Family Trip: Bringing Mom Home

May 24-27: Marshfield, Lowell, Boston

Mr. E and I headed back east to my hometown of Marshfield, MA, to meet up with my sister and her family to celebrate and remember my Mom and bring her home to the East Coast. J successfully made it through TSA with the cremains in the lovely (and heavy!) wooden box (her text "Mom made it through security" still makes me giggle), and I managed to do the same with the lobster cracking tools. Good thing I had decided to leave the picks behind, as I'm pretty sure they would have raised far more questions (cluster on right below).

Due to weather issues in the Midwest, our flight was delayed both in and out of ORD, so we got to spend more time in the United Lounge than we had anticipated. We finally arrived at BOS about 2 hours late, picked up the car (Subaru Crosstrek, allowing us to test out one of the potential options for a potential future car purchase to replace our beloved 2004 Honda Civic Hybrid, aka Odo), and stopped for drinks and groceries on our way to Marshfield and the VRBO at 17 Oregon Road that J had found to host us for the weekend. A great house overall with lots of space for the four adults and two kids, but definitely some issues and "quirks" that we discovered over the next few days.

Saturday morning was absolutely beautiful, clear and sunny, and I enjoyed my walk along Route 139 past Mom's old house at 716 Ocean Street and then up to the beach wall for the return journey. J was also up early and sipping her coffee on the stairs overlooking the beach near the VRBO rental. Later in the morning, Mr. E capture an image of his view from the big dining table looking out towards the ocean.

We had two major Mom activities that day. The first was for J and me to make the 1.5ish hour drive north of Boston to the Lowell Cemetery for the internment of her cremains in the family plot to keep company with Grammy and Grampy. We got a bit lost trying to find the main administrative building but finally found our way. J had asked our former rector B for suggestions of something to say at the grave site, so the two of us had several peaceful moments (except for those pesky little flies!) saying our final goodbyes to Mom. The drive home took longer due to several fender benders, but we made it back to Marshfield around 1:30pm. That was just enough time for me to have a snack before heading out to the Percy Walker Pool in nearby Duxbury for the afternoon lap swim hour. This was something that Mom and I always did together when I visited her, so I was really glad to have the opportunity to include this type of remembrance in our weekend.

The second major activity was an informal memorial celebration on the beach with some close relatives from Dad's side of the family, Aunt M and cousins E and R. Our former rector B performed the ceremony and offered communion to J and family and a friend of Mom's from Trinity Church, M, who was very pleased to be included in the gathering. The weather was still sunny and clear but very windy, especially on the beach, and a bit chilly, so we didn't linger too long once the celebration was over.

The group moved back to the house and sat around the outdoor fire pit while Mr. E and I went to the Green Harbor Lobster Pound to pick up our order for dinner that evening. Lobstah! 14 of 'em! Yowza!

We also had a medium sized order of fried clams and sweet potato fries. J had picked up a vege tray and fruit tray from the local grocery store the day before, since they arrived in the early afternoon and had plenty of time to get provisions and settle in. Everyone agreed that although the lobster shells were extremely hard and thus difficult to crack that the sweet taste of the lobster itself was well worth the efforts (so glad J suggested I bring the cracking tools or we would have needed to hunt down some hammers!!!).

Our guests all departed a bit before sunset for their respective drives home. Mr. E and B were able to get the fire pit lit and flaming despite the heavy wind, but I opted to stay inside out of the smoky and breezy conditions. The rest of the family made s'mores to wrap up the evening.

Sunday morning was a bit hazier, but I still enjoyed my looping walk, although the wind was so strong that I couldn't say on top of the beach wall for more than a block and had to take the alternate return route along Foster Ave. Mr. E and I left just after 10am to drive into Boston for our visit to the Isabella Steward Gardner Museum, another favorite pasttime for Mom and me. We lucked out on finding free street parking just a couple of blocks away, and I was very glad to have reserved our 11am timed tickets in advance given that a sign at the front entrance indicated that the next ticket time available wasn't until 2pm! The museum didn't have any special exhibitions on view, as they're all in transition for the next installment, so we spent our time touring the historic building, winding our way from the third floor down to the ground level and amazing courtyard. 

I do so love this museum and its history and diverse collection, eclectic display layouts, and the continual mystery surrounding the major art theft just one day before my birthday in 1990. A few decorative art items struck my radar this time, along with the famous "gold" portrait of Isabella and a pairing of another of her portraits side by side with a portrait of her husband, Jack.

The courtyard was full of brilliant pink and purple flowers, contrasting with the lined shadows from the sunroof. Such an amazing space!

We also discovered a small exterior courtyard with a winding walkway and strolled along the labyrinth-like path while admiring the shade canopy from the tall trees. I don't recall being able to access this section directly from the museum during previous trips, so it was a nice surprise.

Our visit ended with lunch at Cafe G, where we sat at a table on the patio in the shade (perfect weather for outdoor dining) with a great view of the historic building. We shared a salmon salad and the housemade potato chips (from the "super secret snacks & drinks menu") and then said farewell to the museum as we headed to a nearby T stop to take the Green Line to Arlington and the Public Garden for a ride on the Swan Boats.

We added to our magnet and ornament collection with some Swan Boat swag at the end of the ride, then took the T back to the car and the return journey to Marshfield. 

J and B and the boys had their own Boston adventure, going to the Red Sox game at Fenway Park and savoring a well-fought 2-1 victory over the Brewers. Mr. E and I had a shorter day, giving us time in Marshfield for a Marshall's run (Mr. E) and processing of the final four lobsters (me). When we all regrouped, Mr. E made dinner for the family: steak, ahi tuna, swordfish, and grilled zucchini, summer squash, eggplant, and asparagus. Yum!

We finished up the evening and the weekend with a fire pit redo, which was much nicer this evening since the wind had died down. S'mores for everyone!

My final morning walk was quite different yet again, this time due to the heavy fog that impacted visibility so much that I could barely see the ocean from the top of the beach wall and couldn't really see much more than three houses in front of me. The rain that had been threatening earlier came in with a sudden and strong downpour in the morning, but luckily that didn't affect any of our plans. J was able to go to morning yoga class for the third day in a row as well, and I know she appreciates having that nearby studio for her daily practice.

Mr. E and I headed back to Boston just before 10am to catch our return flight to Sac. We were early enough to grab food in the United Lounge, although our timing was a bit off and we missed the breakfast buffet since we didn't arrive until after 11am. Drat! Our trip home was uneventful, with no delays, and we we reunited with the kitties just before 7pm, giving us plenty of time to unpack, do some grocery shopping, and get ready for the rest of the work week.

This was a really wonderful trip filled with special activities and memories and celebrations of Mom. I'm so glad we could bring her home to the East Coast. She's still with us every day in so many different ways, but she definitely belongs back on that side of the country. Love you, Mom. Thank you for being such a wonderful Mom, for always supporting me, and for loving me no matter what I did (or didn't do). I think of you often and hold you with me, always.