BY KATE WINQUIST
kate@yoursouthwest.com

Where have the last two months gone? It seems crazy to think that I’ve been in Kindersley for two months now.

When I moved up on Canada Day, all I had to bring was a suitcase full of clothes, bedding, my computer and some other office essentials. I was lucky enough to find a completely furnished condo to rent. It had everything I needed right down to the pots and pans. The only thing that was missing was the rest of my family!

I have talked about my parents, grandparents, uncles and siblings in this space. I believe I mentioned my daughter. But, I have neglected to tell you about the men in my life.

I’ve been happily married to my husband Robert for 20 years, and we’ve been together for almost 25. When we first started dating, he was working on the rigs. He worked three weeks in and one week off at that time, so we didn’t get to spend too much time together, but as romance bloomed and things got more serious, we decided to buy a house together in the spring of 1997.

We were fortunate that the rig he was on worked mostly in the southwest area, so he was home every day (or night), depending on his shift.

Wedding bells rang for us on September 16, 2000. When we picked the date, I had to figure out when his week off fell. I booked the church and the hall and had everything in order except for one thing. As the day got closer, we realized that September 16 was the end of his week off, not the start. So technically, we should have been married on September 9. Everything worked out fine. It did cut the honeymoon down by one day!

We welcomed our first child into the world on June 14, 2002. A bouncing baby boy, Devin Carl, who weighed an impressive 9 lbs 5 oz. Being first-time parents, we had no idea what we had gotten ourselves into. Even though we were in our thirties, nothing prepares you for parenthood. Nothing except this little person that is relying on you for everything!

Two years later, we were blessed with another baby boy. Kalen James came into the world on a bit of an adventure. He was born via emergency c-section at the Swift Current Hospital on July 4, 2004. Both Kalen and I were fine, and our family of four was complete, or so we thought!

Robert’s rig ended up going to Alberta, so that meant I was “single-parenting” for a couple of weeks at a time. His shifts got switched to working two weeks in and one week off.

It was the early spring of 2006. I remember feeling extra tired. I never thought much of it, chalking it up to being a working Mom with two little boys. I decided that I better take a pregnancy test, even though I didn’t think that I was. I was wrong! I still remember when Robert came home, and I told him, “We need to talk.” The look on his face was priceless. He thought that I was pulling the pin on him. When I told him that I was pregnant, he laughed and laughed, saying, “Maybe we’ll get our little girl.”

We did get our little girl. Jaidyn Beverley (named after Grandma) was born on October 6, 2006. Now our family was complete!

I can honestly say that those next couple of years are a bit of a blur. Being a rig wife, you get used to being independent. I never really thought that it was extra work with Robert away for weeks at a time, but I sure did appreciate it when he came home! The kids would maul their father, and I got to have a bit of time to myself.

Fast forward to the present day. Our kids are now 18, 16 and not quite 14. Devin graduated this past June. Robert changed careers back in 2016 after the oilpatch slowed down. He works at Nutrien in Shaunavon, driving from Gull Lake every day. We are hopeful that we can sell our house in Gull Lake and Robert can find employment in Kindersley. However, until that time, the boys decided to stay with their Dad, while Jaidyn came to Kindersley with me.

Jaidyn and I went back to Gull Lake last weekend to help with house renovations. She decided to stay for the week to hang with her Dad and brothers. Of course, this left me working away by myself without anyone to look after. I realized that our parental roles had reversed over time. Robert was now the one that was single parenting and holding down a full-time job while I was away, also working. It might not seem to be the ideal situation, but you do what you have to, to make ends meet.

I’ll be heading back to Gull Lake after I’m finished writing this column to help with more house projects and, of course, to be with family.

I hope that we will all be together under one roof soon. I might discover that it doesn’t take absence to make the heart grow fonder after all.