how they serve their breakfasts in the morning. It’s no longer self serve, but more restaurant style, but without the staff to support this type of meal. We stuck to muffins and yogurt over the typical waffles we would normally eat.
We arrived at our actual destination in the afternoon on Thursday and had a visit with Grandma Mary and Papa Frank. It was nice to be out of the car. The kids played with blocks which is a standard thing they play with when we are here. There are also kittens (4) for the kids to play with which is very nice as the kids love cats. The kittens are about 8 weeks old and about ready to be given away. At least that batch. They all look like our cat Zane. They are all girls. Moma cat is very friendly too and doesn’t panic about her kittens being played with or pet by humans.
We are staying at Alysha’s where there are an additional 3 kittens. These ones are all different colors and a bit younger than those at Grandmas. They are still really friendly and have gotten more playful during our stay. I would take the whitish one home if we lived closer. Unfortunately, it’s just too far and they aren’t quite ready to leave mom yet. Moma (Shittykitty – yep that’s her name) is very good with her kittens and is proud of them. She encourages them to come out of hiding when we go into the shed that is her home. Both mother cats aren’t much out of kittenhood themselves.
On Friday before going down to the Wapiti River I got my first tattoo. Something that Dave and I had talked about getting together, but we couldn’t figure out what to get and then he got sick so we didn’t get to do that before he passed. I wanted something simple that represented the kids and I. Anything that I got related to the zodiac or astrology that represented me also represents Dave as we were only 3 days and two years apart in age.
Our trip down the the Wapiti River was very good and the kids enjoyed playing with the cousins they typically only see in the summer. Their fire pit from last year was still there this year so they were able to have a fire. They then built a new one for another fire – the other one was too full.
It was nice to be away from technology and screens for three days. We all played in the river and then visited with family and friends. It was a bit of a subdued trip as there weren’t as many people there as in previous years for many reasons, none covid related. That didn’t stop everyone from having fun though. The weather cooperated for the most part giving us some coolish muggy weather while we were down there.
It was a year where there were multiple 10s birthdays. The oldest was Papa Frank who will turn 90 this fall. The youngest twin girls who turn 10 in August. In between there was 80, 70, 60, 50 and multiple 40 birthdays that were celebrated. Unfortunately cameras were forgotten so pictures were not taken. Also, the smoke was a bit bad so one of the birthday people had to leave early. Shirts were made up with the date of birth for those celebrating with some of the oldest including says about being vintage with original parts.
With it being so very dry this year and hot the wasps, horseflys and other biting bugs were in abundance. Though the ants were not as bad as in previous years. Seth got stung and bit at the same time so there was a bit of a panic around that. Mostly because we didn’t know what was going on and the kids though he got hit by a golf ball by accident. Turns out they found a very large wasp nest and had disturbed it a bit. The bite was a horsefly (on his belly) and the sting was a was (in his hair). It scared him really good, but in the end he was fine.
Tuesday we held a small memorial for Dave and fired off some ash filled shotgun shells in the field where Dave last shot a gun here. Thank you to Uncle Rick for loading the shells. Even Grandma shot off a shell which was really good. There are some really good images that were taken and videos that will be shared a bit later once some have been edited.
Some of the videos can be seen here https://photos.app.goo.gl/z3SDFmVfpfeqbJC48
Funny story about the ashes. I brought them in a mason jar as I only brought about a third of what I had. The jar was unlabeled and in our shoe bin (the only place I really had to put it). The kids used that jar as their Dad all weekened and he sat on a table down at the Wapiti River. He was brought in every night to sit on a ledge where the kids slept. Dax said that even though dad wasn’t here he was still here as we had his ashes. It was a very good way to look at things and made everyone smile.
Now to the funny part. Again the jar was initially unlabeled. I had a feeling that I should label the jar, not that anyone would try to get into it, but more so that they knew what was in it. So I found a white paint marker and wrote Dave’s name on the jar and put it on Alysha’s table. When she saw the jar with the name on it she laughed and shared that when she saw it in the shoes she thought it was ice tea mix. Travis then piped up that he thought it was gravy mix. We all had a great laugh as that was how Dave would have wanted us to remember or be around his ashes. Of course not thinking he is food, but not being sad that he was gone. He would have been laughing along with us.
Down at the Wapiti River this story was told a few times. At one point another person said that they thought the jar was full of sugar. Again we laughed. It wasn’t sad, but something that Dave would have found absolutely hilarious if he was still alive. We made sure to make the label a bit darker so that no one mistaked the jar again. Still funny though and something that will continue to be funny. The way in which it lightened the mood and the way the kids used the jar as a representative of their dad during their first real trip without him has been very positive.
Even though it is sad to say goodbye it helps to move forward. That we were able to laugh about something that could have been very sad was exactly how Dave would have wanted us to be. I felt him with us during our goodbye. He was happy that we were able to come together and do something in a fun way to honor his memory.
The Adams-Schlag Family 