Ben and I stayed up until 2 and cleaned up a bit after everyone went home. I was so ready for bed after many eventful days and was glad to have a three-day weekend. I set my alarm for 10 but ended up actually getting up around 10:30. I used the restroom, got some different clothes on and came out into the living room to eat some grapes, half a bagel and some yogurt. I watched part of the Oregon Duck's bowl game.
Ben finally got up, ate some breakfast and loitered around for a little bit. I asked him if he wanted to go do a few things that afternoon and he said sure. We put different clothes on while I grabbed some stuff to shove into the Escape. I had planned on going to the cemetery to visit my grandparents and great grandparents, get a cache and drop off stuff at my sibling's houses. I was tired of their junk sitting in our house.
Our first stop was in Tumwater at the cemetery to visit and swap out some of the decorations. I wanted to come sooner, but the holidays, weather and other unforeseen things had happened in the last few weeks. I decided that I wanted to spend the first day of the new year with them. Ben and I rolled up and noticed there were a lot of flowers, mini wreaths, mini-Christmas trees and other personal affects. It was the most I've ever seen, and I have been coming to this cemetery for over five years now.
I took down the fall decorations and put them into the Escape. I grabbed the wreath I had made five years ago, specifically for my winter/Christmas cemetery visits, and place it on their headstone. We wished them a happy new year and wished they were still around to enjoy happy family times and milestones. This year they were going to miss some big ones and it absolutely kills me because they would have LOVED to be here for those.
We shared a few things of what had been happening and the things that we were looking forward to. It was quite chilly outside when the wind blew but I was sure glad it wasn't raining. I told them that I would be back for Valentine's Day with a new update on our busy lives. We told them that we loved them and missed them terribly.
We got in the Escape and drove the short distance over to where my great grandparents were. I wished them a happy 2024 and could not believe they've both been gone for over 30 years. They've missed literally everything since I was 11 years old. We would be completely different people since the last time we saw them. Time is crazy.
We got back into the Escape and drove over to the Tumwater Historical Park and did the five waypoint Adventure Lab (and the bonus cache) Bonus Cache - Tumwater Historical Park (GCAAWF1). I also checked on my WSGA cache that was also in the park. The bonus cache was a short walk away under I-5 and at the first dock. This one was much easier to find than the other dock further down the trail. We got our names on it, got a few pictures and walked back to the park. I was so happy it didn't rain because it was nice to get outside on a day off and get some fresh air and exercise.
We drove home, ate leftovers (I had chili and Ben had a taco salad), we washed laundry, watched the Winter Classic. The Kraken defeated the Golden Knights in a 3-0 shutout, which was the first shutout in Winter Classic history.
It would have been awesome to go to the game, but it wasn't in the cards for us, unfortunately. I did some blogging, moved a shelf, watched some TV, listened to podcasts, did the dishes, vacuumed, looked at recipes for the upcoming week and then got ready for bed. I was definitely not ready to go back to work the next day but at least it was a short work week!
Next Adventure: Twin Cities Cache Machine
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