STILLWATER • JULY 2018
Honoring Wendy's Memory in Her Happy Place
Even though it was raining when we arrived, it was easy to see immediately why this was Wendy's Happy Place.
This is the view from the chair where I drank my morning coffee and enjoyed some reading time on the porch of our cozy garage apartment.
It didn't take long to figure out the selection... I first suspected one of the boys, but it turned out to be Sandi :-)
Even the rain couldn't keep them out of the water (Brrrr!)
When the rain stopped for a while that first evening, we had a fun ride on the serene water.
...followed by s'mores! Tom is an expert!
The next day was still rainy and overcast...
...but that didn't dampen Ray's smile showing off his favorite shirt :-)
The rain let up to just sprinkling long enough for all to assemble for the committal of Wendy's ashes.
Just moments later, full sunshine broke out and was gone in 10 seconds. It was the only sun we saw for 2 days.
Cathy did a great job on the grill even though the rain was quickly moving across the lake... (Turns out, I really like white hot dogs!)
Photos of Wendy were passed around and stories were told... Her memory was celebrated with much love and laughter.
The next day, the weather had improved greatly. Jamey and I went for a really nice hike to the fire tower.
Yes, I went all the way to the top – and lasted all of 30 seconds, shaking, before I had to go back down! But what a view from up there!
We returned from our hike just in time to climb aboard and head for a picnic...
Christopher the Fire Marshall got busy making a fire...
...while the rest of us got busy eating and relaxing!
Cathy had much more success with this kite than the 2-handled trick kite...
Sandi tried out her new sail...
...and Tom found the Oreos.... (the expression says "What? I'm not eating the whole box!")
Hidden talents: Tori & Cathy are butterfly whispers! Who knew?
"Behold!" The Fire!
This may or may not have been the last swing before the rope broke. But the crew found another in the boat and restored the fun!
By now I have happily lost track of days. This morning we Jamey and I took a nice long walk to the dam.
Everywhere we went there were mammas and their babies....
Still trying to decide if this was intentional or not....
After lunch most of us piled back on the pontoon boat and headed to Beaver River waaaaaaaay across the reservoir...
From the dock, we hiked in about half a mile....
...to the Norridgewock Hotel bar for a drink...
Wine slushie, anyone?
There was much bat mitten played (and I wondered why my arm hurt so much the next morning)...
...and kitties to be loved! This is Bing the Elder who was rather spry for such an old gentleman... He even caught a butterfly one afternoon!
This is Mia who preferred her affection from afar...
Apparently Gracie also preferred this method of admiration...
During our last evening happy hour, after our trek to Beaver River, we enjoyed a charcuterie and lovely weather.
A man and his drone....
Shout out to Sandi and Cathy who kept us very well fed. It has been a rude awakening to come home and have to cook for ones self....
Many of these amazing Chinese lanterns (thank you, Ray) were launched in Wendy's honor....
Sadly it was time to leave this Happy Place. I can't say enough how welcomed we felt. We were grateful to have been included in celebrating our friend's memory.
I am originally from the Adirondacks, not far away, so Jamey and I headed north to visit with my aunt & uncle.
On the drive north, through some little hamlet, we saw this oddity...
Lunch at the Saranac Hotel – cheers! (BEST chicken sandwich ever)
On to Cochran's Cabins on Lake Kiwassa, our home for the next 2 nights. We were enthusiastically greeted by Lainie...
Didn't take us long to get in the swing of relaxing, enjoying the quiet dock and watching the hummingbirds.
Sunday, we met up with my Uncle Rod and Aunt Glenda for a fun lunch in Lake Placid. Miss you guys!!!
Mirror Lake, Lake Placid...
We spent our final night just outside Syracuse, not far from the airport and found this "Tavern on the River" – complete with fake palm trees. We felt right at home, LOL
And, finally, we were fortunate to have gotten tucked into our favorite spot in the Atlanta Airport – and lucky enough to get a table on the tarmac window – before this rolled in, bringing air traffic to a standstill. The ground crew disappeared for nearly an hour while this storm blew through. We were lucky to have only been delayed 2 hours getting home.
